10 Moves Tony Khan Must Make To Save AEW

4. Fix The Women's Division

Tony Khan ROH
AEW

Cody Rhodes coined the catchphrase "undesirable to undeniable", and it's time for Tony Khan to apply it to his women's division.

Perhaps the fact that it's still his is the problem. He knows how to book. We know this, despite his foibles, which makes his handling of the women's division all the more egregious. It's a case of apathy, not incompetence, and it simply will not do.

Short of gifting 30 minutes of TV to Allison Danger every week, which he won't do, he needs to start caring and making bold, uncharacteristic choices. He is able to preserve the big matches in the men's division because he has the trifecta of credible losers: the veteran types (Dustin Rhodes et al.), the great midcard hands (Tony Nese et al.), and the prodigious yet unrefined rookies (Lee Johnson et al.)

He does not have this luxury with the women's division, and so he should take a Gedo-esque approach and book all-star matches, spaced out, with a definitive winner and loser. And, for Christ's sake, book more than one women's match per show. It can't be overstated how strong a message that would send; as it is, the division registers only as an obligation. It's beyond token. In its current state, the women's division will always act as the worst or most inessential part of Dynamite.

Save it, and the difficult scope of the task may well mean he saves the perception of the company as the very best pro wrestling has to offer.

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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!