Steve Carrier on January 9, 2019
X-Pac is joined on today’s show by comedian Mike Lawrence.
X-Pac opens today’s show by discussing a recent controversial spot between Priscilla Kelly and Tuna at an indie event. Kelly reached into her trunks during the match and pulled out a tampon and later shoved it in Tuna’s mouth. The clip went viral and Kelly defended it.
X-Pac says the spot wasn’t really his cup of tea, but he didn’t get bent out shape because of it. After watching the video he quickly realized it was an adult-themed wrestling show, and he thinks the controversy surrounding the spot was completely blown out of proportion.
Some veterans of the wrestling business have critiqued the spot, but Lawrence points out that the form of wrestling that veterans such as Jim Ross and Jim Cornette speak about doesn’t fully exist anymore, and that’s not a bad thing.
X-Pac says he was very impressed by some of the athlete achievements during last weekend’s Wrestle Kingdom event. Lawrence asks X-Pac if he thinks he could get in the ring with those guys today and X-Pac says, “F*** no!” He says he’s happy to be one of the many pioneers of that style, but these new guys have taken it to a whole new level.
He was very impressed by Chris Jericho yet again, adding that Jericho continues to keep his character fresh. After the event Kenny Omega confirmed that he’ll be stepping away from NJPW as well, and X-Pac found that quite interesting.
X-Pac says he was surprised to see Chris Jericho show up at the AEW rally yesterday, announcing his signing with the new promotion. He thought there was a chance Jericho would eventually work with AEW, but it surprised him to see Jericho get involved right from the start.
He says it’s great to hear that there’ll be equal pay for men and women but he’s interested to see how that plays out. He was also happy to hear that there will be some health coverage for AEW employees.
X-Pac welcomes AEW President, Tony Khan to the show.
Khan points out that professional wrestling hasn’t been taken serious as a legitimate sporting event in a long time, and he thinks there’s a market for that. He points out that wins and losses need to mean more in wrestling, and in AEW wins and losses will play a huge part in determining challengers for Titles.
Khan says he’s been a livelong fan of Chris Jericho, so it was very special for him to sign Jericho to AEW. It was even more special to have Jericho want to be a part of what he’s starting, and publicly stating how much he believes in this new promotion.
Khan says that professional wrestling has always been a passion for him, and whenever he had any spare time he’d cuddle up with his laptop and watch wrestling. He informs that he never wanted to invest millions into a wrestling company, but the climate has changed recently and he thinks now is the time to make something happen.
He points out that a lot of top talent are free agents right now and a bunch more will be free agents very soon, and that was very important for him as he intends to build a talented roster. He notes that AEW already has a lot of talented workers, with Cody, Pac, The Young Bucks, Hangman Page and Chris Jericho just to name a few. Through forming AEW, he truly intends to make the wrestling business better.
Khan says that Hangman Page is going to be a massive star in the wrestling business, and he truly sees Page as a main event talent in the years to come. X-Pac points out that another AEW signee, Pac, is a top five worker in the world, and he’d arguably be the top worker in the world if he worked more. Khan agrees entirely.
Speaking about current rumours that have tied Goldberg to AEW, Khan informs that he’s talked to Goldberg a few times. They’re both very passionate about football and that has led to some great conversations between them. He adds that Goldberg is a huge star and a great guy, but he hasn’t agreed to any contract with Goldberg at this point.
Khan says he’s not interested in acquiring other companies at this point. He’s lookng to start something new and build it from the ground up.
In regards to competing with WWE, Khan says AEW will not give people things they don’t like. AEW will provide a live show with spontaneity, and will be enjoyable for fans. He points out that Cody and The Young Bucks have been cultivating magic for a while, and he hopes to further that now through their partnership with added resources.
Khan clears up rumours that all AEW performers will have health coverage. He points out that a number of performers are still independent contractors, but multiple AEW performers will also have office jobs, and he will be providing all of those employees with health care packages. In regards to equal pay for men and women, he notes that some stars will earn more, but base pay will be same for men and women.
Khan notes that the biggest challenge surrounding this venture will be providing a compelling product every week. In the long term his goal is to make AEW a profitable business, noting that it’s going to take a lot of work but they’re all up to the challenge.
In terms of how AEW came together, he points out that all parties involved basically made a blood oath with each other, guaranteeing that they’re all going to give 100% to make this work. He also points out that he’s grateful for his father who has financed the project, adding that his father doesn’t invest in something if he doesn’t believe it in.
Khan points out that he can’t talk about specifics regarding television deals, but he confirms that there are multiple interested parties in AEW’s television rights.
That sums up this week’s episode of X-Pac 1, 2, 360. You can listen to the show yourself anytime here, and I’ll catch ya next week for another recap!
January 9, 2019 8:26 pm
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