AEW has pushed the limits since day one. Tony Khan has been praised for offering a more extreme wrestling product at times, but the overuse of weapons and blood has also brought immense criticism. WWE Hall of Famer Teddy Long is now opening up on how AEW's habit of using blood is bad for business.
All Elite Wrestling recently presented its sixth annual Revolution Pay-Per-View. The highlight of the show was the bloodbath between Mariah May and Toni Storm, which saw The Timeless One walk out victorious. Two matches later, Will Ospreay defeated Kyle Fletcher in another bloody brawl, this time inside a Steel Cage. While May vs. Storm was heavily praised in general, the use of blood in this particular match was seen as a highlight by many.
The use of blood at AEW Revolution was discussed by Teddy Long, Mac Davis, and Sportskeeda Wrestling Senior Editor Bill Apter on the latest episode of The Wrestling Time Machine. Apter pointed to how WWE uses less blood because they have a PG rating and shareholders to answer to. There was praise for May vs. Storm, with Davis noting how the use of blood has a bigger impact if it's done in just one match. Long backed him up on this:
"You save it for your main event, Okay? If you've seen blood from the beginning [it takes away from the impact]. I'll give you a quick scenario... there was a time when we'd get ready to go to the ring, [before] all the matches they'd let everybody know, 'Nobody goes to the outside but the main event, keep your match n the ring!' [If every match ends up on the floor], then when the main event comes, it means nothing because they've already seen it," Teddy Long said. [From 04:57 to 05:25]
Check out the video below:
The updated lineup for AEW Dynamite this Wednesday
AEW will invade Liberty First Credit Union in Omaha, NE, on Wednesday for a live Dynamite and Collision tapings. Below is the updated lineup:
- Kris Statlander vs. Megan Bayne
- International Championship Eliminator Final: Ricochet vs. Mike Bailey vs. Mark Davis vs. Orange Cassidy
- World Championship Street Fight: Jon Moxley (c) vs. Cope
AEW will also tape the Slam Dunk Saturday Collision episode to air at 11 pm ET after the NCAA game next weekend. TNT Champion Daniel Garcia will defend against Adam Cole with everyone banned from ringside, while Hologram and Komander will face Dralistico and The Beast Mortos.
While using any quotes from the first half, please embed the exclusive video and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling.