Talent That Tony Khan Should Sign To AEW's Roster
Since 2019, All Elite Wrestling has been showcasing a roster that includes established veterans, exciting up and comers, and top tier performers from around the world from diverse backgrounds and walks of life. And though some may criticize AEW for bringing in too many former WWE stars, it's hard to argue with their hiring strategy when a number of their biggest stars get injured at the same time and they need other members of the locker room to step up.
Clearly, Tony Khan is always looking for more talent to join the ranks of his company. Plus, after he acquired Ring of Honor in March 2022, there's a whole other promotion that he needs to fill with wrestlers. But with so many performers out there on the independent scene, he can't possibly have time to keep track of all the hottest acts right now. To help him out, we here at Wrestling Inc have compiled a list of talent that Khan should consider for AEW — if only to pop ourselves.
To be clear, we're solely focusing on talent that should be All Elite. There are plenty of names that should be on Khan's radar, but they would probably fit in better with the ROH locker room. We've also chosen to keep the pool limited to performers that aren't signed with any company that have American television/high profile streaming deals like IMPACT, MLW, NWA, and technically NJPW. But with the Forbidden Door always in play, you never know who might show up where anymore. So in terms of wrestlers that could be mainstays in AEW, here are a few viable options.
Hallowicked
After making his debut in 2002, Hallowicked became a haunting presence in Chikara from their inaugural show until their unceremonious closure in 2020. The Nightmare Warrior also appeared in various promotions such as Evolve, Ring of Honor, and Dragon Gate USA, but his biggest accomplishments came in the family friendly company that made their home primarily in Pennsylvania. That's where he became the inaugural Young Lions Cup Champion, a Campeon de Parejas (tag team champion), a two-time Grand Champion, and the winner of both the 2003 Tag World Grand Prix and 2012 King of Trios tournaments.
The Broadsword of Nazmaldun didn't build up a resume like that without putting in hard work. Just like Sting was the franchise player for WCW, Hallowicked was the franchise player of Chikara and he never really got the recognition that he deserved outside of the Chikarmy. Now if he were given a chance in AEW, he could show the whole world his impressive arsenal of skills that he's built up over the course of his 20-year career — many of which he passed on to a number of wrestlers on the Indies today during his time as a trainer at the Chikara Wrestle Factory. Plus, with the recent introduction of the AEW Trios Championships, the spooky-faced brawler from Sleepy Hollow could join forces with any combination of his long-time partners Ultramantis Black, Frightmare, or Delirious.
Laynie Luck
There are countless people in the wrestling industry who work hard to hone their craft. However, it seems like Laynie Luck worked hard enough that she improved massively in a short amount of time. The Party Unicorn emerged on the scene in 2015, but it wasn't until 2017 that Laynie's party started to turn into a rager. Chicagoland promotions like Zelo Pro, RISE, and Freelance Wrestling started to feature her prominently on their shows, as well as Booker T's Reality of Wrestling in Texas.
Eventually, Laynie put in such a considerable amount of time into her training that it paid off in 2019. She defended the Zelo Pro Women's Championship against Shotzi Blackheart and Kylie Rae on an Impact Wresting event. Along with her partner (in the ring and in life) GPA, Laynie has shown that she can have layers to her character, as she has gone from the fan favorite fun-loving party girl to one of the biggest heels in Freelance right now. And in 2021 and 2022, Luck received opportunities on ROH and AEW to show a larger audience how entertaining she can be. With such a deep well of talent in AEW to learn from, she has the potential to be the next AJ Lee or Bayley for Tony Khan if given the right storyline. But more importantly, she'll be the first Laynie Luck, and that's something that the AEW audience should see.
Sunshine Machine (Chuck Mambo & TK Cooper)
Currently the tag champs of the UK's Revolution Pro and PROGRESS, the Sunshine Machine is bringing the good times back to wrestling. Chuck Mambo and TK Cooper have spent a good amount of time in stables and other tag teams throughout the years, but since coming together in 2019, they have proven that they're a winning combination. Not only do they have the skills to form a championship-caliber tag team, but they've also shown that they each have their fair share of charisma and in-ring prowess. In other words, they're good at wrestling and they're fun to watch. In fact, they almost have a similar vibe to WWE teams RK-Bro or Shinsuke Nakamura and Rick Boogs.
While they haven't made their way to America as a team just yet, fans in the USA can watch their escapades on Peacock as the NBC streamer also hosts new shows from PROGRESS Wrestling. Tony Khan should take a peek and bring the Sunshine Machine over to AEW and test their mettle against some of the best tag teams in the world. After all, it's well-documented that his company highly values tag team wrestling. With teams like The Acclaimed, Private Party, the Butcher and the Blade, the Lucha Bros, and the Young Bucks, there's plenty of competition for these young guns to step up to between the ropes.
Janai Kai
All Elite Wrestling fans may recognize Janai Kai as Thunder Rosa's student who challenged Jade Cargill during the build up to the TBS Championship Tournament semifinals. But the Kick Demon has a lot more to offer Tony Khan's company than a five-minute squash segment and a few matches on "Dark" and "Dark: Elevation."
After making her debut in 2018, Kai spent most of her time in American Combat Wrestling and other indies in Florida. She started to blow up after her stint in RISE, where she faced off with the future Big Swole, Rosemary, and Ray Lyn. After a light 2020, she hit the ground running in 2021 by appearing at GCW, ROH, Beyond Wrestling, SHIMMER, Warrior Wrestling, and many more.
Kai incorporates mixed martial arts into her professional wrestling to take down her opponents. Her striking game is unparalleled right now, thanks to her proficiency in kickboxing and Muay Thai. With her level of violence and technique, she might be the perfect fit for the Blackpool Combat Club. She could face off with other literal heavy hitters like Marina Shafir, Leyla Hirsch, Nyla Rose, or even her former teacher Thunder Rosa. Either way, her bloodied smiling face after a knock down, drag out brawl would be the type of thing to make the BCC proud.
Besties In The World (Matt Fitchett and Davy Vega)
While they can work singles, Mat Fitchett and Davey Vega have proven to be a winning combination as a tag team for many years. The Besties In The World have collected nearly a dozen tag team championships in promotions like AAW, Black Label Pro, and EVOLVE. And whether there's friction between them or they're on the same page, the fans come together for one of the most wholesome entrances in professional wrestling today: A singalong to "Truly, Madly, Deeply" by Savage Garden complete with synchronized choreography. Who doesn't love a fan participation moment?
The Besties have faced Jay Lethal and Satnam Singh on "Rampage" and Swerve In Our Glory on "Dark: Elevation," but the real money feud here is against Best Friends. Tony Khan could call in a favor from Savage Garden, then determine who the bestest friends are in pro wrestling once and for all. Both teams have been known to employ shenanigans in the past, but they're also incredibly underrated wrestlers. Many have underestimated them throughout their careers, so if TK brought them both together in an AEW ring, they could end up blowing a lot of people away — or at the very least, deliver a match that's entertaining as hell on multiple layers. Then, when it's all said and done, the two teams could join forces after showing the world the power of friendship. As Excalibur always says, "You've got to give the people what they want!"
Max The Impaler
AEW currently has an eccentric, eclectic group of talent on their roster. What else do you call a locker room with the likes of the Living Dead Girl, a wrestling dinosaur, a number of spooky perverts, and a cowboy, among others? However, there's nothing like Max the Impaler on AEW TV right now.
Hailing from the Wasteland, the Non-binary Nightmare has been a dominating force on the independents since making their debut in 2018. Like the Legion of Doom before them, Max has borrowed some aesthetics from the "Mad Max" franchise and carved a path of destruction from IWA Mid-South to OVW to RISE, as well as other promotions. But the imposing Max took their talents to a larger stage when they started appearing in ROH's Women of Honor division. That propelled them to opportunities in NWA, Pro Wrestling Eve, and PROGRESS in the UK, and soon TJPW in Japan.
As their wrestling journey takes them around the world, they had the chance to don their armor and war paint for an AEW crowd recently. They faced Nyla Rose in a good old hoss fight and teamed with their Wasteland War Party companion Heidi Howitzer to challenge Nyla and her recent cohort Marina Shafir. Though Max was on the losing side of those contests, it seems like there's a lot more that they could do against the former AEW Women's Champion. There aren't many competitors in the AEW women's division that could match size and strength with Nyla, so hopefully Tony Khan brings Max the Impaler back to expand this rivalry a bit more.
The Hex (Allysin Kay and Marti Belle)
Allysin Kay and Marti Belle have been dominant forces in women's wrestling for some time now. Separately, they each have an impressive resume of championships across multiple promotions. They also have plenty of televised wresting experience thanks to Impact and NWA, so countless fans have had the opportunity to see them work over the years. But when they came together as The Hex and won the NWA Women's Tag Team Championships, they brought each other to the next level and elevated everyone they stepped into the ring with.
Ideally, these women would sign with a company with a thriving women's tag division to continue to assert their dominance as one of the top teams out there today. However, a number of teams are starting to form in the AEW women's division since there are strength in numbers. TayJay, Jade Cargill and her Baddies, Marina Shafir and Nyla Rose, and Penelope Ford and the Bunny have all shown that the boys don't exclusively rule the roost when it comes to tag team wrestling. With the addition of The Hex, maybe Tony Khan could kickstart a proper women's tag division in his company complete with title belts and everything. Plus, with the addition of a women's tag division, maybe it could be the final push the company needs to finally get more women's matches on "Dynamite" every week.
Jervis Cottonbelly
Professional wrestling is a lot of things. It's an art form, it's a sport, and it's entertainment, but it's also supposed to be fun. And few people know how to have fun like Gentleman Jervis Cottonbelly. Another mainstay of CHIKARA during its heyday, the World's Sweetest Man would engaged with the audience by politely shaking hands and using good manners in between delivering a thumping to his unsuspecting opponents. His whole act with the bowler hat, British accent, and bright yellow mask with a monocle could be somewhat cartoony to some, but like Bayley and Kylie Rae, he proved that you don't need to hardened and cynical to succeed in wrestling today. Like Cottonbelly said to ESPN in 2017, "I think being nice is punk rock, and I am Sid Vicious."
But if vicious is what you need, another side of Jervis has emerged over the past few years. He recently revealed himself as Kevin Condron under the mask. Rather than maintaining the illusion that these two polar opposite characters were separate, he shared that they're just two sides of the same coin. So if Tony Khan were to add Jervis to the AEW roster, he'd be getting two excellent performers for the price of one. As Cottonbelly, he could be a sweet comedic presence on the show and could even renew his rivalry with Orange Cassidy. As Condron, he could be a detestable pest as a wrestler or a manger, just as he did in WrestleCircus for a pre-SCU Scorpio Skye. Either way, this man could bring a whole lot to the AEW table.
Matt Cross
Matt Cross is another ring veteran that should have been featured on weekly television after Lucha Underground closed its doors. The former Son of Havoc is a pioneer of the independent wrestling scene that thrived in the early days of promotions like ROH and CZW. Logging over 1000 matches on his Cagematch profile, Cross has been so good for so long and he's not done yet. Even after a 20+ year career in wrestling, Cross is still going strong. He's even working on one of the longest world title reigns of all time thanks to his run in Ohio's Olde Wrestling that's currently sitting at 3,225 and counting. Another important milestone he holds is that he was part of the first match on the first show for the company that would become All Elite Wrestling.
Cross has history with Tony Khan's promotion, but he has even more history with some of AEW's competitors. He can reignite old rivalry, create new ones, and win even more championships if given the opportunity. He can also be a valuable resource for the younger talent that are still learning the ropes of the wrestling business. With his many trips up and down the open road, Matt Cross is tough enough to be utilized by AEW in many ways.
Delilah Doom
Following in the footsteps of people like Bayley (before she was a role model and the leader of Damage CTRL), the vivacious and nihilistic Willow Nightingale, and smiley Kylie Rae, Delilah Doom brings a kinetic and infectious energy with her every time she steps up and down and up and down into the ring.
With her battle cry of "Doomies Never Say Die," the frenetic fitness instructor and essentially the human embodiment of the 1980s is incredibly resilient. Learning from Funaki and Richard Simmons' VHS library. Doom has been jazzercising her way around the scene since 2014. In that time, Rainbow Brite-ly colored competitor has traveled to promotions such as Reality of Wrestling, GCW, Limitless Wrestling, RISE, and SHIMMER to challenge the likes of Shotzi Blackheart, Dr. Britt Baker DMD, Rosemary, and current NXT Women's Champion Roxanne Perez. She's even appeared on WWE and Impact Wrestling television.
With her wealth of experience, determination, and totally tubular personality, the perennial underdog would certainly stand out on Khan's roster. The neon colors help, but her positive attitude and championship-wining work ethic could add an extra dash of (Robin) Sparkles to AEW's presentation. But "The Queen of Aerobics Style" isn't all flash. Like Dustin Rhodes or Danhausen, she knows how to have fun, but also has a dark side that can be unleashed when needed. As she's shown recently as the Santino Bros. Wrestling Inner City Champion, Doom can evolve and adapt, which is a valuable asset in this business.
C4 (Cody Chhun & Guillermo Rosas)
From the very beginning, tag team wrestling has been a top priority of AEW. In addition to veterans like the Young Bucks, Best Friends, and the Lucha Bros, the company was adamant about adding up and coming tag teams to the division like Private Party and Jurassic Express to cement the future of the division. Eventually, teams like The Acclaimed and Top Flight rose through the ranks and became top contenders. And if Tony Khan were to bring in the Pacific Northwest's C4, he could potentially hit the jackpot again.
The tandem of Cody Chhun & Guillermo Rosas are relatively new as a team. They've only been teaming together since 2018 and their ascent to the top of promotions like DEFY and Prestige came to a screeching halt thanks to the pandemic. However, since returning to the ring, C4 has defeated prominent teams like Reno Scum, PPRay, the WorkHorsemen, and Violence Is Forever, and became the first ever Prestige Wrestling Tag Team Champions.
While they may have lost the titles to Midnight Heat, they still have the undeniable charisma and dynamic in-ring skills to bounce back and be better than ever. Part of that is traveling to new territories to learn and grow. Maybe a stint in AEW can elevate them to the next level and C4 could be the next All Elite home-grown sensations.
Bryan Keith
Booker T's Reality of Wrestling has produced a number of bona fide superstars over the years. If 2021 and 2022 are any indication, the next one is absolutely going to be Bryan Keith. After primarily competing for the WWE Hall of Famer's promotion from 2013 to 2020, he finally branched out of the Texas area and started appearing in Freelance Wrestling, GCW, Garden State Pro Wrestling, Limitless, and many more companies around the country.
While his intensity and Clint Eastwood-esque demeanor draws you in, his in-ring skills do all the talking for Keith. "The Lone Ranger" has a well-rounded arsenal of attacks, so he's prepared for anything. High-flyers like Trey Miguel, precision strikers like "Speedball" Mike Bailey, and technical wizards like Josh Alexander may be well-versed in their chosen styles, but Keith has some tricks up his sleeve to defend against whatever challenges await him in the ring. Whether it's a star-making bout against Yuya Uemura or a multi-person scramble match, "The Bounty Hunter" will grab your attention and keep it. Seriously, his matches against the aforementioned were wild.
If Tony Khan wants a buzzworthy competitor, there are so many dream matches to be made for the aggressive Keith and his Southern grit in AEW. Wheeler Yuta, Lee Moriarty, and Konosuke Takeshita come to mind immediately as potential opponents. However, the brutal, barbaric magic that could take place by pitting him against people like Samoa Joe, Powerhouse Hobbs, and Eddie Kingston would be incredible.