Booker T Parallels AEW’s Roster To WCW’s: “A Lot Of Things Get Lost In The Shuffle”

During the latest episode of the Hall Of Fame podcast, Booker T discussed the depth of AEW's roster. The company has got a lot of talents under contract right now, and he believes some people get lost in the shuffle. He reflected back on WCW and how that company would hire people just so they weren't in WWE.

"Yeah, there's been a lot of guys on the show. They try to get a lot of guys on that show and highlight as many things as they possibly can. A lot of things get lost in the shuffle, of course, in doing that. WCW, back in the day, they hired a bunch of guys," he said. "Most of the guys, they just hired them just so they wouldn't go to WWE. WCW had signed a bunch of guys and they were sitting at home, making money. They just didn't want those guys to go to the WWE or back to WWE."

Recent AEW originals have not seen their contracts picked up by Tony Khan. The likes of Joey Janela and Marko Stunt have moved on from the company because of this. Rather than releasing those names, Tony opted to pay them until the end of their deals, but Booker T isn't sure if keeping guys until the end of their contracts is the right move.

"We've seen now a lot of the AEW originals contracts are coming up and they're not getting re-signed, so maybe that's the theme and the motto of Tony Khan. I think that's what I heard. He's not going to fire guys, he's just going to let their contracts run out," Booker said. "He may not use them but he's still going to pay them. I don't know if that's a recipe for success, but we will find out in the long run."

On the opposite side, WWE has become notorious for releasing its wrestlers when they're deemed surplus to requirement. Booker T believes that is because the company won't pay anybody to just sit at home.

"WWE, they're not going to pay you and let you sit at home," he claimed. "They let Mustafa sit at home for a minute, but look where he's at now? I'm going to tell you right now, WWE's motto is, 'If you work in this company, you're going to be doing something.'"

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit the Hall Of Fame podcast with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.