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Are you surprised that Tony Khan didn’t respond on Twitter to Michael Cole’s epic burn from Elimination Chamber?
Yes and no. Yes because Tony is so thin-skinned that he seems to lash out at everything, real and perceived. No because he embarrassed himself so badly with his Ariel Helwani tweet the day before that either someone talked to him about his tweets or he had a moment of self clarity. You are right too, it was an epic burn by Cole. That’s the way you do it.
Did WWE miss its moment by not making Sami the champion at Elimination Chamber?
You know, it really all depends on what kind of fan you are. I think that as a rule, the more hardcore/AEW type of fan wants immediate gratification. They don’t want to give stories time to breathe and play out. They want everything now and they have largely been given that by both Vince McMahon and Tony Khan over recent years. Me personally? I like drama and stories that breathe. They absolutely could have put the belt on Sami and it would have been great in the moment, for sure. But I think long term it wasn’t the time. We have WrestleMania in less than two months. Cody vs. Sami won’t get the reactions that Cody vs. Roman will. Plus, I like that they didn’t wrap up Sami’s story by giving him a title win at The Chamber. To quote CM Punk, what’s next? There is a still a LOT of story to tell with Sami and Roman. I know that fans are used to a year’s worth of stories being rushed through but I love the idea of letting them play out. So to me, no they didn’t miss the moment.
So in a Q and A, you said there’s a New Japan version of Kenny Omega and a Reseda version. Honestly, is the only difference between the two who’s in charge of where he works? Is Kenny Omega actually just an aimless putz, who follows the direction of whoever has his here at the time? That’s honestly what I believe, do you agree? You get the New Japan, Kenny, because New Japan points him in the right direction. You get Reseda Kenny, because Tony has no idea what he’s doing, so Kenny follows the direction of the Bucks. So to combine 2 your questions in that Q and A, fire the Bucks and get a competent booker to get the best out of Kenny.
I don’t think Kenny is an aimless putz at all. I think that overall he does what his booker wants him to do, like a good employee. So, that tells me that New Japan finds a way to book him effectively while Tony Khan doesn’t.
Jim Cornette and Brian Last think Kenny Omega would crumble under the strict rules of WWE. Do you agree or could a WWE version of Kenny thrive?
It would all depend on Kenny and what his motivation was. If he went to WWE and listened to Paul Levesque the way that he listens to Gedo in New Japan and trusted the process, I think Omega could get over in a big way. But, he would have to commit to the process. So, it’s would be on him.
I listened to Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez on their radio show say that Tony Khan was right, Arial Helwani is a hypocrite and a fraud for appearing on WWE TV. I totally disagree with them, but by their logic doesn’t it make their radio show hypocrites for allowing New Japan to run an angle on their show?
First I wanted to state that I didn’t hear this interaction and frankly have no desire to do so. It was sent in by an Elite member I have known for 20 years and trust, so I will answer it because I trust the sender. Onto the subject.
Helwani talked about how he was excited for the Chamber in his hometown on Smackdown and then did the pre-game show. He wasn’t part of an angle! With that said, I certainly would never appear on camera for WWE or any other company. But what Helwani does is different from what I do. I have no idea how Tony’s brain works but let’s be real, Ariel Helwani is an interviewer, not a reporter. He’s not Mike Johnson or the aforementioned Dave Meltzer. I can’t say I am surprised by the statement however you sent in however, or that Tony Khan watches Smackdown in real time and tweets about it. At times I wonder if he even realizes that he isn't a fan, who is the owner of the second biggest company in America and what he says will have repercussions. The REAL issue was not Helwani, but rather the childish manner in which Khan lashed out. That is what the topic should be, not name calling Helwani. It’s like ignoring that The Titanic sunk and instead talking about the great dinner that was served before the ship went down. “Journalists” enabling Tony Khan is a big part of the reason that the AEW product is in the state that it’s in. People like me have pointed out flaws trying to get them addressed because we saw this coming and we want the promotion to succeed, but that’s another issue altogether. By any logic, allowing a wrestling promotion to run an angle on your supposed journalistic platform is egregious if you want to keep your credibility. If either of those instances show a lack of journalistic integrity it’s the latter and they certainly should not be throwing stones at Helwani after they just ran an actual angle on their show.
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