Tony Schiavone On Tully Blanchard – “He’s Really Under-Utilised”
Tony Schiavone has discussed his desire to see more wrestlers utilising the experience in the AEW locker room, particularly former Four Horseman Tully Blanchard.
Blanchard debuted for AEW in 2019 as the special advisor to Shawn Spears. He continued that relationship while also advising FTR as of August 2020. While leading Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler, the duo won the AEW Tag Team Titles at All Out 2020.
More recently, Blanchard competed in his first match in fourteen years on Dynamite. Blanchard teamed with FTR to defeat Jurassic Express with Blanchard claiming the pinfall. Following that it was revealed that Blanchard and his three charges have joined MJF and Wardlow to form The Pinnacle. This group laid out Chris Jericho’s Inner Circle in their debut appearance together.
Speaking on his What Happened When podcast, Tony Schiavone stated his wish to see younger stars ask Tully Blanchard for advice. Schiavone noted that many talents might not approach him backstage due to being intimidated by the WWE Hall of Famer.
Schiavone explained:
“I just wish more people in AEW, more the wrestlers, would go to Tully for advice. I think he’s really under-utilised. Sometimes in the backstage area, this happens, I see it and I get it. Most everybody who’s working and was an old-school wrestling fan. One of the biggest is Eddie Kingston, by the way, and they just love what we’re doing here [watching classic wrestling]. They love this era. This was their f*ckin’ era. Obviously, the older guys, but even the guys who grew up in the ’90s, they remember the 80’s, right?”
“So when they see somebody like Tully, and I’m not saying Eddie Kingston, but I’m saying other guys or gals, when they see him, they’re kind of stand-offish because they respect him so much and they’re kind of intimidated by him.”
Tony Schiavone recently announced a Kickstarter to fund a graphic novel telling his life story. The former WCW announcer and comic book fan is producing the novel as an alternative to a traditional autobiography.