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#1 AEW was right to begin a cross-promotion angle with IMPACT Wrestling in 2020
Kenny Omega's victory over Jon Moxley at December's Winter is Coming show did not just lead to the crowning of a new AEW World Champion.
As noteworthy as a major title change is, the match also kicked off the cross-promotion angle between AEW and IMPACT Wrestling. Of course, professional wrestling has seen its fair share of 'inter-promotional' angles in the past, but this particular instance seems different.
On a mainstream level, long-time fans will remember famous angles such as the WCW 'invasion' or even the original nWo storyline. In both those cases, although an invading force was being presented on television, everybody knew deep down that all involved were under contract to the same company.
Rarely in modern history has a major recognized World Champion like Omega made his way from a larger promotion to a smaller one. In storyline, Omega has followed his mentor Don Callis to IMPACT Wrestling, where Callis works as a Co-Executive Vice President.
Of course, in terms of overall stature at present, AEW is a more prominent promotion than IMPACT Wrestling. Despite this, Omega has vowed to continue to appearing in IMPACT Wrestling - and will even participate in the headline bout at their Hard To Kill pay-per-view event next month.
For his part, Tony Khan has made on-screen sense of the program by insisting that allowing Omega to appear on IMPACT Wrestling television is great free promotion for AEW. Khan has also appeared alongside Tony Schiavone in 'paid advertisements' during IMPACT Wrestling's weekly television show to further the angle.
Khan has issued an open invitation for any IMPACT Wrestling wrestler to make their way to AEW Dynamite, meaning that we are almost certain to see further inter-promotional activities between the two companies in the new year.
This angle feels natural and grounded in reality. It is an unprecedented move but is one that offers a new creative direction for both AEW and IMPACT Wrestling. It is professional wrestling fans who feel like the true winners here.
