Tony Khan Reflects On How AEW Balances Writing For New Fans With Hardcore Fans

AEW has a devoted following of hardcore fans, and Tony Khan recently weighed in on balancing writing for those fans against bringing in newer fans. AEW has its hardcore fanbase like any wrestling company, which Khan has always been appreciative of. The promotion has sometimes been criticized for focusing too much on those original hardcore AEW fans, which Khan addressed in an appearance on TMZ Inside the Ring.

The AEW president focused on using new talent to bring in new fans as well as lapsed fans, pointing out his bringing in new and existing stars in waves such as Toni Storm and Swerve Strickland, or more recent arrivals like JetSpeed and Thekla. He also spoke about how he balances his own wrestling fandom with handling AEW as its creative head. You can see the highlights below:

On Balancing His Wrestling Fandom vs. His Job:

“I think it is something I always take into consideration. I love wrestling, and I want to share the love of wrestling. I’ve always been — even as a kid, I would have people over to watch the wrestling shows. I’ve always been the person who wants to spread wrestling to other people, and I encourage everybody to be that like wrestling virus-spreading person that I always was…

“There are hardcore, passionate fans who are in it 52 weeks a year, like I am. And now instead of just being a fan 52 weeks a year like the three of us watch year-round and follow it year-round, I get to work in it year-round. And I’m very blessed about that. And you know, for me I think it helps a lot to be a fan of wrestling. Because to work in it 52 weeks a year, it helps me — to you know I’ve never missed a single show. I work show, every week.”

On Writing For New Fans Without Alienating Hardcore AEW Fans:

“Well, I think that the show itself embodies that, right? Because you watch the show, and it’s the best of everything for everybody. You have the original stars from the beginning of AEW that bring so much to the show and have been with us from the very beginning. Great wrestlers like Jon Moxley, Hangman Page. MJF, Orange Cassidy, Darby Allin, Kris Statlander, and great wrestlers that have been with AEW since day one. And then you have people that have come in along the way. Whether it was a few years ago, adding great stars like Timeless Toni Storm and Swerve Strickland and Samoa Joe. And you have a legend like that, and bringing in greats like Samoa Joe and Bryan Danielson, some of the greatest world champions ever…

“And then you have have great wrestlers that have just come in the past year, a whole new crop. So, I think the wrestling league is always evolving and you can always jump in, but it’s an exciting time. We’ve added more new wrestlers to AEW in the past year than in the past several years combined, building for the future. And think about all the great young wrestlers you see whether it’s Kevin Knight and Speedball Bailey, JetSpeed. And Thekla, the Women’s champion, a great new star that’s come in just in the past year and taken AEW by storm. Huge free agents that have arrived in AEW. Big stars, a new crop that came a few years ago. That was my big triangle of free agents [Okada, Mone, and Ospreay].”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit TMZ Inside The Ring with a h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.