"A complete shoot" - Tony Khan gives backstage details on AEW Rampage segment
AEW CEO Tony Khan was interviewed by Sports Illustrated following the debut episode of Rampage last night. The first Rampage show saw Kenny Omega putting the IMPACT World Championship on the line against Christian Cage, and the latter emerged as the new titleholder from their opening bout. The TNT Championship and the AEW Women's Championship were also defended on last night's show.
Fuego Del Sol challenged Miro for the TNT title. Stakes were even higher going in because Fuego had the opportunity to earn an AEW contract by winning the match. Although he came up short, the post-match segment saw Sammy Guevara come down to the ring and announce that Fuego was getting an AEW contact regardless.
Speaking about the segment, Tony Khan revealed that only he and Sammy Guevara knew about Fuego's major moment beforehand.
"That was a complete shoot. Fuego had no idea that was going to happen." Khan continued, "Sammy was the only person I told, and Fuego was legitimately surprised to receive the contract he’s been dreaming of and chasing."
Tony Khan on the recent Rampage episode being one of the most important nights in AEW's history
Khan said the debut episode of Rampage was planned to be one of the best 60 minutes of pro wrestling in recent memory, with a packed card featuring three title matches.
The AEW president praised everyone from wrestlers to members of the production crew for doing an amazing job.
"This was one of the biggest nights in the history of the company, and it was a great show. We went in with a tremendous card of three championship matches and a plan to deliver the best one-hour wrestling TV show anyone’s seen in a very long time." Khan added, "We needed to hit a home run, and we did. Everyone across the board, including production and staff, did a tremendous job."
You can check out the results from the debut episode of AEW Rampage HERE.