Why D-Von Dudley Thinks Tony Khan Needs Help Running AEW
Former WWE superstar D-Von Dudley recently discussed Tony Khan's leadership abilities in AEW, noting that endless money in a promotion does not necessarily equate to success.
On his recent appearance on the "Gabby AF" podcast, he cited WCW and TNA Wrestling during Dixie Carter's regime as examples and suggested that AEW employ the same tools TNA Wrestling has recently used to turn things around. "If they don't it's not gonna last," predicted the Hall of Famer. "It's not just gonna be around, and it's gonna be a place where nobody's gonna wanna go, regardless of how much money you throw at people."
He then made a pointed remark about AEW's President Tony Khan. "This is one of the problems that Tony Khan has — he has a lot of 'yes' people and not enough people to tell him 'no, don't do this,' because if he's in fact really running the show fully on his own then he should know better than to do something like that, and that's gonna cause nothing but negativity."
The veteran star also commented on the All In 2023 backstage fight which was recently aired on television, and stated that wasn't a good idea. "It is a sad thing that happened in the business, with the whole thing when CM Punk was there 'cause nobody should really have to go through that stuff. No company should ever have to see that but at the same token when you have the inmates running the asylum, then this is what happens."
D-Von was unimpressed with AEW's decision to air their dirty laundry and didn't understand the reasoning for doing so, other than for "cheap ratings." He likened AEW to end-stage WCW and highlighted the importance of Khan gaining control of the company to avoid a similar fate.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Gabby AF" with a H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.