Tony Khan Addresses Calls To Change AEW PPV Schedule & Runtime

If there's one common talking point when it comes to AEW pay-per-views, it's the length of them. For many fans, the shows are simply too long, even without watching the pre-shows, while others who were of that mindset in the past have since gotten used to the runtime and enjoy the shows for how much Tony Khan tries to fit onto the card. Khan was asked about the show length, as well as the pay-per-view schedule for 2026 in the Full Gear post-show media scrum, where he admitted that he has tried to not have shows on the east coast finishing too late.

"After Dynasty, I like the feedback, so I do think like, to your point, after Dynasty, I said I probably on the east coast wouldn't do a Sunday night like that again," Khan said. "Then we started doing, which worked really well, a lot of afternoon start times. I thought tonight was really great and obviously there was a lot of captivated people throughout the night. I am interested in that." Khan also noted that he looks at shows on Saturday and Sunday a little differently, as well as shows that take place on the west coast as the start times can be a little more flexible. He also enjoyed the earlier start times that came with All In Texas, Forbidden Door, and All Out, which is something he is more than happy to explore again.

One thing that Khan also noted was that his experience of going to MMA and Boxing events where the main events are starting at 1AM is something he actually enjoys, but understands that can't happen in professional wrestling. However, he did give some insight into why every AEW pay-per-view seems to reach or surpass the four hour mark (not including the pre-show). "Our contracted time from the shows has always been close to four hours...every AEW pay-per-view has gone over three-and-a-half hours. There's never been an AEW pay-per-view that went under three-and-a-half hours in the history of the company because we were contracted to do shows that go about 3:45." 

Please credit the original source when using quotes from this article, and give a H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.