AEW President Tony Khan participated in a media conference call ahead of this weekend's Dynasty PPV in Vancouver, BC. Below are highlights of the call:
Recap by: Jason Powell, www.prowrestling.net
-Tony Khan opened the call by talking about his excitement for AEW Dynasty.
-Khan was asked about Kyle Fletcher’s injury, whether it affected plans for Dynasty, and if he’ll be back for All In. Khan said Fletcher was going to team with Kazuchika Okada to face The Young Bucks at Dynasty, plus he had plans for future TNT Title matches. Khan said he hopes Fletcher will be back for All In.
-He was asked about the possibility of holding an event at Camping World Stadium with the Jacksonville Jaguars playing their 2027 season in Orlando. Khan said it was a good idea.
-The next question asked for a comment about TNA pulling its talent from independent shows where they were scheduled to face AEW talent. Khan said he approved of MJF and Ricochet wrestling on those shows and against the TNA opponents. He said he was surprised because he thought those matches were also approved on the other end. He said he’s happy to have MJF and Ricochet on Sunday’s Dynasty pay-per-view.
-Khan was asked about Joshi talent being used more while Toni Storm is sidelined. Khan said she will be in the ROH Survival of the Fittest. He also mentioned that Hikaru Shida will team with Kris Statlander on Saturday’s AEW Collision. He also mentioned Riho.
-A write-in question pertained to Chris Jericho. Khan spoke highly of Jericho and was happy that he’s back in the company.
-Khan was asked about placing a bid for WWE in 2023. He said he was flying blind compared to the other bidders due to restrictions. He didn’t provide any additional new details.
-He was asked about AEW potentially working with Juggalo Championship Wrestling. Khan said he’s tried to be cool about letting AEW wrestlers work elsewhere when it doesn’t conflict with AEW dates. He said JCW is a cool company.
-Khan was then asked about the length of Chris Jericho’s new deal and how the discussions played out. Khan said they signed a multi-year deal, and he said he’s excited to have him back in AEW. He said Jericho had interest from multiple companies. Khan said Jericho had April 1 in Winnipeg circled on the calendar.
-Another caller brought up the MJF vs. Kenny Omega match that will headline AEW Dynasty. Khan went into promoter mode while touting the match.
-The next question asked about Chris Jericho’s place in AEW. Khan said Jericho is in fantastic shape. He spoke about Jericho facing Ricochet at Dynasty.
-Khan was questioned what his plans would have been had he been successful in acquiring WWE. Khan said this was around the time he was in free agent pursuit, which led to Kazuchika Okada, Mercedes Mone, and Will Ospreay joining the company. He said he was very focused on AEW. He said he only has the public stock information to use when determining his bid. Khan said he felt the opportunity was worth exploring. Khan said 2024 was an important year for AEW, and he felt 2025 was the company’s best year yet. Khan said he’s very excited about Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery joining forces and being led by David Ellison. Khan said he felt that the WWE opportunity was something he had to look at, and he bid what he felt was appropriate given the information he had. Thurston followed up and wondered if WWE and AEW would have formed one company. Khan mentioned again that he was busy with AEW and said he didn’t have a lot of time to think about things.
-The next caller asked for Khan’s thoughts on the United Empire. Khan said he loved having the United Empire on AEW. He said Will Ospreay asked him about bringing them in to fight the Death Riders. Khan said he thought it was brilliant. Khan said he mentioned incorporating Alex Windsor, which Ospreay liked, so they combined their ideas and reached out to New Japan Pro Wrestling. Khan said it was a fun match and he felt that AEW had a great go-home show for AEW Dynasty.
-Khan was asked what still needs to be done within AEW to make the vision Khan has for it complete. Khan used this as an opportunity to hype Dynasty and several of the pay-per-view’s matches. Khan spoke about doing your best and coming in with a positive attitude. He said he tries to do that for AEW and ROH. He said he might be able to spend 20-30 minutes with a young wrestler at ROH, whereas he may not have 20 or 30 seconds for a young wrestler at Dynamite. He said he might have an hour to spend with a top wrestler at ROH. Khan said he enjoys what he does, and every day is a great day as long as everyone is healthy.
-The next question asked if Khan and Chris Jericho had any conversations about Dynasty being the place for his first match back after Jericho’s last match was at Dynasty 2025. Khan said yes. He said Jericho had interest from other companies, but he really wanted him to stay. He said Jericho wanted to make his AEW return in Winnipeg. Khan said he thought Ricochet was a great opponent for Jericho, who agreed. Khan said things seem to be working perfectly, and it’s been very well received.
-Khan closed out the call with his final comments. Khan said the Spring BreakThru theme returns for next week’s Dynamite and Collision. He said they are building on what they did in 2025, and he’s grateful for the wrestlers and the staff. He said he thinks Saturday’s Collision is a great show heading into Sunday’s Dynasty event. He said there will be a media session on Sunday night after Dynasty.
