What's the status of AEW?

The All Elite Wrestling house of cards might be ready to collapse.

Former WWE and AEW world champion, Jon Moxley made headlines on social media last week when "The Sessions" with Renee Paquette podcast was posted online, and he took the time to address CM Punk's recent Instagram rant. As we know, Punk claimed that Moxley originally refused to lose to him before he lashed out at Chris Jericho and The Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer.

Moxley, who usually doesn't use social media too often and rarely discusses his backstage dealings, provided his side of the story, revealing some very interesting details about the structure or lack thereof in AEW. Interestingly, the 37-year-old grappler explained that he wasn't actually under contract for the majority of his most recent stint as AEW world champion, an audible that was called after CM Punk suffered a foot injury that required surgery last May. So yes, Tony Khan booked someone to win the title that wasn't actually under contract, and in my view, that is one of the biggest indications of the flaws that he has as a promoter. Don't get me wrong, I've said it before and I will say it again, you have to credit Tony Khan for being willing to fund a pro wrestling project when he didn't have to, and even with some of the blunders of the organization, the existence of All Elite continues to benefit the industry. That being said, criticisms of Tony Khan being a "money mark" or a naive promoter that the sharks of the industry look to bleed for as much money as possible seem to be validated when stuff like this surfaces. On the podcast, Moxley mentioned that he worked a match against Desperado at a New Japan show Summer Slam weekend last August and since he didn't have an All Elite contract, he could've theoretically walked into Summer Slam with the AEW world championship. Take that into account, legally, Moxley could've signed a deal with WWE at any point during his most recent tenure as AEW champion. Nothing, other than Moxley's word, would've prevented that from happening during his reign.

Granted, Moxley is a throwback in the pro wrestling business. He's definitely a smart businessman that will maximize his earnings, but at the same time, he's not a guy that shills endless merchandise on social media or edits a weekly vlog to get popular on Youtube. Obviously, he made great money and obtained financial security as a sports entertainer, but his mindset is that of a pro wrestler. I'm sure he makes good money for it, but Moxley didn't opt to work the indies as AEW champion because he needed the extra cash to pay the mortgage. He's a guy that knows that business being done right is what allows those in the industry to make as much money as possible. Hypothetically, if he made the jump to WWE with the belt, it would've damaged the perception of All Elite and in the long run would've given him less negotiating power if alternatives to WWE are viewed as secondary career paths. So, Moxley was smart enough to know that he shouldn't take the short-end money to jump to WWE, but how did Tony Khan know that? Did Khan assume since he's "friends" with most of the roster that Moxley would put AEW first? Did Lex Luger put his WWF career first when he jumped to Nitro in 1995 when he didn't have a contract? Clearly, Tony Khan was a fan of the Monday night wars so maybe he should take a few lessons from that era.

Sure, the roster will be "friends" with Tony Khan as long as he's paying them good money. Tony trying to be friends with the talent instead of their boss is why 2022 was  known more for the chaos behind the curtain than the action in the ring. When Tony wants to hug everyone and gloat with softball questions from wannabee reporters from websites you've never heard of at the media scrums, it certainly appears that All Elite Wrestling might be a vanity project instead of a serious business venture. Does that mean that AEW is going to fold? No, but when a company plateaus, and AEW certainly has, the impact it has on the industry can erode. The novelty of the new promotion got the organization off to an optimistic start, particularly when Chris Jericho, who already had a legacy established in the sport, decided to sign a deal with the group. If Jericho was willing to be associated, it created the perception that the company had a chance to get off the ground because someone of his statue wouldn't risk being involved with  a venture that could flop.

However, the more the novelty wore off, the more that Tony's inexperience as a promoter was revealed. Pro wrestling is an ego-driven business, and while the "team effort" narrative was nice when the company launched, the harsh reality of the industry still has a much bigger role in any organization. Isn't it convenient that FTR were shipped off to ROH purgatory for pay-per-view bouts while The Young Bucks were promoted as a part of the trios champions? Did Jericho really have to beat Eddie Kingston in that barbed wire match? He's probably a great guy, but does anyone honestly want to see QT Marshal on television?

The point being, despite the initial "team effort" that was touted, All Elite Wrestling is as political as any other wrestling organization. Cody's exit right before most the backstage chaos went public will be a key point in the history of AEW when the early years of the organization are discussed. As far as the backstage turmoil, Moxley also said that AEW has more backstage drama than anywhere else he worked in his career, which speaks volumes to the lack of structure in the company. When one of the top stars makes that type of statement, it doesn't create a sense of optimism for the future.In fact, as much as AEW was seen as an alternative for talent that were bogged down in the WWE system, Moxley's comments might have some of his peers reconsider WWE as a potential option in the future, especially after the UFC merger was announced.

Unfortunately, All Elite Wrestling might be one more incident away from cementing the notion that it's Tony Khan's vanity project, not a true competitor in the industry. If the house of cards collapses, the group might become typecast as secondary, similar to the perception of TNA for many years during the Dixie Carter regime. Granted, AEW can exist as long as Tony wants to continue to sign the checks because the Khan family has a few billion dollars, but if the organization plateaus, there's a difference between simply being in existence as opposed to the progress that can be made to further establish a company.