Why Tony Khan's AEW Nightmare Could Come True In January

3. The Rumblings Of Potential Departures

Triple H Kazuchika Okada Tony Khan
AEW

Having seen major stars like Cody Rhodes and Jade Cargill decide WWE was a better fit for them than AEW, it must irk Tony Khan as and when any other AEW talents are rumoured to be weighing up a WWE move.

In the last year or so, there's been speculation that so many names could make the jump from AEW to WWE; be that AEW World Champion MJF, Ricky Starks, Andrade El Idolo, Malakai Black, Wardlow, FTR, Brian Cage, or even EVP and former AEW World Champ, Kenny Omega.

Some of those talents have since signed new contracts with AEW, others may well jump to WWE in 2024, and certain other stories may have been merely rumours with very little behind them. The point still stands, though; such rumblings won't please Tony Khan, particularly where it pertains to some of the biggest, most important names in his promotion.

As touched upon already in this piece, perception is a big thing in pro wrestling. If the wider perception - regardless of how much truth there is or not - is that AEW talent would rather be in WWE, that's clearly a negative for Khan's company.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.