AEW Will Always Be #2 In Wrestling, Unless...

Hangman Page
AEW

It's important to remember precisely what All Elite Wrestling is, even if WWE's success can remind some what it isn't. It's in second place, and by a sizeable distance, but it's not a little engine that could, chugging from station to station, ideally in Chicago and/or Texas.

AEW's not your local record store, independent coffee spot or a niche beer joint, no matter how much Hangman Page looks like he enjoys it there. It's as mainstream as any wrestling show in the industry's history, even if it's not as mainstream as its rival and exists in a time when the very idea of mainstream has never been more fractured and confused. To this end, it might just perfectly placed.

Does Tony Khan even really want All Elite Wrestling to be Number One?

In a recent discussion with Marc Maron for an excellent WTF Podcast special, Khan spoke a lot about what it was to be a "challenger brand" and how comfortable he felt in that space, at least for now. Consistently referencing Pepsi and Burger King as the respective rivals of Coca Cola and McDonald's, he was aiming big enough to compare All Elite Wrestling to globally renowned and hugely successful brands whilst still minimising the brand in comparison to the sprawling and oft-derided market leader.

This checks out when you consider who Khan is at even a very fundamental level.

CONT'D...

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Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 7 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 almost 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 60,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL 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