"It's not always gonna be a home run" - Konnan on whether a major AEW star has gone stale
AEW's total viewership ratings have come under fire quite often over the past year. Konnan recently addressed some of the criticism that a major star has received, and defended some of the backlash he's recently gotten.
Due to being the biggest American competitor to WWE, Tony Khan's promotion not only suffers from comparisons but often his booking decisions are placed under a microscope. While some of the criticisms can be argued for, reigning AEW World Champion MJF has notably been on the receiving end of fan displeasure, despite his anticipated run to capture the title.
During the latest Keepin' It 100, Konnan dismissed a viewer's criticisms of MJF and detailed why he believes Friedman is undeserving of the backlash.
"I don’t find his act stale and tell me somebody [that’s] a more valuable player than MJF on that show? You wanna hear what he says and what he does. It’s not always gonna be a homerun. MJF has got a very great batting average as far as he’s done. He makes everything better. We can’t admit he’s stale." [01:36 onward]
One year ago on Dynamite, CM Punk and MJF went nearly 40 minutes in Chicago in one of the best TV matches of the year.
An excellent false finish and super courageous Pepsi Plunge off the top rope were the highlights of this amazing bout. https://t.co/fU3petdxmP
Dan Lambert recently shared heavy praise for The Salt of the Earth during an exclusive Sportskeeda interview and called the AEW star the "second coming of Roddy Piper."
Missed out on last week's AEW Dynamite? Catch up with the results before tonight's show right here.
Disco Inferno also notably defended MJF after he got heat online for an AEW Dynamite promo
MJF is currently embroiled in a lengthy feud with Bryan Danielson but like with Chris Jericho, The American Dragon has had to earn his shot against Friedman. Notably, the world champion had Danielson face Konosuke Takeshita and cut a promo bashing the star for his poor English.
Hey @The_MJF , I know you THINK you are intelligent, BUT here in America, We speak ENGLISH not American. Seriously? Where were you born ? 🤣 https://t.co/ZgyVsQUFLZ
During an earlier episode of Keepin' It 100, Disco Inferno addressed fans slamming Friedman for the promo.
“I’m just saying, the fake outrage from the people getting on MJF like ‘oh he didn’t need to do that racist promo.’ Look, Konnan will attest to this, and this is not racist, foreign wrestlers who do not speak English, you are going to increase your marketability and your popularity if you learn to speak English. It’s an American audience, that’s not racist." [06:33 onward]
Despite his English, Konosuke Takeshita seems to be enjoying a lot of exposure in AEW right now. With the way his push has been developing, could the star someday dethrone MJF?
If you use the quotes above, please credit Keepin' It 100 and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.