10 Things We Learned From Chris Jericho On Stone Cold's Broken Skull Sessions Podcast
7. Chris Dreaded Another WWE Run
Austin nodded his head when Jericho laid out his concerns about a WWE return post-2018.
The future AEW trailblazer knew that company creative adored his 'List Of Jericho' gimmick - they couldn't see past that, which would cause serious problems for Chris. He didn't want to stagnate (or worse, go backwards) and become the kind of iconic name from the past who shows up to make a quick buck.
An appearance at Raw 25 scared the sh*t out of Jericho, because it confirmed his fears. WWE would use him in "ha ha" skits that went nowhere, or they'd job him out in meaningless matches on Saudi Arabian supercards and other retro-heavy specials.
He couldn't let that happen. Jericho backed his own star power, hit up Japan for some dates with Kenny Omega and others, then got the ball rolling on Tony Khan's bold new project. The Canadian doesn't regret that one bit, which Austin totally respects.