Nick Khan Accused of Pushing WWE’s War Against AEW and Not TKO Execs

WWE’s efforts to undercut AEW may seem like a company-wide strategy, but it’s not coming from the top of the TKO ladder. Despite TKO’s control over WWE’s business operations, the aggressive counterprogramming appears to be fueled by internal leadership—specifically from someone still deeply entrenched in the wrestling trenches.

On the May 30 episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer made it clear that WWE President Nick Khan is the driving force behind these tactics—not TKO executives Ari Emanuel or Mark Shapiro.

“This isn’t coming from TKO. I don’t think Mark Shapiro or Ari Emanuel care about AEW at all. They don’t view them as a threat — they’re looking at UFC, Netflix, global expansion, that kind of thing.”

According to Meltzer, Khan continues to see AEW as a direct threat, and he’s willing to spend big to contain them.

“This is all Nick Khan. These counter-shows, these scheduled overlaps, these hit pieces — that’s Khan’s department. He sees AEW as competition, and he wants to keep them boxed in. But they’re going overboard now.”

This isn’t the first time tension between AEW and WWE leadership has been out in the open. Back in 2021, AEW President Tony Khan delivered a now-infamous promo where he directly called out Nick Khan during WWE’s talks with New Japan Pro-Wrestling. The AEW boss fired off with one of the most direct shots in wrestling executive history:

“I read in the Observer today that New Japan Pro-Wrestling has had talks with WWE’s President Nick Khan. Well, Nick, I have to say—if you’ve been talking to New Japan Pro-Wrestling for two months, you’ve gotten a lot done. I’ve had New Japan Pro-Wrestling here in AEW. So I think there’s only room for one Khan in wrestling, and it’s me.”

Fast-forward to 2025, and the feud has evolved from interviews to strategy. Meltzer criticized the approach as a wasteful use of resources that’s not achieving its goal.

“They’re spending so much money on something that’s not even effective. I mean, do you really need to run the Great American Bash opposite All In? Or plant a dozen stories just to tweak perception? You’ve already won in terms of market share. It comes off petty.”

Meltzer noted that this aggressive strategy could backfire, as fans are beginning to take notice of WWE’s tactics.

“People are starting to see WWE as the big bully. They’re not just beating AEW — they’re trying to humiliate them. And that makes the underdog look more sympathetic.”

He wrapped by saying the strategy might be reinforcing AEW’s appeal, not damaging it.

“And honestly, I don’t think it’s helping. AEW’s audience is loyal. If anything, WWE’s making them look like the bad guy in a fight they’ve already won.”

WWE might be stacking the deck, but the more they try to stomp out AEW, the more it looks like they’re rattled by competition they claim doesn’t matter. If Nick Khan’s plan is to crush the underdog, he might just be turning them into the rebel hero fans rally behind. Sometimes the biggest flex is knowing when not to swing.

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