CLEVELAND — All Elite Wrestling is set to make its Cleveland and Ohio debuts when their weekly television show, “Dynamite,” rocks the Wolstein Center at Cleveland State University tonight.
According to the top contender for the AEW world championship, Jon Moxley, the upstart company offers fans a mix of established veterans who made their names in other organizations around the world and young and hungry talents anxious to prove themselves on a more prominent national platform.
“It’s an energy unlike anything you see in wrestling right now, really driven by the fans, the passionate wrestling fans who are driving the engine along,” Moxley said to WKYC.com. “It’s the chance to be a part of something new and exciting and get in on the ground floor.
“If you’re a wrestling fan now, if you have ever been a wrestling fan, if you used to be a wrestling fan, this is what you’re going to want to see. This is a blending of the new school, blending the old school. This is death-defying action. It’s not called All Elite Wrestling for nothing. These are the most incredible athletes in the world. Jaw-dropping athleticism, crazy action and just an energy like you don’t see in wrestling anywhere in the world right now.”
Born out of an idea from established veterans in Cody Rhodes, Kenny Omega and Nick and Matt Jackson (The Young Bucks), all champions in other organizations, and businessman Tony Khan, AEW was formed to give wrestlers a platform to tell their own stories rather than being restricted to a format.
With wrestlers having input in their storylines and a heavy emphasis on the physical competition in the ring rather than speaking segments, AEW is the alternative to World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. that fans of the sport have clamored for since World Championship Wrestling shuttered its doors in 2001.
“Dare I say, it’s cool to be a wrestling fan right now in 2020,” Moxley said. “We’re really bringing something special back, and that’s the connection with the audience.
“The energy’s been incredible. One of the biggest differences is just the independent, rebellious spirit of a lot of the talent to go out there and be themselves, not some kind of a canned product that we produced in a factory and we’re trying it out on TV.
“These are, for lack of a better term, a bunch of cowboys, a bunch of renegades. Wrestlers in general are that, but the most rebellious, the biggest renegades are in AEW. It’s kind of in our nature, and you see that in the performances. You see that in the matches. You see that in the product.”
The idea of AEW came about after the successful “All In” independent pay-per-view event in August of 2018, and in October of 2019, they launched “Dynamite” with the goal of developing an alternative for fans and competitors alike.
“When you buy a ticket to AEW, you’re not seeing Disney on Ice,” Moxley said. “You’re seeing wild, reckless performers doing what they love to do and the biggest difference is the passion. When you see a concert or you see a dance troupe, you go to The Nutcracker, whatever it is, you want to see the performers that are really passionate about what they’re doing.
“That’s the kind of performance that inspires you. Watching AEW for a lot of fans, the wrestlers, even myself, it’s inspiring.”