Tony Schiavone Explains Why He Avoids Current WWE Content

WWE and AEW’s existence has created a tribalism in the pro wrestling fan base. Some people will ignore one of the options entirely, but people like Tony Schiavone have a reason to stay focused on AEW.

On a recent episode of his What Happened When podcast, Tony Schiavone discussed his viewing habits regarding professional wrestling and explained why he avoids watching current WWE programming. Needless to say, he favors his current employer over the competition.

Tony Schiavone said that his choice is based on wanting AEW to develop its own direction without outside influence. He’s not watching anything that WWE is currently putting out.

“I have no interest in watching WWE or NXT current stuff, and that’s not to say anything bad about what they’re doing. I just have no interest in it because I want us to cut our own path and not try to be anything like them.”

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Tony Schiavone noted that his decision does not extend to older wrestling content. He said that he still watches classic matches and promotions, including past WWE, NXT, and ECW shows. He then gave flowers to Mercedes Mone for what she did with Bayley as Sasha Banks back in the day.

“I do have an interest in watching old independent wrestling and old ECW and even old WWE back in the day, or old NXT. We watched, of course, one of the matches we watched was, to me, the greatest women’s match I’d ever seen with Sasha Banks and Bayley.”

Tony Schiavone added that avoiding the modern WWE product helps him maintain focus on his work with AEW. He doesn’t want WWE to influence anything he’s doing in AEW.

“The current stuff, I’ll just watch our stuff and not let anything they do in the WWE influence how I call a match or what I do,” Tony Schiavone concluded. It doesn’t sound like he’s watching WWE, but he’s still tuning in to see AEW every week.

Tony Schiavone serves as a lead announcer and senior producer for All Elite Wrestling. He has maintained that role since the company’s conception, and although the lineup on the commentary team has changed, Schiavone is still around.

What’s your take on Tony Schiavone staying away from WWE’s current product? Do you think AEW or WWE has the best television shows right now? Let us know what you think in the comments section!