Adam Cole is the new challenger for the AEW World Championship, but many criticized his recent loss against Orange Cassidy despite it not counting on the official rankings. Tony Khan addressed the criticism of this booking while being interviewed by PWInsider.
Khan explained that the feud between Cole and Cassidy was a ratings draw and reminded people that Cole has had many main events and wins, including singles wins over Jungle Boy and Orange Cassidy himself: “The Adam Cole that’s here has main evented numerous Dynamites and Rampages, has been one of our biggest drawing wrestlers. The Adam Cole versus Orange Cassidy program is one of the biggest drawing programs we’ve ever had in the history of AEW. They have done big numbers on every show they’ve been on, and it’s been a big part of our rating success in recent months, has been the matches they did with each other. Before Orange Cassidy and the Best Friends, Adam Cole wrestled a number of matches also against Jungle Boy. He beat Jungle Boy. Of course, Orange Cassidy and Jungle Boy, both number one contenders. He beat both of them and he’s beaten everybody else he’s wrestled in a sanctioned match. Including a lot of main events. So wherever he’s been before this, he’s never been presented to as wide of an audience as consistently as a main event wrestler.”
Adam Cole is also helped by having a strong stable built around him: “Now bringing back Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish creates some questions about their relationship. And also how that affects Adam Cole’s friendship and partnership with The Young Bucks. I think that’s a very interesting stuff to keep an eye on going forward. But there’s no question to me, Adam Cole’s one of the most important wrestlers in this company. And his program with Orange Cassidy was huge for us. His program with Jungle Boy before that, was also really big for us. And he’s been in a number of big matches since he arrived and in every single match, he’s been in he has won it.”
Khan compared this situation to Cole’s girlfriend Britt Baker, who after a singles win over her then rival Thunder Rosa lost the blowout Lights Out match and later won the World Championship: “The lights-out match being an exception to that, but that was not a sanctioned match, did not go on his record. You mentioned Britt Baker. Britt Baker had a similar arc where Britt Baker had really come into her own as a wrestler. She had won a match against Thunder Rosa under kind of dubious circumstances. But that’s a win on her record. So she had beaten Thunder Rosa, ironically at Beach Break in 2021, and then later at the St. Patrick Day Slam, Thunder Rosa won the lights-out match. But it wasn’t long after that where Britt Baker ended up with the best record and went on to Double Or Nothing and won the world championship. Of course, this is coming off just weeks after losing this lights-out match. And it hasn’t slowed down Britt at all. Frankly, Adam Cole, all the great matches and all the great wins he’s had. I don’t think that’s going to slow him down at all. We saw on Rampage, he looked better than ever. I thought his promo was very strong and I expect more of that from him, convincing performances, strong promos. So he is a very highly regarded person who has been incredibly valuable since he arrived in AEW.”
H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
