10 Anti-WWE Moves AEW Made Out Of Spite

6. Sloppy Shop

Young Bucks Bobby Fish Adam Cole
AEW

Flying too close to the sun during a time where the variables were at their most unpredictable, Taz refused to hide his contempt for WWE's covid practices when he tacitly accused them of running a "sloppy shop" ahead of an aborted AEW Championship match between his man Brian Cage and then-titleholder Jon Moxley.

The planned Fyter Fest 2020 encounter was moved to Fight For The Fallen later that summer due to Moxley staying home and isolating with his wife Renee Paquette after she'd tested positive for COVID-19. The not-remotely-veiled implication was that WWE hadn't taken enough care with their protocols when the whole world was attempting to flatten the curve. Paquette - then still working for the McMahons - was deemed a victim of these, as was the cancelled match when husband Moxley played it safe.

This looked good on AEW for big relatively risk-averse at the time, but it stupidly tempted fate. Like everywhere else, Jacksonville wasn't immune from outbreaks and wrestlers are as human as everybody else. Per Taz' inspired delivery, the dig stuck - it's been shorthand for sh*thouse behaviour on either side ever since.

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett