Tony Khan Alleges WWE Asked AEW Stars To Break Contracts

AEW's Tony Khan on WWE contract tampering allegations, the wrestling war, and more...

Tony Khan WWE
AEW/WWE

Tony Khan has alleged that AEW wrestlers have informed him that WWE contacted them in an apparent attempt at convincing his stars to break their contracts.

AEW's founder said as much in a fiery new interview on The Dan Le Batard Show. While Khan said he couldn't confirm this specifically, he was reiterating what wrestlers had told him, calling the situation "very disturbing." But despite this "tampering", he has attempted to continue putting on "good shows."

Said Khan (h/t Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online):-

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I've had a lot of wrestlers come to me and allege that WWE reached out to them to tamper with their contracts and ask them to break their contracts. I can't confirm that specifically. I can only tell you what the wrestlers have come to me and said but I've had multiple wrestlers and staff report that to me. It was very disturbing. I've had to go out and try to put on good shows despite this alleged tampering and stuff like that. Frankly, I don't think it's stopped us because the quality of the product and the quality of the shows is at an all-time high right now.

Several outlets reported that WWE's summer 2022 attempts at contacting AEW talent last August saw them get in touch with more than one contracted All Elite wrestling. Prior to this, Fightful Select wrote that WWE had approached at least one full-timer with regard to returning to the market leaders. The ugly situation ultimately resulted in AEW's Chief Legal Officer, Megha Parekh, emailing WWE, warning them "not to tamper" with the company's stars.

This wasn't the only topic Khan touched on during his appearance on The Dan Le Batard Show. Later, he spoke on the WWE vs. AEW rivalry, claiming that the two sides "truly hate each other":-

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I think wrestling fans, at the end of the day, appreciate that a lot of what happens in wrestling shows is sometimes story and that's why people like watching the shows, they like the stories and the exciting matches and especially the combination of the two when the stories lead to exciting matches and vice versa. Now, what's interesting is the story that is the most real, the most intense, and the most hatred in all of pro wrestling is that between the two wrestling promotions. I think we truly, truly hate each other and I think it makes for really exciting TV and it makes for an exciting wrestling war.

Khan's promotion hits Laredo, Texas for this week's episode of Dynamite on Wednesday.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.