Tony Khan Addresses When AEW Will Be Back To ‘Full Strength’

When it comes to injuries, 2022 has hit AEW hard. The promotion has recently been without some of its top stars, including Adam Cole, Bryan Danielson, and AEW World Champion CM Punk, leaving other top stars like Chris Jericho and AEW Interim World Champion Jon Moxley to step up. No one knows this better than the man running the ship, AEW owner and CEO Tony Khan.

In an interview with the Daily Star, Khan talked about the impact injuries have had on AEW during the first half of 2022.

"Chris Jericho was the first champion in AEW's history, and the first pay-per-view was built around Chris Jericho versus Kenny Omega, and at the end of that Jon Moxley debuted," Khan said. "They were the first three champions in the history of AEW and, for the first couple of years of AEW, it was all built around [them] as champions ... At the end of 2021, all three of them were out for extended periods, for very different reasons.

"We had three new stars step in last year and really carried us in 2022 with the fights they were in ... CM Punk versus MJF, Adam Cole versus Orange Cassidy, and Hangman Page versus Bryan Danielson. Those three new faces all figured hugely, and now all three of them have been out, and it has been Jericho and Mox who've been a huge part in carrying the company through and weathering the storm. We've had such a great summer thanks to all the great wrestlers we have in AEW, but those two certainly have been a huge part of it."

That said, Khan now believes that the promotion is closer than ever to running at full throttle again, as some of these top stars return from injury.

"With Bryan Danielson back on Wednesday night, we're getting closer to an AEW at full strength," Khan said. "Seeing AEW with all of our top stars finally back at the same time would be really exciting, and I think that's where we're heading towards. The shows are getting stronger, and the roster is getting stronger and healthier every week."