Paul Heyman ‘absolutely’ loves that AEW exists
Paul Heyman loves the fact that AEW exists and wouldn’t mind if there were even more promotions out there pushing WWE to be the best that it can be.
During his appearance on Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Heyman discussed how the pro wrestling landscape has changed since AEW was founded in 2019. The most obvious difference is that having a “wolf across the river” immediately impacted how wrestlers are compensated. Having two major US-based promotions bidding for talent increased the salaries that wrestlers are being paid.
“I certainly hope so,” Heyman responded when asked if he thinks wrestling is in a better place because of AEW. “I mean, it sure changed the compensation packages for a lot of talent because there was a wolf across the river named Tony Khan that had a billion dollar checkbook that he could afford to pay a lot more money for talent than talent was making back in 2017, 2018, 2019. So it certainly changed the compensation for talent. And they’re on a viable network. They have a style that’s different than WWE’s. They present an alternative, if not a competitive brand.”
Repeating something he’s said before when speaking about AEW, Heyman compared the style of the promotion to Rob Van Dam vs. Jerry Lynn from 1999. He also used an ECW comparison by likening Jon Moxley to The Sandman and New Jack.
Paul Heyman not threatened by competition —
Heyman is an important behind-the-scenes player in WWE in addition to his managerial role on screen. He is not threatened by the existence of other promotions, believing that WWE has unmatched advantages like its decades-long history.
“So am I glad that they’re there? Absolutely,” Heyman said about AEW. “Love the fact that there is an alternative for an audience. Love the fact that there’s something else out there. Love the fact that there’s something that captures the imagination of the pro wrestling/sports entertainment — if we still use that phrase today — audience. I’m glad. I wish there were more promotions out there right now. It’s just going to make us work harder to be better than all of them. And we certainly have the advantage in terms of distribution and in terms of lineage of this industry.”
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.