Is Shane McMahon going to sign with AEW?
Once again, the rumour mill regarding Shane McMahon potentially becoming All Elite was fired up when a photo of a meeting with McMahon and Tony Khan surfaced online. With a McMahon in AEW now looking like more of a possibility than ever before, many are curious as to the circumstances of the leak, what McMahon in AEW would actually look like and ultimately, if it would be a viable option or if this is McMahon using the photo to facilitate a WWE return.
Discussing the topic on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer noted that wrestling shows across the board have been significantly affected in the ratings by the Olympics and believes that the photo was made public to drive viewership for the July 31st Dynamite in anticipation of a shock debut:
“Obviously, they both wanted it out there. Why would they want it out there? Well, in the case of Tony Khan, I think he wanted something to intrigue people. Look, every wrestling show has gotten destroyed by the Olympics in the ratings, which we knew going in was going to happen, and Dynamite should be no different.
So he was looking for something that would get people talking, and maybe Shane McMahon is going to be on Dynamite tonight? Hopefully, that would make a difference and they would do better in the ratings than they would have done otherwise. That was I’m sure his idea, among other things.”
With contracts remaining a prominent feature in 2024, there has also been speculation that McMahon may have met with Khan as a leverage tactic regarding a WWE return, especially as the management structure has been overhauled. In regards to this being a factor, Meltzer stated that while McMahon has looked to get back into the company, WWE is not as interested:
“With Shane, man, you just don’t know. I know Shane McMahon has looked to get back in WWE, I know that the people in charge of WWE have no interest in him. Could that change with the idea that he would be willing to go to AEW? Maybe, maybe not. Would he really be willing to go to AEW? I don’t know where his mind is. Should AEW take him? Which is probably the big question. I think that that just depends on what role you’re talking about.”
If Shane McMahon were to sign with AEW, the two biggest factors to consider are how much it would cost to sign McMahon and if the company would get a return on their investment. Addressing these factors, Meltzer noted that McMahon received a lot of money in WWE for his very limited schedule and pointed out that other big names such as Adam Copeland and Mercedes Mone have also made little movement in the ratings:
“There’s ways that you could go with it that could be intriguing. But does he want to go just as a TV character? Does he want influence, does he want power? Does he want points? I mean, those would be a no-go. Big major, major no-go. If I was Tony Khan, there’s no way. But as far as just a character what kind of money would he want?
I mean, Shane got a lot of money [for WWE]. If you compare the amount of money Shane got for the amount of work that he did when he was an active few times a year pro wrestler, was a really high number and he’s not worth that number to AEW as an active wrestler.
But if he can move numbers, I think if he did his first TV appearance when it was advertised would he move numbers? I think [the first one might] but, you know, we’ve seen whether it’s Mercedes, whether it’s Adam Copeland. A lot of these guys came in and I mean, they didn’t even move numbers big on their first try, let alone in the long term.
So I don’t know what it really means. I think the intrigue for one week might be big, but long term who knows? But look, if it’s the right storyline and the storyline is viable and you can make the storyline work. Yeah, there’s a chance he could be valuable. But, you know, will he do it? I don’t know.”
Meltzer also noted that he would not be surprised if McMahon used the meeting as a leverage play, adding that there has been “a lot of negativity” and that no one has been “begging for him to come back.” McMahon was released from WWE back in 2022 by his father Vince McMahon after his infamous backstage behaviour in the 2022 Royal Rumble, where Shane McMahon campaigned to be a more prominent feature in the match.
Shane McMahon Responds
While Tony Khan has chosen to stay silent on the matter at the time of writing, Shane McMahon released a public statement regarding the story later that day, which was read out on Busted Open Radio by Bully Ray.
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