Before all else, Tony Khan is a wrestling fan. Yes, he is also a successful businessman who runs one of the biggest promotions in the world, but his undying passion for the art of professional wrestling is what spurs AEW's success.
At today's media call ahead of this Sunday's All Out show in Chicago, Tony Khan listed his top five pay-per-view events of the year so far. There has been a wide host of shows to choose from, with WWE, AEW, NJPW, and other promotions putting on some remarkable spectacles over the past eight months.
However, the AEW President noticeably disregarded all other companies when naming shows that stood out to him. Instead, he listed events put on by AEW and Ring of Honor, both of which he owns.
"I've watched every single major wrestling event this year. I would choose Revolution, Supercard of Honor, Forbidden Door, Death Before Dishonor, and AEW All In over all of them."
While this can definitely be perceived as a not-so-subtle shot at WWE, it can also be perceived as a promoter simply hyping up his product. Granted, there is certainly more than a bit of bias involved in Khan's assessment.
AEW All In is Tony Khan's biggest success to date
It is near-impossible to overstate the significance of All In for AEW as a young promotion. Not too long ago, it was unthinkable that a non-WWE event could pose any sort of real threat to the global leader in sports entertainment, but this past weekend, a four-year-old organization hosted over 80,000 people at Wembley Stadium.
However, the show was not without its faults. From a booking perspective, much of the card was seemingly thrown together with little build. The backstage incident with CM Punk and Jack Perry has also somewhat overshadowed much of the event's success.
Nonetheless, Tony Khan proved that the sky is the limit for AEW and that the promotion is not going anywhere anytime soon.