Tony Khan names best decision and biggest regret since starting AEW
Tony Khan has named the best decision he’s made and the biggest regret he has since founding AEW.
Responding to a question on Barstool Sports’ My Mom’s Basement podcast, Khan said the best decision he’s made in his six-plus years in charge of AEW is sticking with Warner Bros. Discovery as the promotion’s broadcast partner. AEW has been with WBD since launching its programming, maintaining a strong bond even through mergers and management changes at the media company.
“I think the best decision since starting AEW was sticking with our great partners at Warner Bros. Discovery,” Khan said. “We’ve got a great thing. And we were able to build it and grow it. You know, I want to continue and we are continuing [to grow]. We’ve got TBS every Wednesday and TNT every Saturday…
“But this year we really expanded it [with the HBO Max simulcast] and we’ve been able to reach a new audience. A lot of fans, and particularly skewing younger with a younger audience, are primarily watching streaming. And HBO Max is one of the best streamers. We didn’t have that until this year. So that’s huge, and I think that’s been absolutely fantastic. That partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery has been a lifeblood of AEW.”
The HBO Max simulcast began at the start of this year as part of the new media rights deal AEW and WBD signed near the end of 2024.
When it comes to his biggest regret, Khan said not being able to feature Jay Briscoe on AEW programming before his death is “by far” the choice. Khan wanted to have The Briscoes on TV, but TNT wouldn’t allow it at the time due to homophobic comments Jay had made on social media in 2013.
Jay had apologized for the comments multiple times over the years but still wasn’t allowed to appear on AEW TV. Khan said that wouldn’t have been the case if WBD’s current leadership were in charge back then.
“I fought really hard to get Jay Briscoe on the show,” Khan said. “There were multiple times where Mark and Jay Briscoe came to Dynamite and didn’t do anything. And they just came and I brought them, and I was trying to — I kept pulling moves. It was a different time. It was a different management, it wasn’t Mr. [David] Zaslav. I could have now literally gone to him.
“I fought really, really hard to get Jay Briscoe on the show, but I really wish I’d been able to have Jay Briscoe on Dynamite just one time. And he came to the show many times. That’s my biggest regret by far.”
Khan added that, while there’s nothing he could do about this, he also wishes he got more time to work with Brodie Lee before his passing in 2020.
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.