Tony Khan on 3-Hour AEW Dynamite & If Fans REALLY WANT a WWE Alternative

Tony Khan interview. Superstar catches up with CBS Sports' Shakiel Mahjouri ahead of 2024 AEW Double or Nothing. The All Elite Wrestling founder talks about comparisons to WWE, the potential for a 3 hour AEW Dynamite, Bryan Danielson's contract, Adam Cole's health, MJF, Mercedes Mone, Will Ospreay and more.
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Timestamps and chapters:
0:00 - Teaser
0:07 - Intro
0:42 - Neck brace
2:03 - Five years of AEW
3:03 - AEW's media rights and mission statement in 2024
4:25 - Biggest growing pains for AEW
6:09 - How injuries have impacted AEW storytelling
8:07 - Who are the new Four Pillars of AEW?
11:15 - Will Bryan Danielson re-sign?
13:35 - MJF's return
14:10 - Adam Cole injury update
15:21 - Motor City Machine Guns (MCMG) in AEW?
16:20 - Where is Ricky Starks?
18:09 - Three Hour blocks of AEW programming
22:21 - Will AEW Dynamite expand to three hours?
24:07 - Decline in live attendance
29:37 - Do people care about AEW now that WWE is better?
34:02 - AEW becoming profitable in 2025
34:56 - Growing up
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WWE Raw. WWE SmackDown. WWE NXT. AEW Collision. AEW Dynamite. All Elite Wrestling. Pro wrestling news today.
#aew #aewdynamite #wwe

[@ShakWrestling]

Do you think Bryan Danielson will re-sign with AEW? How do you feel about the product in 2024? If you enjoyed the video, please subscribe (tap the bell), hit thumbs up and leave a comment. It goes a long way to helping the channel grow. Enjoy all of what pro wrestling has to offer! Timestamps and chapters: 0:00 - Teaser 0:07 - Intro 0:42 - Neck brace 2:03 - Five years of AEW 3:03 - AEW's media rights and mission statement in 2024 4:25 - Biggest growing pains for AEW 6:09 - How injuries have impacted AEW storytelling 8:07 - Who are the new Four Pillars of AEW? 11:15 - Will Bryan Danielson re-sign? 13:35 - MJF's return 14:10 - Adam Cole injury update 15:21 - Motor City Machine Guns (MCMG) in AEW? 16:20 - Where is Ricky Starks? 18:09 - Three Hour blocks of AEW programming 22:21 - Will AEW Dynamite expand to three hours? 24:07 - Decline in live attendance 29:37 - Do people care about AEW now that WWE is better? 34:02 - AEW becoming profitable in 2025 34:56 - Growing up

[@WrestlingisTheater]

There is a Chance Maybe! Look Everyone Said the Same thing for EDGE That No Way EDGE Goes to AEW And he Did.. Product Really All of it's just oK And its Getting worse 😁

[@TheBlackamura]

What a scoop, Shak!

[@ShakWrestling]

Haha thank you!

[@SoMrStewart]

Why does nobody do follow up questions? Darby Allen and Ricky Starks rivalry??? How many times have they faced each other tony ?? In just under 4 years it's like 3 or 4 and most of them where tag team matches

[@TheBadderman]

Love you tk and aew. WHERES THE PYRO LATELY THOUGH??? I MISS IT.

[@tomvallejo2438]

Tony khan give aew a lightweight division so guys like Darby Allen , hook and some of your smaller guys could have there own division to fight for

[@tomvallejo2438]

I wish Tony khan would swollow his pride and let the guys who know about wrestling like Danial Bryant , Chris Jericho, Dustin Rhodes have them run each a show like Bryant run collision Jericho run dynamic and Dustin Rhodes run roh to make it competitive and tony just handle all the business side like tv contracts and booking places to wrestle free agents and another reason there always saying aew won’t last is because Tony is not one hundred percent only wrestling so he will never take it seriously over like the jaguars or his wembly team !

[@MMSultan18_9]

If everybody keeps listening to social media nobody will continue doing anything, it's a society problem

[@Jablonski83]

If you dont see money in Ricky Starks we arent watching the same programme. Promo + wrestling kills. mjf is a better all-rounder but few others who arent older talents have this combination.

[@greenbluntern1168]

First second was priceless 😂 "I’ll bend over for Brian" 😂 Shii Tony is such a goof

[@TheBadderman]

You've never heard the expression bend over backwards?

[@samallex6484]

We love AEW. ❤❤❤

[@ShakWrestling]

I still watch every week!

[@silxix2599]

I like 3 hours of Dynamite sonthey can do more promos and advertising cause Tony Khan likes to do more matches & likes to put on more wrestlers on TV, despite having better talent. He just likes to give everyone a chance. Sorry , but I wouldn't have Rocky Romero, The Bounty Hunter in the same show. But credit to Tony Khans heart he gives chances to all these wrestlers. In WWE, Romero be lucky to be in the main Roster & have a 5 minute match.

[@ShakWrestling]

I'd even be open to moving Rampage directly behind Dynamite full-time

[@silxix2599]

@@ShakWrestling But why keep the name Rampage if it's on the same day? Rampage needs a makeover. Presentation seems old already. I like AEW to have to have a rookie roster, like NXT, or build a better identity for ROH. Extreme Championship wrestling was hardcore, ROH it just more wrestling with an average roster.

[@Macvez]

Adam Cole was at his best in NXT.

[@goodfella1401]

That's because the talent pool was way smaller in NXT. No one is clammoring for Cole when AEW has Ospreay, Okada, Pac, Danielson, Hangman Claudio, Swerve, MJF, Darby, Moxley, Fletcher, Takeshita and so many more guys that NXT didn't have

[@drchris209]

@@goodfella1401 true AEW roster is loaded with talent battling for TV time and injuries during his AEW run set him back. However inconsistent booking and writing set him back. Wish they didn't went the devil segment while he is injured.

[@Night2RememberEnt]

It's amazing how Tony says "great question" then never answers the question. I love AEW it got me back into watching wrestling but there are a lot of issues they need to straighten out soon.

[@ShakWrestling]

Haha I tried my best

[@Night2RememberEnt]

@@ShakWrestling it was good on your part and honestly I'm sure journalists realize if they ask Tony hard questions he will never give those people another interview. I appreciate you.

[@ShakWrestling]

@@Night2RememberEnt Appreciate it! I was actually planning on asking about the total decline in viewership, particularly with Collision, but my Zoom was about to hit its 40 minute limit lol

[@MrJuyalpj]

Thank you shak for covering attendance question, and i dont know why tony isnt taking criticism, attendance have decreased please book smaller arenas tony there is no shame it will look better on tv and may be more economical, book big arenas for ppv's please.

[@Night2RememberEnt]

I agree 1000000 percent. Dynamite should be in 6000-8000 seat venues and bigger venues for ppvs.

[@MrJuyalpj]

@@Night2RememberEnt thanks its just that I want AEW to thrive and be alternative to wwe for times to come whole industry would prosper and we get to enjoy n see dream matches

[@blackjack23able]

Great Questions from Shaq👍 even if TK dodging for most of them is like Floyd Mayweather in the ring.

[@peterkhoury7196]

TK is the man, and a genuinely good person. TK saved pro wrestling!

[@ShakWrestling]

AEW is good for pro wrestling :)

[@kipster3802]

Excellent questions. Not one answer. Hey TK, what color is the sky? My favorite color is yellow..

[@blackjack23able]

😂

[@TerryAlan-bh8bc]

Wwe will hit a downturn eventually and all the marks will be whining and complaining and talking about wishing their was an alternative, when they had one with aew , and they didn’t support it when it was here . When aew dies eventually, that will be terrible for wwe .

[@ShakWrestling]

All companies will have ups and down. Hopefully everyone thrives long term

[@greenbluntern1168]

Your head was nowhere near the ground TONY!! You were in the same danger when you saw Punk choke Jungle Jackooff 😂 GOOF! Go do a bump and I’m not talking about a wrestling ring 😂

[@TelvinKipapa]

Can AEW do a brand split? Between Dynamite & Rampage.

[@user-ib6ky5os1n]

You mean Collision right? I would love if they do a brand split between Dynamite and Collision.

[@giblet1618]

For the love of God, AEW does not need to go to three hours. I’m barely entertained with the two hours.

[@jjdonnabang]

he doesn’t really answer any questions does he

[@goodfella1401]

Respectfully who gives a fuck about Ricky Starks. He's not super over, he's not a big merch seller, he doesn't sell tickets, doesn't do huge quarters and most of his matches are not looked at as legendary matches. Only great match he had was with Danielson and that's because Danielson is truly one of the greatest wrestlers ever. That's of almost 5 years in AEW where he got to feud with Punk and MJF for the world title. He's above average because of his promo skills but in AEW he isn't even top 30 overall when you combine in-ring and promo skills

[@TheBadderman]

He's not a big deal imo

[@Jablonski83]

Well if you can't see talent what can I say. He has potential to be a top 3 promo in aew and can wrestle really well. Jack Perry is streets away in both talents but is getting a huge push.

[@TheBadderman]

@@Jablonski83 he's fed brained. Why showcase him?

[@Jablonski83]

@@TheBadderman maybe now is too late to showcase. But aew has had 3 ppvs he could have worked and lost in. He definitely would have drawn more eyeballs than Trent and lower midcarders who have featured

[@TheBadderman]

@@Jablonski83 he's made it clear he's following Cody. Why waste TV time on him? He was being pushed as tag champ etc.. when things weren't so obvious he was leaving.

[@BEEFSERPENT]

TONY NEEDS TO BE MORE OF A BOSS THAN A FRIEND AND HIRE SOMEONE TO HELP WITH CREATIVE AND STORYTELLING

[@blackjack23able]

-Film Cornette

[@brokenkayfabe]

he only trust's himself do do these interviews. Its gotta be a tough life. i remember when AEW felt authetic and genuine. Now it feel like Tony Khan looks

[@EazySCT]

Love the channel bruh but I'd rather listen to my wife talk to me about potting soil for a half hour than listen to Tony Khan talk in circles about anything. I'll catch the next one ✌️

[@GODSHAYTE]

You commented “I can’t wait to see Darby in a wheelchair before he’s 40” so I’m sure you’re such a great viewer lost. What trash.

[@blackjack23able]

It was a great Interview TK mentioned you..

[@mof4104]

I tried… but he is unbearable

[@keithcaldwell1871]

A lot of empty seats last night and you want to go for three hours losing money just come down

[@davidcoombsbestmegadethalb9780]

wrong

[@BBSPIDEY232]

It makes me mad as a fan of this company that he is pretty much following the blueprint that made WCW fall. He needs a guy to help with stories and bookings. Has the greatest roster in history and doesn’t know what to do with it. Best women’s roster to date and they usually get only one match on PPV events. The women need tag team titles. Remember he has ROH too. He has signed so many people and wasted their talents. To have Jay White as a mid card guy is a disgrace. I’m just going to enjoy it AAC long as it last. If he doesn’t get someone to go with creative it’s not going to last.

[@stuckintheinbetween]

TNA and WCW had LOTS of "help" with "stories and booking." They had tons of legends, tons of great minds, they had writers, and they produced some of the most rotten content ever seen in professional wrestling at their worst. The same can be said for WWE for the last 10-15 years. They had LOTS of writers and we got Bobby Lashley slapping his bottom and introducing us to his "sisters," one of which was Max Caster. Writers don't mean squat unless they're consistently competent, something the wrestling business isn't known for. The Bloodline stuff in WWE is the exception to the rule. That stuff has been consistently competent for years now, and that's why WWE's reaping the rewards. Even though I don't personally care for a lot of it and think it's a bit long in the tooth at this point, I can still appreciate that they haven't sabotaged themselves like most wrestling companies do when they have something that's hot. NWO, for example. WWE needs to be careful, though, when it comes to Bloodline additions. If they keep adding people, they'll go the same route as the NWO.

[@corycraig6109]

Jay white is overrated

[@THEATTKID]

Oh, hush. Nothing you said made sense. You clearly weren't around during WCW. You're not an AEW fan. You're a WWE fan farming for engagement. Screw you, crybaby.

[@josepolanco1534]

This makes no sense. WCW failed cause they only signed old washed up guys. Kept changing bookers after Bischoff got canned. And they didn’t have people in charge that cared about wrestling

[@ExplosivoFueled]

jay white’s good! but do i put him above swerve? ospreay? joe? okada? mox? takeshita? danielson? so on and so forth. like we shouldn’t be throwing tantrums that jay white isn’t world champ or whatever when there are a bunch of extremely talented other guys in that field and jay is still being showcased every week. i mean, he’s a current champion! he’s doing fine for himself!

[@deathbag]

TK Rules. I love AEW!

[@silxix2599]

Some argue about transparency, but wrestling figures when interviewed on podcast are full of crap, just listen to the questions ask to them, to Nash, Bischoff, Vince McMahon, HHH, Russo they never talk straight, they all have dumb excuses, and some like to curse a lot. Meanwhile Tony tries to say as much as he can. He can't be open about everything. Just because he's open to more interviews doesn't mean he has to say it all. You never had Vince McMahon do much podcast at all. Imagine how many questions Vince McMahon would've dodged over the last twenty years. But Vince McMahon is too smart to do many interviews. And the one's he does had filtered questions or edited answers.