Subhojeet Mukherjee on January 2, 2025
AEW has faced challenges and experienced a gradual decline over the past year, and the company continues to receive lots of criticism for its overall product. That being said, Dax Harwood has now come to AEW’s defense amid severe online backlash.
While speaking to WrestleZone, Dax Harwood defended AEW against online criticism, saying that wrestling fans will always have their opinions and stick to them, even when facts are presented. He said that’s okay, as fans are allowed to feel the way they do.
Harwood mentioned that over the past couple of years, it seems like AEW has been criticized more often, but that’s normal for wrestling companies. He pointed out that WCW had its share of problems in the ’90s, like with PN News and the Dungeon of Doom, but back then there wasn’t social media to make those complaints louder.
“I think wrestling fans are going to have their perception of things, and regardless of what is presented to them as fact, they’re still going to hold onto that perception—and that’s okay. They’re allowed to have that.
For some reason, over the last year and a half or two years, it feels like it’s been easier to put AEW under fire, and that’s okay too. All wrestling companies go through that. If you look back at WCW from ’89 to ’95 or ’96, there were a lot of questionable things that fans complained about—PN News, Dungeon of Doom, and so on. The difference is they didn’t have the platform of social media like today.”
Dax admitted it can be hard to read negative comments because everyone in AEW works hard—no one takes a night off. He reminded people that AEW is still a young company, only five years old, and is still learning and growing. He addressed comparisons to WCW, saying it’s not fair because WCW had decades to build its foundation, while AEW started from scratch on national TV. He stated that AEW is still figuring out what works while trying to offer something different from the competition.
“Fans are going to have their opinions and perceptions, and that’s okay; they’re allowed to. It can be hard sometimes to read those criticisms because if you watch our show, there’s not one person—whether talent or staff—who’s taking a night off. We’re all busting our asses, especially as a very young company. AEW is only five years old—a toddler, really.
People like to compare us to WCW, but WCW had an infrastructure built over decades, with equity built up over time. AEW didn’t have that. We started from the ground up, directly on national television. We’re still finding our footing, still learning what works and what doesn’t, all while trying to offer something different from what fans see in the competition.”
Harwood said there’s no “us vs. them” mindset in AEW. He wants other companies to succeed because he has friends there, but he also wants AEW to grow. Having multiple successful companies gives fans and wrestlers more options. If fans don’t like one product, they can watch the other. If wrestlers aren’t happy in one place, they can move somewhere else and still make a living.
“There never was this ‘us versus them’ mentality—it was only ever something among the fans. Personally, I want the other company to be more successful than they are now because I have a ton of friends there. I also want AEW to be more successful because it gives wrestlers and fans a viable option for decades to come. If they don’t like one product, they can watch the other. If wrestlers don’t like how they’re treated in one place, they can come here and make money too.”
Finally, he explained that fans will always have their own views, and AEW just has to make the best out of any situation, whether they’re given two minutes or 20. The goal is to build trust with the fans so that they’ll want to pay to see AEW shows. Once fans are willing to pay, that’s when AEW will know they have truly made it.
“But going back to the question about fans: they’re going to have their perceptions, and all you can do as a wrestling company is take what you’re given—whether it’s two minutes, 20 minutes, or six minutes—and make the best of it. Consistently build your equity with the fans to the point where they want to pay money to see you. When fans want to pay to see you, that’s when you’ve got them—that’s when you’re finally over.”
Even MJF previously hit back at AEW detractors who claimed that everything is falling apart in AEW. Regardless, Harwood will never fail to defend Tony Khan’s company against constant criticism and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.
What are your thoughts on Dax Harwood’s defense of AEW and his views on the company’s growth? Do you believe AEW is on the right track to build trust and long-term success with fans?
Please credit Ringside News if you use the above transcript in your publication.
January 2, 2025 7:13 am
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