WWE Hall of Famer and former WCW President Eric Bischoff appeared on his 83 Weeks podcast episode. He discussed several topics, including the meeting between Shane McMahon and AEW President Tony Khan.
Bischoff said, “I know Shane. I’ve hung out with Shane a little bit, occasionally gone out and had drinks. And we’ve had a lot of conversations that had nothing to do with wrestling. So I feel like I know him a little bit. It’s hard for me to imagine that Shane would be interested in getting involved in any wrestling company, particularly AEW at this point.”
On McMahon wanting to run AEW because he thinks he could fix it:
“Now, maybe because AEW is struggling in some respects, Shane — either individually or as part of a group — looks at where AEW is at, sees some of the same things you and I see, which is certainly potential, and feels that he has something to contribute that could turn the ship around or improve the odds or the trajectory of growth. If he really believes that and thinks that he can have that impact, it’s not unusual to want equity in the company. To be rewarded for your ability to turn a company around. It’s no different than kind of taking over or becoming part of a manufacturing company that makes nuts and bolts. Well, if you’ve been making nuts and bolts and nobody’s really buying your nuts and bolts for whatever reason, and someone comes in that’s been in the nuts and bolts business for 20 years or more and has operated at a very, very high level. Perhaps that person feels like, ‘Look, if I could come in and get a piece of the company, I could take my experience and my reputation and my relationships in the industry and help turn this company around, and I want to be rewarded for that in the form of equity.’ That’s kind of common, and it makes complete sense in one respect. But at this point in time, here’s the part that I don’t get. The man does not need the money. Both he and his wife, individually and combined, are incredibly wealthy, so he’s not financially motivated. What would that motivation be? That’s the part I don’t know. Why would you want to get into the trenches at this point — muddy trenches — and try to rehab a company that arguably could use some rehab? Why would Shane McMahon want to do that at this point in his life, given his circumstances? That’s the part I don’t understand. We know that there’s a rumor floating around about Vince. We know that Vince and Shane showed up together at the Super Bowl, so maybe there’s something there. But, man, I think we’re trying awfully hard to connect a bunch of dots that don’t really exist.”
You can check out the complete podcast in the video below.
(H/T to 411Mania.com for transcribing the above quotes)
