During his appearance on the most recent episode of the Battleground podcast, AEW head Tony Khan spoke on WWE counterprogramming All Out on Saturday, September 26 and also talked on Mick Foley’s role in AEW.
Back on July 6, AEW announced that it will hold the All Out pay-per-view at the NOW Arena in Hoffman Estates, Illinois on September 26. WWE announced on July 26, the AAA will take place from the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, which is about 23 minutes from Hoffman Estates.
Khan was asked about WWE counterprogramming All Out and if he see’s this as healthy competition, a compliment to AEW, or the reality of today’s pro wrestling business.
“It’s probably all of the above. I think it’s all of the above,” Khan responded. “It’s the reality of current wrestling. It’s the, frankly, predatory nature of scheduling of events. But also the compliment that says that AEW is doing very well. And Chicago is a great city for wrestling. I’m very excited about AEW All Out, and it’s not something unexpected to have competition, and I do welcome it. And I also really am excited about the run of shows coming up. Tonight, just a stacked Dynamite, a major redemption pay-per-view this weekend, and I think it’s going to put us on the course to All In and then All Out.”
WWE is also counterprogramming AEW’s All In pay-per-view on August 30, which takes place from Wembley Stadium in London, England with a start time of 1:00 pm ET. WWE is holding AAA and NXT events at the Bert Ogden Arena. The AAA show will air for free on YouTube and the NXT show will air free on the CW.
When asked about Mick Foley and his role going forward in AEW, Khan said that he thinks Foley is will be a more regular presence in the show. He did not say which show, but it is presumed to be Dynamite.
“Fittingly, these are two of the best nights in the history of the company so he picked two great nights to make his debut on pay-per-view with AEW at Double or Nothing, and on TV with AEW at Beach Break. So when Mick is in the house, you know good things are gonna happen, and Mick’s gonna be a more regular presence in the show I think. Not necessarily every single week, but, I’m excited to have Mick come in more and more.”