The REAL Reason WWE Released Goldust

Playing The Game or Never Forgetting The Name?

Cody Dustin
AEW

The men and women behind the soon-to-be launched All Elite Wrestling theoretically know their audience really, really well.

They know that a sizeable enough portion of wrestling fans have been willing and waiting to be poached by a single organisation capable of combining the multiple niche wrestling interests they've amassed outside of WWE. They know that few are better at building anticipation for a wrestling product than wrestling audiences themselves. They know that Cody Rhodes winning the NWA's version of a world title was a major reason for ALL IN putting 10,000 Chicagoan butts in seats. And they know how to do the same again.

Double Or Nothing was a cute take on the title of last September's supershow, but the latter half of the label is largely redundant. The show sold almost as quickly as its predecessor thanks again to the super-shrewd marketing and the gentle weight of expectation created by everybody involved thus far. AEW probably won't even have to deliver double on the night, yet stand to take everything from the event.

In 2018, ALL IN's angles were predominantly furnished by Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks' Being The Elite travelogue-turned-banter hour. On the strength of this and their hard-earned reputations for in-ring bangers, the group stirred something within the industry at large - so much so WWE's talent themselves took notice. Especially the ones that had been watching from afar all along.

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Contributor
Contributor

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