everal legends from the wrestling business have questioned how Tony Khan runs his company, and now The Undertaker is the latest industry great to suggest he should not be leading the creative side of AEW.
There is no denying the impressive amount of talent AEW has. Behind WWE, the company has the best assemblage of wrestlers in the industry. And from bell to bell, a case can be made that they deliver the best in-ring product in the world. However, just good wrestling isn’t enough to deliver a successful sports entertainment show in 2024.
Despite a very expensive roster to compete with the might of WWE, owner Tony Khan has overseen a company that went from being a revolutionary force in the business to a show struggling to fill up half of the arena for events and delivering record-low ratings on TNT and TBS.
Several legends from around wrestling — including former WCW President Eric Bischoff — have publicly complained about the troublesome direction of AEW with Khan overseeing the booking. Well, this week the Undertaker surprisingly was the latest wrestling great to question Khan being in charge of the company.
The Undertaker questions Tony Khan’s leadership of AEW
“Hopefully one-day AEW gets their crap together and genuinely creates some competition,” the Undertaker said during a new Six Feet Under Q&A on his Patreon account. “That’s probably not a popular take from most WWE insiders but the way I look at it, competition, it’s only gonna make you better. I have nothing against the man but I don’t know that Tony is the guy to run the company.
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“I mean his heart’s in a good place and he wants to do something but I just don’t know that he has the acumen to run a wrestling company against the juggernaut that is the WWE,” he added. “But hey, I could be wrong. There was that one other time I was wrong. But I hope they get it together and we do have some [competition]. It’s better for the wrestlers, it’s better for the audience, the fans. It’s better for everything.”
Khan is one of the co-founders of AEW and has helped to fund much of it with his own money. Considering his own investment in the brand, and deep love for the industry, it is hard to imagine he will release control of creative any time soon.
