Mercedes Mone not concerned with WWE counter-programming: ‘AEW is taking over’
Mercedes Mone isn’t fretting over WWE’s attempts to counter-program against AEW.
AEW’s pay-per-views have faced consistent competition from NXT in recent months, and it was confirmed this week that WWE will be running a main roster PLE against AEW All Out on September 20. Along with that, it was recently reported that TNA Impact could end up airing opposite AEW Dynamite on Wednesdays as part of a potential new TV deal with a WWE-affiliated network like The CW or A&E.
TV Insider asked Mone what she thinks about WWE putting on shows against AEW.
“I don’t watch them. I don’t care about them,” Mone responded. “I’m ‘Eight Belts Mone.’ I’m a champion of so many different companies. So, the more the merrier. If they want to put on wrestling shows while we have wrestling shows, I’m always going to be better. I’m always better. That’s why I call myself ‘The CEO.’ They can keep on doing whatever they want to do, but AEW is taking over. If you want to watch the best, good wrestling, watch AEW.”
AEW & NJPW’s Forbidden Door PPV this Sunday won’t face head-to-head competition from NXT. Forbidden Door is taking place from London, England in the afternoon with NXT Heatwave being held in Lowell, Massachusetts later in the night.
Mone is defending her TBS Championship against Alex Windsor, Persephone, and Bozilla in a four-way match at Forbidden Door.
Also in her TV Insider interview, Mone addressed how much power she has in terms of AEW creative.
“I work with whoever Tony wants me to work with,” she said. “That’s why I’m ‘The CEO.’ That’s why I came here because I watched the women, and said, ‘This is the place for me to be because there is so much passion and drive.’ We legit have the greatest women’s division in all of professional wrestling. The best from Toni Storm, Athena, Kris Statlander, Willow, and I can go on and on and on. I really feel like the last year-and-a-half there has been such a shift in the energy with what we bring to AEW television. We’re getting more time, more matches and more in-depth storylines. It has been such great growth. Being a part of it has been so amazing for myself and my career.”
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.