Tony Khan Comments on Him Not Wanting Fans Gatekeeping AEW & Welcoming Fans Who Want to Watch AEW with Arms Wide Open
In response to a recent fan on Twitter, AEW CEO Tony Khan stated that he would prefer that fans do not act as gatekeepers for AEW and instead wants them to welcomes all fans who want to watch AEW with arms wide open.
This fan stated “Lately fed fans are asking questions about AEW and wanting to watch it. Should we gatekeep this promotion or letting them in?” and Khan responded stating “Please gatekeep nothing, sir. Please welcome these people to AEW with arms wide open.“
Lately fed fans are asking questions about AEW and wanting to watch it. Should we gatekeep this promotion or letting them in?
— Juan Carlos (@ReneusMeister) June 3, 2025
Deonna Purrazzo Comments on Why She is “Back and Forth” on Idea of AEW Introducing Women’s Tag Titles
As noted before, AEW CEO Tony Khan revealed during this past May’s Double or Nothing 2025 post-show media scrum that he interested in the idea of potentially debuting a new Women’s Tag Team Championship in AEW in the future.
A recent episode of the Lightweights Podcast with Joe Vulpis featured Deonna Purrazzo as the guest. One of the topics discussed included Purrazzo’s thoughts about why she is “back and forth” on the idea of AEW introducing a Women’s Tag Team Championship in the company.
“I go back-and-forth on this all the time (Purrazzo responded when asked if she thinks AEW needs Women’s Tag Team Titles). I don’t love women’s tag team wrestling. It’s just not something I have a great grasp on, and I think that’s for a lot of women. I don’t necessarily think we are trained to have incredible women’s tag team wrestling matches. However, on the flip side of that, if we got more experience with a particular tag team partner — this is where I say no because I think that you need chemistry with a partner. I think it’s really important to develop a relationship with somebody and tell the audience why you’re in a tag team. When Chelsea (Green) and I became a tag team, it’s like, well, we’re best friends in real life, we travel together, we train together, we have family dinners together, we celebrate holidays together. Here is picture evidence of all of that, video evidence of our relationship. If you’re just thrown into a tag team — me and you are now gonna be a tag team, and that’s what happens with a lot of women’s wrestling. We’re just gonna pick four random people and you’re gonna have a tag team match. There’s no substance to it, there’s no rhyme or reason to it. There’s no reason you and I should work together and I feel like women don’t get the time to tell their stories and develop those relationships so that’s why I say no. On the flip side, I think it creates so many opportunities for women, a completely new division for women and particularly in AEW, there’s so many women right now, and so if you paired them up, like we’ve seen — not anymore — but Willow Nightingale and Kris Statlander were together for a long time. We understood why they liked each other. We saw Skye Blue and Julia Hart become a tag team. We understood why they were together. If we could do that with any of the girls that aren’t going to be in a World Championship title picture and create a Women’s Tag Team Title division, I think it would create amazing opportunities for us. But I’d only say yes if we’re getting the opportunity to create meaningful tag teams.”
Purrazzo also gave her thoughts about who she would be interested in teaming with for a potential tag team run in AEW.
“Yeah, I mean, I think the obvious answer is Britt Baker (is someone I’d want to team with). That’s one of my other good friends in real life and again, I’ve talked about it a bunch already. Someone I trained and traveled with and came up together with. So I think that’s the most logical answer for me. I think also too, on the flip side of that, if Madison Rayne ever wanted to be a competitor again. Right now, she’s just a women’s coach and we’ve seen her do some pre-show analysis and things like that. I think her coming back and — that’s my best friend in real life. She’s a real reason I got a lot of jobs in wrestling; in AEW, in TNA. It would be really fun to have her back in the ring.”
Transcript h/t: Fightful.com
AEW News & Notes
AEW recently released a new AEW Timelines video featuring all of the times that the AEW World Tag Team Championship changed hands in company history.
This past Saturday’s MLS game between FC Dallas and Philadelphia Union in Dallas, Texas featured Ricochet in attendance. Ricochet lit the shield for FC Dallas prior to the start of their game that day.
In a recent interview with K104, Ricochet gave his thoughts about his plans to form a new faction led by him in AEW. Ricochet stated “I’m trying to see who can really do what I need [them] to do to get the job done. There’s a lot of factors that go into that. There’s a lot of things I’m going to be looking out for. Again, it’s not going to be a quick process I don’t think.” Ricochet also gave his thoughts about the potential of him poaching talent from other factions for his new group. Ricochet stated “I mean, maybe. Maybe. I’m keeping my eye out. I got to try everybody, I got to see who’s going to work for me and it might be somebody in a faction or it might be two singles guys. It might be a tag guy. That’s the problem, I don’t know yet. I just got to do the eye test. They always say the eye test, you’ve got to see the eye test first, see who visually does what you think needs to be done. MJF, to get into the Hurt Syndicate, he had to hurt somebody, right? I’m looking for, who can do what Ricochet does and get the job done.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
AEW CEO Tony Khan recently congratulated wide receiver Trenton Irwin on Twitter for signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Khan also brought up how there was something very familiar to how Irwin looked in reference to him looking like Adam Cole in the photo posted. Khan stated “Welcome to the @Jaguars, Trenton Irwin! There’s something very familiar about you… can’t quite put my finger on it…“
Hangman Adam Page recently celebrated this year’s Pride Month on Bluesky and stated that he would have shown a photo of a rainbow of flower blooms in his yard but claimed some “asshole rabbit” ate it instead. Page stated “Happy pride month, i would show you a pic of a rainbow of flower blooms but some asshole rabbit chomped them all down in one night so now i dont know what to do. will the bee balm come back? should i eat the rabbit? are all of lifes pursuits in vain?“
In a recent interview with AEW’s Hey! (EW) show, Leila Grey gave her thoughts about how Mercedes Mone has inspired her a lot for her wrestling career and wanting a match with Mone in the future. Grey stated “Mercedes, I know you’re the top of the food chain here, but you know what? There’s a new sheriff in town. She goes by the name, the baddie, Leila Grey. I’m looking to see you in the ring. Mercedes has inspired me so much throughout the years, and I just want to get in there and show her what I got. I’ve been watching you for years. So let’s get to it. But Mercedes, you are my dream opponent, and I hope we can make it happen one of these days. Let’s do it.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In a recent interview with Rock 95 Barrie, Thunder Rosa gave her thoughts about her back injury in 2023 and how she is currently the healthiest she has been in her wrestling career so far. Rosa stated “This is the healthiest I’ve been in my career, mentally, physically, and spiritually. For all of those who are doubting or questioning my injury, or whatever, it’s proven that I was injured. It’s proven that I couldn’t defend the championship. You know, it tore my guts and my heart that I was not able to, you know, do things the right way. But, whatever happened, everything happens for a reason. So those 17 months that I was away from the ring really taught me that I’m stronger than ever, that I can win, accomplish anything that I put my mind into and also that I am super talented and super relentless and that I love what I do and professional wrestling has given me everything in life and nobody and nothing will take that away from me so haters, I’m still here.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In a recent vlog, Thunder Rosa issued a challenge to Britt Baker for a potential hair vs. hair match between the two when Baker comes back from her current abscense from AEW. Rosa stated “I threw a challenge, just a little challenge, hair vs. hair against my nemesis Britt Baker. The reason why I’m doing it is, one, I know there is money on the table. Two, she’s bonded by blood with me. She cannot get rid of my name, no matter what happens [laughs]. Ever. That gives me a lot of pleasure.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
In a recent AEW digital exclusive video, Mark Briscoe gave his thoughts about his upcoming match against Jon Moxley at Wednesday’s AEW Fyter Fest 2025 show. Briscoe stated “Y’all, Monday morning, rise and grind, baby. Salute to the working man, start of the work week. Don’t mind me. I just been scooping chicken like I’ve been doing for the better part of the last three decades. But Monday morning means one thing and one thing alone. It’s only two days till Wednesday when it’s time for me to clock in to my other job. So at this point, Jon Moxley, I’m talking straight to you. Moxley, we started off in a similar fashion in this professional wrestling game. We went through the barbed wire, the light tubes. We’ve been in the Combat Zone. Our careers were on very similar parallel paths at one point. But now, we on a collision course, because Wednesday night, we got Mark Briscoe versus the AEW World Champion, Jon Moxley. I came home last week, Thursday morning, and my 5-year-old son, 4-year-old son trailing right behind him, 2-year-old son trailing right behind him, 1-year-old son trailing right behind him, my 5-year-old boy, he said, ‘Daddy, did you quit last night when that man was choking you? Did you quit?’ I said, ‘son, hell no, I ain’t quitting. I will never quit. No matter what, that’s not what we do. We don’t quit. It was a referee stoppage. That happens.’ But now my kids are sitting there questioning me. They doubting me. ‘Daddy, did you quit?’ That hurt my heart more than anything that, more than anything that’s hurt my heart in a long time. I said, ‘no son, we don’t take the easy way out around here.’ That’s what you’ve been doing, man. You’re so tough, you’re so hard, but you can’t do nothing on your own. You got your minions. You got Claudio Castagnoli, Wheeler Yuta, Marina Shafir, but I see right through you. You can’t do it on your own. You need somebody to have your back. You don’t do it the hard way. You take the easy way out. Well, Mox, let me tell you something. That’s not what we do around here. That’s not how we do it. That’s not how them boys do it. 23 years, tag team wrestler. 13-plus-time tag team champion. I could have quit the minute that my brother moved on. My brother got up outta here and moved on up. I could’ve quit, I could’ve been done with this. But nah, trying to show my kids that ain’t no quit in me, ain’t no quit in us, that’s not how we do. So Moxley, you can try to take the easy way out all you want, but I’m a do it like a man, and Wednesday night, Imma have the wife line the kids up one by one by one by one in front the TV, they’re gonna watch daddy whoop a man’s ass. You understand what i’m saying? So be ready to man up.” (Transcript h/t: Fightful.com)
WWE NXT Ratings – July 8, 2025 – Up
ROH TV Results – July 10, 2025 – The Sons of Texas vs. Grizzled Young Veterans & Premier Athletes
Stardom Announces Full Field of Competitors and Group Blocks for 2025 5STAR Grand Prix Tournament
