How Eric Bischoff Thinks AEW Head Tony Khan Should Take A Cue From Paul Heyman
For several years now, Eric Bischoff hasn't been shy about sharing his criticism towards AEW, and specifically, its owner, Tony Khan. Whether it be from a business perspective or a creative one, Bischoff has often disagreed with Khan's decision-making, especially in comparison to that of WWE higher-ups Vince McMahon and Triple H, or even Bischoff himself when he ran WCW in the 1990s.
On the latest episode of "83 Weeks," Bischoff this time compared Khan to Paul Heyman. Noting his and Heyman's differences when Heyman ran ECW against Bischoff's WCW in the 90s, Bischoff stated that Khan could learn a lot from Heyman, in particular stating that Khan should avoid saying AEW was challenging WWE, something he feels Heyman never did in regards to ECW going against WCW or WWE.
"Paul did the opposite," Bischoff said. "Paul, rather than come out and say 'I'm going to be bigger than WWE' or 'I'm going to be bigger than WCW,' he didn't do that. He went the opposite direction. Lesson to be learned Tony Khan. Embrace being the underdog. Quit taking shots at the big dog in the neighborhood, because you're never going to beat the big dog. But if you embrace the fact that you're an underdog, people will support you because of that.
"And you won't create this tribalism that everybody's talking about. It was really created by Tony Khan and a lot of the talent on the roster, who were constantly taking shots at WWE. They created the tribalism, and haven't been able to deliver and become more successful and actually become a legitimate challenger. Then I think people would've gotten on board with the idea. But obviously, they haven't, and I think there's a real obvious lesson to learn by what Paul did by embracing the underdog status."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "83 Weeks" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription