QT Marshall Talks Cody Rhodes And John Cena Comparisons

During a recent discussion with Battleground Podcast, AEW's QT Marshall shared his thoughts on how he views his one-on-one match against Paul Wight at All Out this past September. Marshall tries to focus on positive aspects of being featured on the pay-per-view.

"At the end of the day, it's all about perspective. I was on one of the biggest pay-per-views, well, the biggest in the past 20 years, non-WWF. So, you know, I'm never going to complain about it. The fact that we were put where we were put, obviously, yeah, there has to be some sort of break in-between," Marshall explained. "And I know, obviously what was written on paper, how much time we had in the match allotted and stuff, it didn't go as long. But that's neither here nor there. I really love the buildup to it, I love telling that story with Tony Schiavone and his son.

"Listen, at the end of the day, this is my first TV run, first real TV run. So, I thought it was as great as it could be," he added. "Some people might not have liked it. Some people probably didn't love that I was on the pay-per-view, but, whatever. You know, Paul Wight, if he wasn't on the pay-per-view, they'd say, 'Oh, why wasn't he on the pay-per-view? He's a big star. Blah, blah, blah.' So, you know, you can't have your cake and eat it too."

QT Marshall's former rival but real-life business partner, Cody Rhodes, has had multiple matches lately with foe, Malakai Black. Despite Malaki performing heel-like tactics during his matches, fans have largely cheered for the dark and brooding wrestler against the AEW EVP.

"I think they were booing him especially because it's, right now, against Malakai. Malakai is cool, he's fresh, he's from [WWE], so it's like, 'Oh, okay. We're in the honeymoon phase of Malakai.' So, I did expect that. I do expect that, and on top of that, Cody is a very polarizing figure, right? He's got his own tour bus, the suits, he's rich, a reality show. It is hard on the surface to like him, but at the same time, what has he done that deserves to get booed? I don't know," Marshall said. "I punched Arn Anderson in the face, so I deserve to get booed. Malakai kicked Arn's head off, so he deserves to get booed. I'm trying to think of one thing Cody has done that deserves booing from the fans."

Top WWE stars Roman Reigns and John Cena have received similar reactions from fans at the peak of their popularity. Marshall thinks a similar phenomenon is happening with Cody, where fans are split on how to react.

"And at the same time, as long as they're making noise, I don't think that he cares one way or another. It's kind of like Cena or Roman Reigns, you know? And hey, if that's who you're going to compare him to, I don't think he's going to care that much," he added.

Marshall also gave insight on the balance AEW tries to create with bringing in free agents and molding homegrown stars to be main event players. He pointed out that some free agents that have worked in WWE or Impact their whole careers may be overwhelmed when experiencing AEW's creative freedom.

"It all depends on if they fit, especially those free agents. What they're in it for — of course, the cliché is that they want to help younger talent. Which I agree with and I've said that myself, but of course, everyone wants to be World Champion too, so it's a double-edge sword. But like I said, it really depends on the mindset of each talent. Sometimes, if they've been in WWE or Impact, they may have had a writer for the last 5 or 6 years, and then when they come to AEW, they might not have a clue what's going on because they expect us to write stuff for them. And, of course Tony comes up with ideas and stuff like that, but like, Tony is not going to write your promo for you. You know what I mean? He might give you ideas and suggestions on which road he wants you to take it down, but at the end of the day, like, we have so much creative freedom that, sometimes, it's a little bit overwhelming."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Battleground Podcast with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.