Top 5 Fan Inspired Moments on AEW Programming

Fan and crowd interaction is considered one of the most important things to have in the wrestling business. Not only do they bring in the ticket sales, but they let you know who they consider the babyface or the heel, and from time-to-time, it gets interesting when they're included in the program.

With AEW getting closer to celebrating their one year in business, the one thing that the promotion does is listen to their fans and include their audience in their events. With the wrestlers having the free will to cut unscripted promos and have back and forth interactions with the crowd, you're bound to get some good television.

From a cosplayer that recieved the chance of a lifetime to fusing wrestling with the video game world, crowd participation has become a big part of the promotion. Here are the Top 5 crowd inspired moments from AEW shows including Dynamite.

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#5 Chris Jericho Shuts Down Hagger's Old Gimmick

There were rumors that wrestler and MMA fighter Jake Hagger was making his way to AEW after a short stay in Lucha Underground. When it was revealed that he was the newest member of Chris Jericho's faction, The Inner Circle, the crowd loved the surprise and even began chanting, "We the people."

The line was a catchphrase attached to Hagger's old gimmick of Jack Swagger from his previous promotion which was a mix of Patriotism and anti-immigration. As the crowd chanted the phrase, Jericho told them, "It was a stupid idea from bad creative and all that’s gone."

In an interview with Busted Open Radio, Hagger thanked Jericho for killing the phrase that night during Dynamite. He said it was great and it had to be done. The crowd hasn't chanted the phrase since.

Read more from the recent interview here.

#4 Fan pins Cody Rhodes during the dark segment

Nate Richardson in cosplay as Orange Cassidy

11-year-old Nate Richardson became a town hero when the fan, dressed as wrestler Orange Cassidy, was escorted into the ring upon the request of Cody Rhodes during the dark segment following an episode of Dynamite.

Cody called for an official to come to the ring where he laid on the mat and lifted his leg to give Richardson his first wrestling victory.

After the pin, Cody handed Richardson his white belt he wore during his on-air match and told the audience, "I'm getting him a plane ticket to Baltimore... He's wrestling Chris Jericho" to which the crowd laughed.

Throughout the episode, the camera kept getting a glimpse of Richardson in the crowd along with his father, Derek, who had bought his son tickets to the show for his birthday. In an interview with ABC 7 News, he said,

"As a parent, I cannot thank them enough... I cannot tell them how much that meant to him," he said.

#3 MJF Mocks Crowd at Fyter Fest

MJF insults the crowd during Fyter Fest at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach, FL.

Back in June during Fyter Fest, MJF belittled the crowd by describing the crowd at the CEO hosted event as adults who still live in their parent's basement and them having flashbacks to being shoved in lockers. He even ran the ropes only to come to an abrupt stop while displaying an arm gesture that let the crowd knew what he thought about them

As the crowd continued to boo and flash MJF with the middle finger salute, he continued to feed off the energy for four-minutes before his fatal-four way match with Hangman Page, Jimmy Havoc, and Jungle Boy. Even after all of the jokes and crude humor, the joke was on him since he didn't win.

With MJF now turning his back on his former "best friend" Cody, it's clear the most hated performer in AEW isn't here to make friends or encourage fans. And this moment was a great example of that.

#2 Jebailey with the assist from pro gamer...

CEO Organizer Alex Jebailey in the ring at Fyter Fest.

During Fyter Fest/CEO weekend, in a hardcore match against Michael Nakazawa, Alex Jebailey turned to the crowd for a weapon. Who other than his fighting game friend Professional Street Fighter player, Justin Wong, handed him a fight stick controller. Jebailey then hit Nakazawa in the gut and the back before receiving the two count near fall.

With the event taking place the same weekend as the popular gaming tournament CEO, it blended the two quite well. Jebailey and Kenny Omega are well-known friends as well and the two manage to bring together their favorite pastimes every year. Even Omega and the Young Bucks got a loud reaction as they came out dressed as a characters from Street Fighter later that night.

What made this match even more interesting was the fact that Jebailey just recovered from a leg injury before the match. To have him in the ring and receive help from the gaming community made it even more exciting to watch.

#1 Fans crutch becomes part of the chaos

Cody brawls with Jericho near the concession stands during an episode of Dynamite.

During the Dynamite segment where Cody, Dustin Rhodes, DDP, and MJF attacked the Inner Circle, a fan who was on crutches had one knocked out of his hand. Chris Jericho picked it up and hit Cody with it, but it wasn't long before Rhodes used it in retaliation.

The fan was surprised by the brawl and was left hopping on one leg. His crutch did bend after being used by Jericho and it wasn't immediately retrieved as they were trying to stop the fight. Pretty sure the fan didn't mind as he now has a crutch that can be considered a prop from the show. See the spot with the fan at 0:020.

These are just some of the examples where the crowd becomes a big role during their shows. Needless to say you can expect to see more crowd interactions with future episodes of Dynamite and future Pay-Per-Views.

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