MJF will seemingly always be a talent who blurs the lines between reality and wrestling, but All Elite Wrestling allowing him to shine up WWE on Dynamite doesn’t seem like the best idea. Perception is reality, after all. The notion that WWE is a more desirable place to be than AEW is being put over on primetime television in front of a core, pay-per-view buying audience. After a rough-and-tumble 2022, this doesn’t seem like the right way to build The Salt of the Earth’s first run as World Champion.
On the November 30 episode of Dynamite, MJF openly spoke about WWE President Nick Khan by name before referencing Triple H, WWE’s Chief Content Officer with a wink at the camera for good measure. He admitted that he wanted to use the World Championship during the bidding war of 2024, which is when his contract supposedly expires, all while running down AEW and professional wrestling fans in general. WWE was long ridiculed for not acknowledging other promotions when discussing the accolades of stars like Finn Balor or AJ Styles. MJF’s worked-shoot promo sways way, way too far in the other direction. His comments weren’t an acknowledgment. This was one company’s top champion—and thus, Top Guy—parading around the competition as a superior work environment and option.
AEW Shouldn’t Want Core Fans Thinking About WWE At All
WWE’s reluctance to acknowledge NJPW or ROH on air always seemed silly because it was clear who had the biggest show in town. Vince McMahon’s refusal to speak about ROH was like Harold Steinbrenner acting like he didn’t know that Triple-A baseball existed. Ring Of Honor wasn’t going to take any food off WWE’s plate. The same can’t be said for AEW and WWE, where the former clearly has a core audience hovering around a million fans, and the latter is a publicly traded company with a market cap of just under six billion. Moreover, WWE has been a markedly better product since Triple H took over booking duties.
Almost everything McMahon did to drive away fans have been reversed since late July. Raw and SmackDown have been much more wrestling-centric, and there’s a renewed focus on putting over new stars like Shotzi Blackheart, Austin Theory, and Solo Sikoa. AEW’s thin storytelling also can’t hold a candle to WWE’s more intricate plots. Friedman talking up WWE is painting the company in a positive light in front of paying fans who might not currently see it that way. But if MJF keeps hyping Triple H, it might pique some interest in people who had sworn off McMahon’s WWE, which would be disastrous for Tony Khan and AEW. It’d be like a more drawn-out version of Tony Schiavone’s famous “that’ll put butts in the seats” remark after giving away the finish to The Rock vs. Mankind on WWE television while calling WCW matches. The attention shifted from WCW to WWE in one night, and World Championship Wrestling never recovered the audience.
There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging the competition, but the point should be to put over your stars. Mentioning how many titles Saraya or Claudio Castagnoli held while in WWE builds them up to look more legit and doesn’t put any shine on the other company. What Friedman did on Wednesday night was the opposite of that, almost directly. It’s not the first time MJF has used this tactic either. If that’s the only way he can get booed, then it’s time to let the audience cheer.
MJF’s Biggest Test As AEW World Champion
MJF embraces the heel role because he understands there are no bankable heroes without detestable bad guys. He wants to be the villain known for helping AEW create a new generation of recognizable wrestlers. Freidman has gone on record and stated that this is why he appreciates Triple H.: There’d be no The Rock, Stone Cold Steve Austin, or Edge without The Game as a foil. In contrast, AEW has historically been light on champions who are willing to give a rub to their opponent.
It’s the wild west in AEW regarding promos, with everyone trying to one-up each other instead of building toward a big-money match. MJF, with his understanding of the heel role, can begin to change that. In fact, it’ll be his biggest challenge as World Champion. Moxley was a strong titleholder, but he rarely used his bravado to make his opposition feel like a threat. This is a low-key reason Roman Reigns has been so successful during his current heel run as champion. He’s willing to make his opponents look strong in the ring, and both he and Paul Heyman can make anyone feel like a threat. They got the World to believe that Logan Paul was a legit challenger for Reigns, at least for 30 minutes at Crown Jewel. That willing suspension of disbelief is a crucial aspect that most of AEW’s championship matches badly lack.
MJF can begin to change what it means to be a World Champion in AEW. His feud with Wardlow is a perfect example of how he can still be himself while making someone else look strong. Wardlow is still riding the wave from that victory, even though it came several months ago. AEW fumbled the bag and didn’t capitalize on that momentum, but MJF did his job. He can do the same for rising stars like Ricky Starks and Ethan Page. MJF talking about how great WWE is during 14-minute promos is not how to build AEW’s reputation among non-fans.