10 Burning AEW Criticisms Tony Khan MUST Ignore

6. "FTR Must Be The Tag Team Champions"

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AEW

"It's ridiculous that FTR were ranked no. 1 contenders for so long without getting a title shot" is a completely valid, but separate complaint.

AEW was faced with a selection headache in 2022.

FTR got over massively as babyfaces when the bold move to turn them paid off to a quite spectacular extent, so much so that the 'Road Warrior' pop instantly became a dated frame of reference. In parallel, the Acclaimed caught fire. The "scissor me, daddy ass" thing wasn't just a fun, call-and-response fad, either; the All Out classic opposite Swerve In Our Glory proved that fans had developed a strong emotional connection with the homegrown act.

They couldn't both be AEW Tag Team champions, nor could they feud over the titles. This would have diminished one or even both acts.

Khan made the choice to go with the Acclaimed, even if FTR are the superior working tandem, because the Acclaimed's popularity carried over to the Nielsens. They sold more merch, too.

Belting FTR with literally every other title he could was surely the perfect compromise, but a subset of fans don't feel that way - but since they are dwarfed by those tuning into the Acclaimed's segments on TV, Khan should ignore them.

The idea that FTR should immediately dethrone the Acclaimed is unfair and would represent bad business.

 
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Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!