"You stabbed me in the back" - Tony Khan was angry after top star signed with WWE, says Konnan

Wrestling icon Konnan has spoken about an ugly interaction he once had with AEW President Tony Khan. The veteran wrestler discussed one of his booking decisions that caused Khan to flare up.

The incident stems from Konnan booking Dragon Lee and Dralistico to win the AAA Lucha Libre: Noche de Campeones in December 2022 from FTR, the duo of Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler.

FTR was signed with AEW, debuting in the company in 2020. Later, Dragon Lee announced that he would be going to WWE. According to Konnan, Khan wasn't happy with the idea of wrestlers on his roster losing to someone WWE-bound.

“Well, Tony went nuts, and I had to fly over there. He went off and was like, ‘Yeah, yeah, why are you doing this? I can’t believe you did this. You stabbed me in the back, and you should have told me before, " he said. [H/T rajah.com]

Tony Khan allegedly banned wrestlers from watching Royal Rumble 2023

Royal Rumble 2023 was an important pay-per-view for wrestling fans. It saw the return of Cody Rhodes to the Stamford-based company after a months-long injury hiatus and winning it from #30. Konnan revealed this on the podcast Keepin' It 100. Rhodes was among the first few wrestlers who signed with AEW in 2019.

After a fantastic stint in the company, he returned to WWE in 2022 and won the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania XL in 2024, defeating the Tribal Chief Roman Reigns.

"So I said, ‘Basically what you’re trying to tell me is you don’t want me to work with WWE again?’ He goes, ‘No, I didn’t say that. I have two witnesses saying I didn’t say that.' But bro, he had given out that day the order that if he found out anybody was watching Cody at the Royal Rumble when he returned and won, he [Tony Khan] basically gave an edict: ‘I better not find anybody watching that show,'” he said.

Tony Khan hasn't had the best relationship with WWE, and it all came to the fore during the Ratings War of 2023 when AEW Dynamite clashed with WWE's NXT. While the Stamford-based company comfortably drubbed AEW's ratings, Khan's social media posts critical of WWE personalities like Shawn Michaels and Triple H could have been the start of some mud-slinging, but WWE refrained from commenting or reacting.

News of the alleged edict might finally ruffle WWE's feathers, and it remains to be seen if the company responds.