Over the past few years, fans of professional wrestling have had a great chance to see a company grow with All Elite Wrestling. Starting with a group of hungry talent and Tony Khan to provide the funding, AEW has quickly turned into the #2 company in North America, only behind industry leader WWE. The early days of AEW are fondly remembered, but there was truly only one star bringing in fans from across the industry, and that was Chris Jericho.
Chris Jericho Was The Big Star In AEW At The Start
While speaking during the latest episode of AEW Unrestricted, Chris Jericho would discuss his influence in the early days of All Elite Wrestling. Jericho would be quoted saying the following.
“I wouldn’t say it AEW was built around me but at the risk of sounding egotistical if there was no Chris Jericho, I don’t know if the company would have gotten off the ground as quickly as it did. At the time, I was the only national superstar name that was involved. I mean besides Jim Ross but Jim Ross isn’t an on-air talent, he’s a commentator.
Keep in mind, no-one really knew Cody at that point. He’d been gone for years, and the last time we’d seen him, he was Stardust when he left WWE. And as much buzz as Kenny Omega]and Matt and Nick Jackson had, they were still mostly just regional guys. They were worldwide stars, but when it comes to national TV in the States, they didn’t have any experience with that.”
The only name that compares to the sheer scale of Jericho in early AEW was Jon Moxley. Moxley joined the company during their first PPV Double Or Nothing, whereas Jericho was there from day one. Without Jericho there however, there would be no Moxley in AEW, as Jericho was the man who convinced him AEW wasn’t some small indy.
What Is Jericho Currently Doing In AEW?
Right now in AEW, Chris Jericho is the reigning Ring of Honor World Champion. This is his eighth career reign as a World Champion, and his first time holding ROH gold. After a title defense against Bandido, Jericho would declare that he intends to destroy the brand of ROH and rebuild it in his own image, taking down every possible champion – and would call out Bryan Danielson for a match in Toronto in October with the belt on the line.
He’s also dealing with Daniel Garcia splitting off on his own, and will face Garcia & Danielson in a tag team match next week on AEW Dynamite – teaming with his original AEW protege, Sammy Guevara. Are you a fan of the current direction of Chris Jericho in AEW? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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