Tony Khan comments on the diversity within AEW.
On November 30, Big Swole announced that she and AEW had mutually parted ways. Following her departure, Swole said her "heart just stopped being in it," that "the structure is a little off and I like to have more structure," and "there is no representation, truly, and when there is, it does not come across in the black community as genuine."
The AEW President responded to Swole on Twitter and came under fire for saying that he let her contract expire because he felt her wrestling wasn't good enough. Tony spoke about the diversity in AEW during the Revolution media scrum, noting that he is always prioritizing diversity. He also spotlighted Sonjay Dutt for the work he has done with TBS Champion Jade Cargill.
"That was always my goal and that was the point I have been eager to make. I always care about that representation. As you've seen, in recent months, there are contracts starting to expire and I can't renew everybody and in the time that's passed since then, people have seen that I'm serious, I'm going to start signing more people. Keith Lee, AQA, Swerve Strickland, and many other debuts in that time that have been great. In addition to people coming in, there will be people coming out and I try to do it based on merit. That was the point I was trying to make at the time, I'm going to evaluate people based on how good I think their wrestling is, in addition to a variety of other factors. I am always prioritizing diversity and we've made huge leaps since then. That was going into Jade's championship match and dominant run. She is a great wrestler and she has worked with, speaking of representation, Sonjay Dutt, who has done a great job with her. Sonjay represents great representation. Growing up, there was nobody who looked like me that was on TV that was pushed and had any gimmick that wasn't offensive or who could really go. Sonjay Dutt, I didn't really look up to because we are the same age and when I was in college when I first found him, I was like, 'this is a guy who looks like me who can go.' It's great having him here and he's been great for Jade. He's a great person. [Jade] is already the rookie of the year and can take it to another level in year two. I thought her match was excellent with Tay Conti, speaking of which, also great representation and had a tremendous match and has a lot to be proud of. Even though she hasn't won the title at the last two pay-per-views, she's been excellent and very typical of her," Tony said.
Tony also praised Bryan Danielson for helping train Cargill. She revealed that she was working with The American Dragon during a recent appearance on Grapsody on Fightful.
Click here to find out why Bryan Danielson is jealous of Jade.
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