Tony Khan Knew AAA’s Plan To Have WWE Talent Beat FTR

Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler established themselves as one of the greatest tag teams in the last decade. Their time in professional wrestling has been nothing short of legendary. Following a very grueling schedule in 2022, FTR decided it was time for them to take some time off from pro wrestling. They lost the AAA Tag Titles last year and it seems this was something that Tony Khan knew in advance.

Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler had arguably the best run of their career last year, as the duo won the ROH Tag Team Titles, AAA Tag Team Titles and the IWGP Tag Team Titles, carrying them around at the same time.

However, they would eventually drop all of their titles. FTR lost the ROH Tag Team Championships to The Briscoes at ROH Final Battle, lost the AAA Tag Team Champions to Dralistco & Dragon Lee at AAA Noche De Campeones, and lost the IWGP Tag Team Championships to Bishamon at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17.

According to Dave Meltzer on Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer delved deep into AEW and AAA’s plans, which included FTR dropping the AAA Tag Team Titles. Meltzer noted how Khan was aware that Dragon Lee was going to WWE because he had been negotiating with Lee at the same time. This was a surprise as Lee’s brother Rush signed with AEW and that Mexican wrestlers lately preferred AEW over WWE.

Meltzer noted that Khan was informed that the winners of the tag team match would be Rush & Dralistico, which would have been acceptable to him as it would mean a win for his wrestler (Rush) rather than a WWE wrestler. Additionally, it would have made sense for AAA as they could have had a tag team champion.

Meltzer noted that Khan was aware that FTR was going to drop the titles to Dragon Lee, who left for WWE. He added that the situation with Lee and FTR went the way it did because AEW talent were likely not going to AAA going forward.

At one point Khan must have been told that it would be Rush & Dralistico beating FTR, and that was fine since it was his guy (Rush) winning and not a WWE guy, and it also made sense for AAA because they would have tag team champions that beat FTR and could be used going forward.

At the time it went down, AAA’s side was that Lee & Dralistico were the pushed team and the advertised match, although it clearly made no long-term booking sense to put the tag belts on Lee and have him vacate the title minutes later without doing a job for them on the way out and never working there again.

I had figured the way the Lee and FTR scenario went down (since it was Lee who pinned Dax Harwood to win the title and I was surprised if AEW was down with that and even if they were they didn’t know how the rest of the night was planned to play out including WWE being granted usage of the footage when AEW was their business partner) that AEW talent probably wasn’t to AAA going forward and that AAA was trying to get in with WWE.

AEW also has issues with AAA due to their relationship with WWE. Regardless, as far as FTR is concerned, they are taking a well-deserved break and will decide their future in April this year. We’ll have to see what will become of FTR in the end.

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