Remember back at WrestleMania XIV when Mike Tyson was the guest referee for the Stone Cold vs. HBK WWE World Title match? Of course you do, it was one of the pivotal matches of the Attitude Era. It was announced last week that Iron Mike would be presenting the TNT Championship at AEW Double or Nothing. Yeah, All Elite Wrestling wants the title match to be special.
Now Mike Tyson Has To Pause His Training and Feeding His Pigeons To Travel
It’s not a matter of All Elite Wrestling bringing in Mike Tyson or any celebrity period. It’s the current climate with the pandemic. That said, it’s not even bringing someone else and possibly risking exposure. Again, it’s just that the crowd isn’t there for it. If you’re bringing in a celebrity—regardless of their popularity—or a legend to do presentation honors, there should be a nice house for the event.
All promotions still running shows are running them with no crowds. Just the wrestlers and the production staff. All Elite Wrestling is using wrestlers for the crowd which works because you get some Mystery Science Theater 3000-type riffing from the heels.
However, them bringing Mike Tyson who has always maintained some degree of popularity post-retirement is a good move. Honestly, AEW could’ve brought in Julian “The Hawk” Jackson, gave him a highlight reel, have him do an interview about how he’s looking forward to presenting the title, and put him at ringside and it would’ve been cool.
Would that have gotten the same reaction as Mike Tyson doing it? Of course not. Julian Jackson is one of my favorite boxers—for your TheOvertimer writing staff trading cards, my favorite boxer is Nigel Benn—but he’s no Iron Mike. No, it’s purely a thing about the setting.
That’s why this is also a good idea. Mike Tyson is the right presenter as he’s generating buzz at the moment since he’s training for the ring again.
AEW Double or Nothing is the right event but this is the worst possible time. The show was originally intended for Nevada—which would’ve been great, PPVs with set cities: love it—which meant that Mike Tyson would’ve been in the neighborhood.
Instead, Kid Dynamite is going to have to take a break from training, stop feeding his pigeons, and find a way to Florida to hand the TNT Championship to either Cody Rhodes or Lance Archer. AEW Double or Nothing takes place May 23.
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