Jericho vs. Cardona

News surfaced following the Ring Of Honor tapings that were held after Dynamite this week that Matt Cardona, who is also scheduled for the Game Changer Wrestling event at the Hammerstein Ballroom in January, will challenge Chris Jericho for the ROH championship at the Final Battle pay-per-view later this month at the same venue.

As I wrote in an article last week, Ricky Starks, who has been MIA from All Elite Wrestling since March, made a splash a few weeks ago when he showed up at a GCW event that was held in the afternoon in New Jersey to coincide with the Full Gear pay-per-view that was held that night, and it was subsequently announced that Starks would be a part of at least three GCW events, including the previously mentioned Hammerstein show. Effy, a regular for Game Changer Wrestling, made a few comments about Tony Khan on his podcast, and in response, All Elite canceled Starks from the GCW line-up.

As I said in the column, it's doubtful that AEW decided to run the Hammerstein Ballroom in an attempt to hurt GCW, but rather that it was an attempt by Tony to replicate that the original ROH ran Final Battle there in the past as well. I also pointed out that both promotions could be in a lose-lose situation, as nobody would feel bad for a billionaire, and it's certainly helpful for GCW to maintain some momentum when they have access to the All Elite talent pool when needed.

The fact that it's pointless that Ricky Starks is being kept under contract if Tony has no intention of using him is a different matter that was discussed in the prior article.

However, this latest development of Cardona, who isn't under contract to All Elite, being brought in to challenge Jericho adds some sizzle and quite frankly some purpose to what would be a rather pointless ROH card otherwise. This isn't meant as a knock on any of the talent, as they are working with the platform that they've been given, but my view on Tony's purchase of ROH is the same today as it was three years ago. Attempting to run ROH as its own project just dilutes the overall goal of All Elite Wrestling, and the biggest asset that Khan bought was the extensive video library with early footage of dozens of stars of the modern era. The hundreds of live events and hundreds of episodes of television in the catalog would be a very solid foundation to launch a streaming service that could ultimately be used as a platform for AEW content.

The bottom line is, running ROH as its own project only takes away, at least to some degree, valuable resources that should be used for All Elite Wrestling. The AEW brand is what has the best chance to be truly established as a force within the industry, not just an existence that puts a product on television. In order to make the most of the opportunity to establish that alternative, the resources, not just money or talent, but also the booking, ticket sales, and platform within Tony's wrestling project should be devoted to the brand that has the best chance to be most successful. Quite frankly, all things considered, the continued existence of Ring Of Honor today is essentially a vanity project within a vanity project, if that's possible. Clearly, Tony was a fan of the original ROH, and there's nothing wrong with that, but what exactly is he hoping to accomplish with the name in the modern era? Nothing of importance truly happens within the current ROH, and that's based on the way it's presented more than anything else. It simply muddies the water of the goals of AEW. The numbers for All Elite have been sluggish, the goal should be to improve that before any resources are put into a secondary project that offers less exposure than the witness projection program.

Still, for whatever reason, Tony Khan seemingly wants to continue with his version of ROH, and while I doubt the potential Cordona involvement would boost the ROH brand for the Tony Khan side of the equation, it could make things very interesting for the GCW show at Hammerstein in January.

If I had to guess, GCW owner, Brett  Lauderdale, who said when he was asked about Effy's comments said that he had never spoken to Tony Khan, might've actually had a chance to have a conversation with him at some point after Stark's appearances were canceled, but prior to Cardona's involvement. If the two promoters found some common ground, perhaps the Cardona/Jericho match can be used as a way to help GCW when it's clear that they are at a disadvantage at their Hammerstein event compared to ROH running three shows there just a few weeks before.

I don't think it would be out of the question that Matt Cardona beats Jericho for the ROH title at Final Battle and then brings the belt to the GCW event in the same building. If they really want to present something unique, maybe Jericho demands a rematch for the championship at the GCW show? Again, this alone doesn't really do anything to increase the importance of the ROH belt among the All Elite landscape, but it gives GCW something to sell their show, and at the same time, it would get fans talking about the ROH championship more than anything in the past few years.

Granted, I could be completely wrong, but it's too convenient that Cardona, a guy that has continued to keep himself relevant and fresh since his exit from WWE, and a member of the GCW roster, just happened to be the wrestler booked to challenge Jericho for the ROH belt just weeks after the Starks situation.

Obviously, it's a big fish and a smaller pond type of scenario, but there's nothing wrong with that if it's productive and can increase business. Specifically after the TKO merger, the WWE has such a dominate market share, and the move to Netflix will only increase its market share, especially from an international point of view, that any other promotion with a loyal fan base should avoid making things more difficult for each group. It's difficult enough for groups outside of the scope of WWE to carve out a piece of the market, and it's even more difficult to find that profitable niche so it's better for everyone if those groups worked together when possible so that hopefully, it can be a win-win situation.

As trivial as it might sound, between inflation and the uncertainty of the current economy, some fans might be more hesitant to make those extra purchases with some of their disposable income because that money might not stay disposable income, but rather required cash for essential expenses. Basically, it becomes a tougher sell, especially around the holidays. So, from a promotional stand point, each organization will have to give fans more of an incentive to purchase tickets or order the events online. The Cardona/Jericho bout for the ROH championship, especially depending on if there's a follow-up to bring the storyline to the GCW Hammerstein show, could be the unique selling point that is successful for both events.