Tony Khan On Why He Believes That "Wrestling Is Hotter Than Ever"
Last week AEW revealed they will be resuming touring this July, with stops in Miami, Florida, Cedar Park, Texas and Garland, Texas. On his latest appearance on Busted Open Radio, AEW President Tony Khan revealed he was happy to be heading back on the road, while assuring fans in Jacksonville that AEW would still be frequenting the area.
"Yeah, it's going to be great," Khan said when asked about touring. "I'm really excited for those shows. The show is on the road, but we're going to keep coming back to Jacksonville too. The fans have been great here and we're going to stop through regularly. I plan to not be a stranger here. We'll continue to do shows around here because I think the fans have supported us so great, in this area and people driving in from Orlando, Daytona and the surrounding areas. And tonight will be no exception.
"Its huge what they do, because fans all around the world watch Dynamite live and on DVR every week. The support we get from these live fans makes the show go round. Virtual fans are awesome, it's great. But there's nothing like having these real, live fans that we get here. And the Jacksonville fans have helped keep wrestling alive this past year. It's been awesome and now we're thriving."
Overall Khan is very pleased with both how AEW is doing and how wrestling in general is doing. He believes it's an impressive accomplishment considering how different viewing habits are for wrestling compared to the days of the Attitude Era.
"Wrestling is hotter than ever," Khan said. "This past week, to have three different wrestling shows ranked number one on their night, and to have AEW be a part of it, it's huge. And it's a great time for wrestling. I feel like we were all there, part of the peak era of fandom, and now it's a splintered audience. Things are very fragmented, it's hard to get as many people to watch something as there used to be.
"But I believe that, and I see it first hand with the NFL and the great numbers we do, if you deliver a quality, compelling product consistently, people are going to show up and watch it. And that's why we built audience and we're up year over year. And I feel like with the great card we have tonight and the big pay per view card ahead later this month, it's a great time to come and join AEW as a fan. Hopefully people like what they see tonight. I feel it's one of our best cards."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Busted Open Radio and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription