"There has been some b**ching" - Dutch Mantell gives his honest assessment of the AEW roster 

Dutch Mantell has defended Tony Khan amid MJF's fiery dispute with the AEW President. The former WWE manager also admitted that the promotion has become a landing pad for former talent.

MJF has remained the talk of professional wrestling after his digs against Tony Khan and the promotion blurred the lines between reality and storyline. The Long Islander controversially took to the mic and emulated CM Punk's famous 'pipebomb' of 2011, even going so far as to demand being fired.

The issues between Friedman and the promotion came about because of the star's unhappiness with his pay. Dutch Mantell defended Tony Khan during an interview with WSI. He credited the contracts the company gave to their talent and expressed that he felt some of the original crop of All-Elite stars were just complaining.

"I think he (Tony Khan) gives some of those guys some really good contracts in AEW. There has been some b--ching from the regulars at AEW that, 'hey we're just gonna be like TNA, we're just gonna hire every WWE guy they let go'. It's almost like AEW now is becoming a cast off, just like a fishnet for all the WWE talent that they don't work at WWE anymore." (2:01)

Tony Khan's promotion has often come under scrutiny for their recruitment of WWE alumni. The likes of Joey Janela, Marko Stunt and Cody Rhodes have departed the promotion this year, all having been All-Elite originals in 2019.

Check out the full interview below:



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Dutch Mantell worked with AEW star Jake Hager in WWE

Dutch Mantell will be familiar with some of those on the Jacksonville promotion's roster, having worked with a handful of them during his time with WWE.

One such name is the powerhouse of the Jericho Appreciation Society, Jake Hager. With Hager as Jack Swagger, Mantell went under the name of Zeb Colter and served as the former World Heavyweight Champion's mouthpiece.

They innovated their "We the People" gimmick together, going all the way to WrestleMania 29 to challenge Alberto Del Rio for the world title. They continued their work following a loss at The Show of Shows, with Cesaro eventually joining the pair to form the Real Americans stable.

Hager is currently embroiled in an intense feud with Eddie Kingston, Jon Moxley, Bryan Danielson, Santana and Ortiz, alongside the rest of his JAS stablemates. The factions are expected to battle one another in Blood and Guts at the end of the month.