Tony Schiavone Reflects On 'Closeness' Of AEW During COVID Tapings

It may seem like a long time ago, but society is still only a few years removed from the COVID-19 pandemic that gripped not just the United States, but the whole world. Through it all, pro wrestling continued on, with AEW in particular choosing to run shows out of Daily's Place in Jacksonville, Florida for over a year before the pandemic died down. And despite the circumstances, many AEW personnel and fans look back on the time as a highlight for how the promotion was able to come together.

That is certainly the view of AEW announcer Tony Schiavone. On a recent episode of "What Happened When," Schiavone reflected on that period of time and admitted that he and many others in AEW missed the bond many in the company had back then, while acknowledging how odd that was given the circumstances AEW was thrust into.

"I think that we forged a lot of great relationships during COVID, because we were in Jacksonville and we would stay in Jacksonville three or four days at a time and then take a week off and come back three or four days at a time," Schiavone said. "We worked the same venue. Tony had dinner for us all, had it catered in the hotel, so we all...there was the closeness that when we talk about amongst us, we miss. Everybody that was in AEW back then that are still with us misses those times. It was terrible, COVID was terrible, I know. But for us in AEW, it was a wonderful, wonderful time."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "What Happened When" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription