Tony Khan Credits Grand Slam For Upcoming AEW Timeslot Change

This Friday night, AEW fans will witness "Rampage" and Battle of the Belts IV back-to-back on TNT. A live version of "Rampage" will air in its usual time slot at 10 p.m. EST, while Battle of the Belts — also live — will air the following hour. 

During an interview with Comicbook.com, Khan explained how the success of "AEW Grand Slam" led to the company being granted extra programming time by Warner Bros. Discovery for Friday night, in addition to the extra 15 minutes of overrun that was tacked onto "Dynamite" last night.

"It's a great opportunity for us ... for the first time ever with that [overrun], but then we also now are going to have Friday night two hours live with 'Rampage' and Battle of the Belts," said Khan. "We do plan to keep doing Battle of the Belts, and I think it's really interesting to try it here after 'Rampage,' but also," he continued, "I know the network feels like this bodes well after doing two hours of "Grand Slam," and the second hour held up so well at 'AEW Rampage.'"

Khan mentioned how the company only got four hours of programming for a week featuring "Grand Slam" but was pleased that AEW was able to get more television time outside of those particular shows within three years of the company's launch. He admitted that it'll be a challenging week, but he feels the additional work will be worth it. In the past, Battle of the Belts has typically aired on Saturday, but, with WWE holding Extreme Rules on Saturday, October 8, that may have been a key factor in avoiding the head-to-head battle and shifting to the day before.