Future Of ROH, Athena vs. Starkz, Media Rights and more
AEW & ROH President Tony Khan held a Media Call earlier today to hype this Friday’s ROH Final Battle pay-per-view on HonorClub. Highlights from the Call can be found below.
-Tony gets asked whether there was consideration for Adam Cole and MJF to drop the ROH tag team titles due to their injuries. He says that has been taken under consideration but reiterates how important those titles are to Cole and MJF.
-Someone asks about ROH potentially getting bundled with AEW’s new deal with Warner Bros. Discovery. Tony says that ROH does offer value to AEW and to media companies. He refers to ROH as a third-entity away from AEW and Warner Bros. Discovery. He reminds the media that the tape library is one of the most valued parts of him purchasing ROH. In a separate question Tony says that the last few ROH events, including PPVs, have been some of the best in the brand’s history.
-SRS asks whether The CW was ever interested in ROH. Tony says that he did take meetings with the great folks at The CW and has nothing but nice things to say about them. He reveals that The CW wasn’t for them but that there are plenty of networks that have shown interest for AEW & ROH. He adds that a lot of possibilities opened up when ROH was purchased, citing the classic trilogy between FTR and The Briscoes as a prime example.
-The feud between Billie Starkz and ROH Women’s Champion Athena gets asked about. Tony says he’s had a blast booking the story and commends both women for the work they’ve done in telling it, especially Athena who recently reached one year as champion. He repeats himself regarding working with Athena and Billie, calling it a “great collaboration.”
-Tony gets asked about his vision for ROH going forward. He says he has enjoyed adding the great ROH matches to the wrestling ecosystem. He notes that the brand has a great blend of young hungry talents and industry veterans who can help them improve. Puts over the in-ring product as a key selling-point.
-Next question is about Athena only defending the ROH Women’s Championship on HonorClub while other ROH Champions have defended their titles on AEW television. Tony says that he’s open to Athena (or Starkz if she wins at Final Battle) appearing on AEW television and thinks that champions appearing for both brands is never a bad thing.
-Someone asks about the card for Final Battle and how Tony came up with it. Tony breaks down each match, where his headspace was for booking it, and expresses how much he wanted to honor Jay Briscoe on this show.
-Asked about if there was a discussion about having Samoa Joe drop the ROH TV title instead of simply vacating it, Khan said it was something to consider. He wanted him to be a focus of AEW and it would have been a challenge to have him defend the TV title and chase the AEW World title.
-Ethan Page’s work in ROH gets asked about. Tony puts over Page as a great talent who is doing wonderful work in ROH and recently had a great match against Kenny Omega on AEW Collision.
-Regarding HonorClub subscribers Tony says that Final Battle will be a good indication if these shows will continue to be on the subscription service or if they’ll return to PPV.
