In a recent interview on Out of Character with Ryan Satin, Eric Bischoff discussed the decline of interest in pro wrestling, why he thinks AEW isn’t competition for WWE, and much more. You can read his comments below.
Eric Bischoff on the decline of interest in pro wrestling and why he thinks AEW isn’t competition for WWE: “That’s an excuse. I’m not buying that. The product is boring. Nothing new has happened. Nothing has changed. Nothing has emerged. Nothing has evolved. It’s the same formula up until recently, we’re talking about WWE, who is by far the dominant [company]. There is no competition. AEW is not competition, no matter how much Tony Khan wants to believe it is, it’s not. You’re in the same business, Tony, but that’s not the same thing as being in competition. You’re not taking market share, Tony. You’re just in the same business. It’s kind of like having a little mom-and-pop hamburger stand on the corner and saying that you’re in competition with Arby’s. You’re not. Other than the fact that a new company has emerged in the space, what’s changed? Nothing’s changed, whereas with the Attitude Era and the reason that wrestling was a part of pop culture is because there was a seismic shift in the presentation of the product. It went from a teen and pre-teen product in the 80s and early and mid-90s until it became an 18 to 49 year old product with Nitro, which led into the Attitude Era because Vince had to compete with that. He changed his formula. The product evolved. It became attractive to an entirely different audience. That’s called growth. What have we seen since then?”
UPDATE:
During a recent interview with Steve Fall on NBC Sports Boston’s The Ten Count, Eric Bischoff was asked about who would in a fight between Stephanie McMahon and Tony Khan. Below are some highlights (via WrestlingInc.com):
Bischoff on Khan vs. Stephanie McMahon: “Oh my god, Stephanie McMahon would kill Tony Khan. Hey, I’ve been slapped by Stephanie McMahon on television, which is supposed to be what they call a ‘working slap.’ She don’t know how to work, at least not a slap. I mean, that girl could hurt you. She would kill Tony Khan. Kill him. Yes, set that up. Somebody book that. That’d be fun.”
Bischoff on Khan: “Tony Khan couldn’t beat up anything. This is a silly conversation. This is like talking about my wife beating up somebody. She’s 98 pounds and couldn’t hurt a fly.”
Eric Bischoff on the decline of interest in pro wrestling and why he thinks AEW isn’t competition for WWE: “That’s an excuse. I’m not buying that. The product is boring. Nothing new has happened. Nothing has changed. Nothing has emerged. Nothing has evolved. It’s the same formula up until recently, we’re talking about WWE, who is by far the dominant [company]. There is no competition. AEW is not competition, no matter how much Tony Khan wants to believe it is, it’s not. You’re in the same business, Tony, but that’s not the same thing as being in competition. You’re not taking market share, Tony. You’re just in the same business. It’s kind of like having a little mom-and-pop hamburger stand on the corner and saying that you’re in competition with Arby’s. You’re not. Other than the fact that a new company has emerged in the space, what’s changed? Nothing’s changed, whereas with the Attitude Era and the reason that wrestling was a part of pop culture is because there was a seismic shift in the presentation of the product. It went from a teen and pre-teen product in the 80s and early and mid-90s until it became an 18 to 49 year old product with Nitro, which led into the Attitude Era because Vince had to compete with that. He changed his formula. The product evolved. It became attractive to an entirely different audience. That’s called growth. What have we seen since then?”
UPDATE:
During a recent interview with Steve Fall on NBC Sports Boston’s The Ten Count, Eric Bischoff was asked about who would in a fight between Stephanie McMahon and Tony Khan. Below are some highlights (via WrestlingInc.com):
Bischoff on Khan vs. Stephanie McMahon: “Oh my god, Stephanie McMahon would kill Tony Khan. Hey, I’ve been slapped by Stephanie McMahon on television, which is supposed to be what they call a ‘working slap.’ She don’t know how to work, at least not a slap. I mean, that girl could hurt you. She would kill Tony Khan. Kill him. Yes, set that up. Somebody book that. That’d be fun.”
Bischoff on Khan: “Tony Khan couldn’t beat up anything. This is a silly conversation. This is like talking about my wife beating up somebody. She’s 98 pounds and couldn’t hurt a fly.”
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