On the latest “Extreme Life of Matt Hardy” podcast, AEW’s Matt Hardy talked about the state of WWE and AEW and some of the big stories that have been reported on in recent weeks.
Hardy said he has heard from his friends in WWE that it is much better there since Triple H took over creative:
“From my friends there in WWE, they said it’s been an overwhelmingly positive change. They said you wouldn’t believe how different it is. I mean, you know, it’s still the same WWE. They want you to be at work on time. They want you to work hard. It’s still a pretty grueling schedule so to say, They still do the wellness test. All that is the same, but just the feeling of there’s not as much intimidation. You’re not walking on eggshells quite as much. You feel a lot more safe and sound being there currently, and it’s just a much more laid back environment. That’s what I’ve heard overwhelmingly.”
On if he feels Vince will take over creative
“I feel like even if Vince is being sincere about that, he won’t be able to control himself like that. If he is back, he is going to put his fingerprints on things. It’s just who he is. It’s absolutely who he is. There was someone, you know, I’ll just say randomly without mentioning names, who said, ‘RAW felt different on Monday. I’ve got a feeling Vince may have had his fingerprints on it’, which is interesting. I think if Vince comes back, I think he kind of continues as it is, and then you’ll see a little more influence from Vince, a little more, a little more, a little more, and then it might get back to the point where he’s going, ‘Damn it. This is my show and nobody’s better doing this to me. This is my baby. I’m gonna raise my child and I’m going to see it through.'”
On if Tony Khan has changed since the start of AEW:
“Tony is still very accessible. He’s very open to listening to ideas. He’s very open to giving a pitch and then putting a spin on it or whatever it may be, but he has definitely started to protect himself more, which he needs to do. When they’re doing meetings or whatever, there’s a security guard outside his door, and he has to do that because he has to make sure that shows are done. He has to make sure everybody’s on the same page. It’s not an easy job being the king of a wrestling promotion. It is not an easy job at all.”
“Tony has done a very good job of walking the fine line of, you know, you can go there and say, ‘Hey, when can I see you Tony?’ ‘Oh, 15 minutes and I will be free.’ ‘Okay, I’ll come back then.’ He’s always open to seeing people. I mean, he never has a closed door for someone. He is very, very open and responsive to listening to ideas and especially creative.”
Hardy feels that AEW will benefit from the rumors of a WWE sale to Saudi Arabia:
“I think now with this WWE stuff going on, especially with the rumors of, ‘Oh, my God. Is Vince gonna sell to Saudi Arabia’, which is a very controversial decision and discussion in itself, like, AEW benefits from that, because, ‘Well, I know, we got AEW. They’re very good to us, they’re good to their fans, and they seem to be run by good human beings.’ Once again, I will emphasize that Tony Khan is an amazing and phenomenal human being.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit AdFreeShows.com with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
