During the Talk is Jericho podcast episode with Andrew Yang, Chris Jericho spoke about the benefits he has in WWE he didn’t get in AEW.
Here is what he had to say:
On the key difference he sees between AEW and WWE’s operations: “Well, I think the biggest difference is kind of what we’ve been talking about this whole conversation. It’s that WWE treats the business as a wrestling business because that’s what it’s been for 60 years, from Vince’s father and Vince’s grandfather, almost from the old school carny attitude. And you can see that with you know, the independent contractor [aspect] for example. It’s not right, but it’s just the way it is, like I explained.
“AEW treats things from a sports team perspective. The Khan family owns the Jacksonville Jaguars, they own Fulham Football Club in England. So they treat the company like they treat their football team. And that’s a whole different vibe as how the talent, the athletes, the performers get treated.”
On the benefits he has in WWE he didn’t get in AEW: “Right off the bat, not to get into the specifics, but things that I have here in AEW I never had in WWE for 20 years. Even something as simple as paying your expenses on the road, like any team does. If the Jaguars go to play a game in St. Louis, the hotel is paid for and ‘Here’s the trip,’ and ‘Here’s the team bus to pick you up and drive you around.’ That’s just the way it is. It’s not even a second thought, right? That’s how it is here in AEW as well, which it’s never like that in WWE.
“They still go with, ‘Here’s your plane ticket. You’re flying to Detroit. You’re working Detroit, Chicago, Cape Girardeau and St. Louis.’ So you rent your car in Detroit, you drop it off in St. Louis. You got to find your hotel rooms, you got to get a car that’s got a good rate for the drop-off. All this stuff. And those are your expenses and your responsibility to do that. And that’s another thing that I think people are just like, ‘Alright, are you kidding me? You really have to do that?’ So that’s the biggest difference.”
On AEW earning his loyalty: “To me, it’s one of those things where I’m really glad that we were able to take a chance, and get this company off the ground and make it successful. And I have no intentions of ever going anywhere ever again. I like it here, I like working for the Khan family. And it’s been a lot of fun. Which sometimes, it was not as fun in WWE. So it’s definitely a whole different vibe here.”
H/T to 411 Wrestling
