AEW's Chris Jericho On Working With HOOK, Wanting To Elevate Younger Talent

With Kenny Omega currently sidelined, Chris Jericho found himself a new ally in the form of FTW Champion HOOK. The duo, together known as Lion Hook, most recently defeated The Gates Of Agony (Bishop Kaun and Toa Liona) on the March 13 episode of "AEW Dynamite." Following their tag team victory, Jericho noted that he also wanted to see what HOOK was like standing in the opposing corner of the ring. As such, the two agreed to face off in a friendly singles match on the upcoming episode of "Dynamite." During a recent interview with "Gabby AF," Jericho opened up about his desire to work with HOOK, in addition to several other younger talent on the AEW roster.

"The idea of working with HOOK was something that I'd thought about for a while, and it just kind of really seemed to fit with the match that we had at Revolution with the eight-man scramble, and HOOK was in that," Jericho said. "I thought, 'Well, let's do something with this.' The story's just beginning, but I think we got some good ideas and some good stuff going on. That's kind of what my mission in AEW has been since day one – to do the best I can to elevate the younger guys. And contrary to popular belief, which you might see, it usually works. Most of the time when people work with me, they end up on a higher platform than they were prior."

Through working with veterans such as himself and AEW World Champion Samoa Joe, Jericho believes HOOK is on track to leveling up in AEW, both character and experience-wise. Since debuting in December 2021, HOOK has boasted victories over a number of seasoned performers, such as Ethan Page, Matt Hardy, and Rocky Romero. This week, he will be tasked with challenging the aforementioned Chris Jericho.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Gabby AF" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.