During his 83 Weeks podcast, Eric Bischoff talked about the 2022 AEW Revolution PPV and Adam Cole possibly becoming the World Champion:
“No disrespect to Adam because I think he’s a cool guy and a great talent, I just think it’s premature. I just don’t think it’s there yet. If I was Adam Cole, I’d say, ‘Maybe not now, Tony.’ Let’s talk about it in six months or a year. I just don’t think he’s over enough [with the mainstream]. Again, if I was Adam’s agent or business manager, I would just tell him, ‘Man, be patient. Don’t do it now.’ Because here’s the risk. He gets that opportunity, and Tony Khan decides, ‘This is my guy, let’s put it on him.’ If it doesn’t work, then you’re a failed champion. Guess what? It’ll be a long time before you get it again. If I’m Adam Cole, I’d rather keep building my equity, make the audience want to see me get that position and opportunity, and make them demand it. Make the audience want it more than Adam does. If I’m Adam Cole, I want the audience to want it more for me than I do. That’s when you do it because then you’re probably gonna be pretty successful. Even though you have a percentage of the audience that’s going ‘yay Adam,’ two months from now, they’ll be going ‘give us somebody else.’ That’s the appetite of the hardcore audience. If I’m him, I don’t want that title right now.”
“I don’t think size is as important today as it was. But it’s still a factor. You’re a larger-than-life character on television. That’s what makes wrestling work. I don’t mean necessarily just physically, but you have a presence on television that makes you unique and different, and therefore, in a way, aspirational for the viewer. Look at Tom Cruise. How many action movies has he been in? He’s a little dude. But in film and scripted television, they can make you appear larger than you really are. They surround you with actors and actresses who are not going to make you look small or exacerbate your physical limitations in terms of size. You can’t do that as easily in wrestling. Let’s say you have Adam Cole as the AEW World Champion, and they bring in Cesaro. How’s that gonna look? It’s different than the Rey Mysterio example because Rey was David and Goliath. It was so obvious that Rey got over for having the courage to get in there and fight against a guy who’s obviously bigger. It’s a classic story. But day in and day out, to have that constant comparison on television, it could be a challenge. I don’t know if the audience is ready for it. AEW has to grow their business. They’re still having a hard time growing their business with a super-loaded roster. At some point they’re gonna need a world champion that’s a legitimate larger-than-life star, not just physically, but larger-than-life to a broader audience.”
