AEW has been housing the now-vagrant ROH ever since Tony Khan bought the promotion, but according to Jim Cornette, the pseudo-union has done very little for the stars signed to All Elite Wrestling.
After the initial January 10th, 2022, AEW Dynamite episode where Tony Khan announced his acquisition of Ring of Honor, fans were ecstatic. Unfortunately, instead of receiving a TV deal or building by itself, the promotion has silently invaded AEW.
During the latest Jim Cornette Experience episode, the WWE veteran slammed Tony Khan for booking ROH stars to simply walk in without any build-up after Prince Nana recently accompanied Brian Cage to Dynamite.
"Establish what you’re doing, don’t assume everybody already knows! That was a memo we got from Bill Watts 40 years ago," Cornette said. "Everyone – in quotation marks – knows everything, but if you’re in a stipulation match: explain it. If your promo is about someone, remember what you did in the town last time and talk about it. Make things make sense, people don’t just appear and disappear!" (02:31 onward).
Cornette then continued, likening ROH's presence in the promotion to that of a vermin infestiation.
"Infestation is appropriate, not because any of the Ring of Honor guys are cockroaches, but because by the time you see one or two, there’s a bunch more lurking around the corner! And belts everywhere!" (03:04 onward).
Jim Cornette was also not too impressed with Wardlow and Brian Cage's clash two weeks ago, questioning why the two were having a match with no build-up.
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Despite his criticisms, Jim Cornette wants Wardlow to leave AEW behind and jump to WWE as soon as possible
Even with Triple H now leading WWE, no star other than Cody Rhodes has made the jump from Tony Khan's promotion. While fans continue to clamor for the likes of Malakai Black and Andrade El Idolo to make the leap, Cornette thinks Wardlow should be next.
During an older episode of Jim Cornette Experience, the legendary wrestling manager reasoned why Wardlow would be better utilized in WWE.
"Wardlow’s goal should be to get the f**k to the WWE as quickly as possible. He has the size. He has the look. He can talk enough and that is a tailor-made place for them to get him over," Cornette said. (30:46 onward)
Some fans have recently been more critical of Wardlow's portrayal in AEW, adding some legitimacy to Cornette's assessment. But could the War Dog survive the landscape of WWE and reach heights he could never reach in All Elite Wrestling? Or is the 34-year-old set for greater things under Tony Khan's leadership?