AEW ALL OUT 2020 Updates

Tony Khan Media Briefing (9/3/2020): Full Recap & Audio Archive For AEW All Out 2020

eWrestling.com female reporter Jamie Rush (@JamieRush312) was on hand for the media conference call with AEW President Tony Khan to promote the upcoming AEW All Out 2020 pay-per-view. She wrote up the following recap of the entire media briefing, which took place at 1p/10c on Thursday, September 3, 2020.

TONY KHAN MEDIA BRIEFING (September 3, 2020)

Tony Khan held an AEW Media Briefing on September 3, 2020 from 1:00 p.m. to 1:45 p.m. (Eastern Time) that was open to fans and reporters alike.

Khan discussed the current state of AEW, what fans can expect from the ALL OUT pay-per-view this weekend, and preview the event card – including the AEW World Championship showdown between Jon Moxley and MJF, the Mimosa Mayhem match with Chris Jericho and Orange Cassidy, the AEW World Tag Team Championship match with Kenny Omega & Hangman Page vs. FTR, and the AEW Women’s World Championship battle between Hikaru Shida and Thunder Rosa. Following the briefing, Tony will engage in a Q&A session with attendees.

Media Briefing Officially Starts

Right on schedule, the media conference/briefing kicked off as the clock chimed 1:00 p.m. (Eastern Time). To begin, he announcements start for the media briefing as the host states:

“This Saturday Night AEW will broadcast the 2nd edition of ALL OUT from Daily’s Place Ampitheatre in Jacksonville, FL. What’s shaping up to be the biggest shows of the year, we have three world championship titles on the line, a 21-man casino battle royale, as well as some wildly entertaining match-ups across the board. There’s lots to cover today, we have 45mins or so, and Tony is ready to go.”

Regarding The FTW Title

Q: The first question is from Kenny McIntosh at insidetheropes.com, stating he’s excited and greets Khan. The first question regards the FTW Championship and what plans Khan and AEW have for the title.

A: Tony Khan’s answered, “The FTW title will be treated totally differently than the other titles.” Khan continues on that the FTW Championship w he’s working on a pilot, a different kind of a project, a different way the titles are defended. The TNT and AEW titles are very important, but we haven’t totally established the specifics around the FTW title. “There’s a lot in store and I’m excited about it, so I’m glad you asked,” Khan finished.

Khan On “Buy-In” Portions Of PPV

Q. They immediately go into the next question from Bill Prichard from Wrestlezone.com. Prichard asked about the Tooth and Nail Match and how it was on the Buy-In portion of the All Out card.

A. Khan responds that Hangman and MJF were part of the first ALL OUT for the “The Buy In”. Khan continued, “we try to put exciting stuff on the first hour of the show so they will want to buy the second half.”

Tony Khan finishes making a point that he loves wrestling and the wrestling economy. He says that there’s more from the Big Swole and Britt Baker feud than just this match.

The Working Relationship Between AEW And NWA

Q. The next question was given by Connor Casey from Comicbook.com Connor is told he has to un-mute his line (whoopsie!) NWA Power footage on Dynamite, we’ve seen Thunder Rosa more than a few times. “What is the working relationship between AEW and NWA as it stands?”

A. Tony begins by stating he has a good personal relationship with Billy Corgin. Khan continues on about how special Thunder Rosa was on her appearance last night on Dynamite and how he’s excited about her match with Hikaru Shida for the AEW Women’s Championship at All Out.

Khan concluded that he doesn’t believe there are going to be any more appearances on the horizon from NWA wrestlers other than Thunder Rosa.

At this point they head into questions that were submitted over the internet, they then read one for Khan.

Surprise Guests On AEW

Q. AEW has been able to keep most surprise guests a secret, even those that were pre-taped. Does a lot of work go into that? Or do you only hire those that show trustworthyness?

A. Ever so humble Khan states they are a “small company, a family business, a start-up” but continues on to say “even though we are the second wrestling company in the world” as he says he talks to people he really trusts. Khan concludes, “We have some surprises in the coming weeks, and I’m really excited.”

Khan Is Asked About Brock Lesnar’s Free Agent Status

Q. Nick Houseman from Wrestling Inc. asks a big question about Brock Lesnar’s free agent status. Have you talked to Brock? Do you have interest in Brock? The speculation about possibly finding his way into AEW?

A. Khan shuts down with this question stating, “I can’t comment on that at this time. I’ve enjoyed Brock’s work for many years, he’s a great fighter and a great wrestler. I don’t think people talk enough about what a great wrestler Brock is, but yea, I can’t comment on that. But thanks for asking.”

This is the first question where Khan wasn’t able to speak freely, which speaks volumes!

Khan Shares About His Thought Process For AEW

“There’s times where the red light goes on and it’s 7:59:59 and you realize something didn’t occur to you until you’re there in the chair. I know last night there was great wrestling in the first hour.” Khan states.

Khan says in the “Go-Home” Shows, in the first hour, put a lot of wrestling there, in the second hour, put a lot of story. Some of the story stuff in the second half with the weigh-in with Jericho and Moxley in Kansas City, Orange Cassidy coming out, that’s build to the pay-per-view according to Khan.

Khan declares, “48 weeks a year, all I think about is wrestling, wrestling, wrestling.” He continues on to share what it means to him to put on a good show

“Every week I learn a new lesson. The pandemic, has been lesson after lesson after lesson. I try not to make the same mistake twice, definitely not three times.”

Khan Continues Discussing AEW Pay-Per-Views And The Pandemic

“I look back at Revolution as a high point for us. That was a perfect day for me.” Khan shares.

When discussing this weekend’s pay-per-view, Khan states, “This year is not just about putting fans in the chairs. This weekend is going to be one of the highs.” He states he wants fans to anticipate the wrestling they will see during the show.

Khan concludes with confidence in his voice, “I can’t tell you how excited I am for this weekend. This weekend, from bell to bell, this is going to be the best wrestling you’ve seen since the pandemic!”

Khan then apologizes for the long-winded answer about the highs and lows of the pandemic and his ability to do great things with AEW.

Khan’s Take-Home Statement

“This might be the pull-out quote of the conference, but I though Double or Nothing kicked the crap out of Wrestlemania.” He adds that it was later in the pandemic, but they had been doing testing and had good testing. Khan states he was so proud of it, and they’ve come a long way since Double or Nothing.

Khan Compares AEW To A Drive-In Movie

Khan compares AEW to the drive-in movie compared to cinema. Chris Jericho said one of the highs of his 30 year career was having the crowds back. Khan compliments the staff at Daily’s Place in Jacksonville, FL and the AEW Security team. Khan states this is the only way to do live event sports shows. Khan says keep your mask on and stay in your pod. This weekend will be, one of the all time highs in the company.

At this point, the host goes back to the live lines for more questions.

Tony Khan Speaks On AEW Safety Protocols

Q. At what point did you guys decide to let fans in and what was the process for the protocols?

A. Khan reiterates much of what he just finished saying on the matter, sharing that the live shows were shut down in April. He wanted to be able to figure out all the different safety protocols first.

“My number one priority is the wrestler’s health and safety. We needed to keep the wrestlers and the crew safe and healthy.” Khan states they had great results. Khan adds, “Very very few positive cases, and we do rigorous testing.” Khan notes that watching The Tonight Show, he grabbed the idea for having crew in the crowd from them.

Khan Answers On AEW Women’s Division

Tony Khan answered a question about Thunder Rosa and Serena’s match last night on Dynamite. Khan praises Serena and Thunder Rosa. He stated they got the “semi-final” portion of the show and that they knocked it out of the park. He’s excited to see what Serena and Thunder Rosa do next.

Tony Khan On Long-Term Booking Of Talent

FTR joining All Elite Wrestling was a shock. Tony Khan and AEW have long-term plans for all of their wrestlers and story-lines. So their addition to the roster threw a wrench into the plans. At Revolution, Kenny Omega/Hangman Page and the Young Bucks set the standard for tag-team wrestling. So now FTR are going up against the AEW Tag Team champions.

Lack Of Full Roster Access And The “Covid Push”

Khan states that the pandemic changed some original plans as AEW doesn’t have access to all of it’s roster, Tony informs us that only about 30% of the roster are readily available. So it’s necessitated the addition of free agent and wrestlers being borrowed from other companies like NWA. He also said that it’s much better to add people through free agency and not because of a pandemic.

In the pandemic, people have stepped up because of availability issues. The “COVID push” as Tony put it, is a very real thing.

All Out Card Through Tony Khan’s Eyes

Q. At this point in the conference call, Tony Khan went over the various matches on the card. The card is going to have a blend of stipulation matches, cinematic matches like the one with Britt Baker and Big Swole, and the main event between Jon Moxley and MJF.

A. Khan continues on that the wrestlers are performing for the first time in front of live fans so that’s going to inject an energy into the crowd. The card top to bottom is pretty stacked for Saturday.

Khan On Cody’s TNT Championship Open Challenges:

Q. Tony Khan is asked about Cody Rhodes “open challenges” in AEW.

A. Khan shares that there are quite a few independent talents that Cody wanted to work with for the open challenges. Tony informs us that one of his favorite was Ricky Starks and he knew right away that he wanted Starks in AEW and to pair him up with Taz & Brian Cage.

On PAC Missing The Last Few Months Due To COVID-19 Travel Restrictions

Khan says that everyone, himself included, misses PAC a great deal. He goes on to share that there were big plans for his group with the Lucha Bros that were obviously nixed due to the pandemic but other guys have stepped up big-time in his absence.

Second AEW Show On TNT

Q. The final questions discussed the possibility of a second All Elite Wrestling show on TNT.

A. Tony states a second show won’t be AEW Dark or third hour on TNT.

The company’s second show will NOT be AEW Dark. Khan says that he speaks with Warner Media’s executives quite frequently and the show will be launched within the next year but those plans could be changed due to COVID-19.

Final Thoughts

AEW ALL OUT starts Sunday September 5, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. (Eastern Time). Be sure to return to Rajah.com for LIVE results and coverage!

Listen To Entire Media Conference

The September 3, 2020 full media conference can be heard below:

WRESTLING NEWS REACTION, DISCUSSION & SOCIAL MEDIA

* For late-breaking WWE & AEW news & rumors, follow our social media reporter on Twitter @MattBoone1984
* Follow the official eWrestling account on Twitter @eWrestlingCOM
* Follow the official eWrestling Facebook page at Facebook.com/eWrestlingCOM
* Chat with other fans about this article in the official eWrestling Disqus feed below, or at Disqus.com/home/forums/http-ewrestling-com

Follow Us

Results

Most Popular