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Despite putting on an action-packed card for AEW Grand Slam Australia, All Elite Wrestling has again found itself at the center of controversy, this time over using a smaller ring for the aforementioned television special. WWE veterans Bully Ray and Tommy Dreamer have given their take on the matter.
The Jacksonville-based promotion debuted in the Land Down Under with the latest edition of its special program, Grand Slam. The show aired from the Brisbane Entertainment Centre in Brisbane, Australia, and presented a star-studded card main evented by a major World Championship match. The event seems to have been a successful venture, with a rumored estimated attendance of over 10,000 people.
Unfortunately, AEW faced backlash from a section of fans on social media for using a smaller ring than usual for Grand Slam Australia. This included insinuations that the company had been negligent regarding international freight times and had to be loaned a smaller ring.
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Bully Ray discussed the subject by alluding to the complexities of transporting rings globally on a recent edition of Busted Open Radio, stating:
Top name doesn't want to enter the WWE Hall of Fame. More details HERE.
"It took the WWE years and years and years to figure out a way to get rings in every part of the world," Bully said. "I understand that Tony Khan has a gazillion dollars. That doesn't mean he ever learned the do's and the don'ts and the how's and the how-not's of getting a ring to Australia."
On the other hand, Tommy Dreamer pointed out that TNA had utilized rings of different sizes for its prior TV tapings without facing the scrutiny AEW is currently facing.
"Never saw so much concern over a ring.... Probably up until Bound for Glory, TNA has used a different ring on every television taping. ... Never invested in a ring and would always rent them out from local ring places. ... No one has ever said, 'That ring is different,'" Dreamer noted. [H/T - Wrestling Inc]
Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp has since clarified that All Elite Wrestling had always intended to use an 18' x 18' ring for Grand Slam Australia and that the company has not shipped its rings overseas to date.
Results for AEW Grand Slam Australia
After Fight for the Fallen and Maximum Carnage last month, AEW continued its streak of exciting television specials last week at Grand Slam Australia. Five matches were contested at the event, whose results were as follows:
- Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega defeated Kyle Fletcher and International Champion Konosuke Takeshita
- Mercedes Mone (c) defeated Harley Cameron to retain her TBS Championship
- Jon Moxley and Claudio Castagnoli of The Death Riders defeated Jay White and Adam Copeland in a Brisbane Bawl
- Kazuchika Okada (c) defeated Buddy Matthews to retain his Continental Championship
- Toni Storm defeated Mariah May (c) to become the new AEW Women's World Champion
It remains to be seen what Tony Khan and company have in mind for next month's Revolution pay-per-view.
