Booker T reveals why he doesn't agree with AEW signing older stars
WWE Hall of Famer Booker T has commented on AEW's decision to sign older stars and explained why younger stars need to get a push rather than veteran ones.
On his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T commented on a recent quote by Eric Bischoff, who said that a young talent like AEW's Darby Allin has to be involved and get the "rub" from a legend like Sting. Booker T, though, disagreed with Bischoff's statement and commented on AEW signing older stars.
"You know, I agree in certain aspects. A guy like Sting - Sting is an anomaly. He's different than anybody you're ever going to deal with in the wrestling business and keep their equity as long as they have just because Sting changed with the times. He figured it out. But, as far as having the older guys in the ring performing, and the younger generation watching them - I've said this, and I've said a thousand times, a lot of people like to write in the chat, 'Booker T is a cool dude, he looks good.' My thing is this, I love all those guys that look up to me in that way, but it's hard for a 15, 16, 21-year-old kid to aspire to be 56. To see a 56-year-old with the title, that's unattainable for a young kid. That kid goes, 'I got to wait till I'm 56 years old to get this kind of ring, I've got to wait that long to be a part of this game? I'm not willing to wait that long. I'm not willing to pay those kind of dues.'"
"I believe in 'respect your elders', but my new slogan is 'respect your young people' because they're the future, they are the ones that are going to do the big shows at 30-35 and hopefully they have that knowledge to be in that position. You invest in the young talent, you bring the young guys up, you give the young guys a rub, the ones that figure it out, they get it, the ones that don't, we push them to the side and we keep on rolling."
Booker T said that when he was a young star in WCW, several of the big-name stars who came from WWE, joined the promotion only for the big money that WCW was offering. He said that when he joined TNA from WWE, he tried helping the younger stars, which he didn't receive when he was in WCW.
AEW's experienced stars
AEW has several experienced stars on their roster who have been in the pro wrestling business for a long time.
Current AEW stars like Sting, Chris Jericho, Dustin Rhodes, Billy Gunn, Paul Wight, Christian Cage, and Matt Hardy have been in the pro wrestling business for 25 years or more.
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