Chris Jericho recalls the real risks after leaving WWE for AEW

Chris Jericho has been a mainstay in AEW ever since the promotion first opened its doors a few years ago. Still, he is best known for his time in WWE, and he recently spoke openly about the risks involved in jumping ship.

During an appearance on The Allison Hagendorf Show, The Ocho was asked about the biggest risk he has taken in his life:

"Probably leaving WWE to go with AEW. We didn't even have TV at the time. Just my boss, Tony Khan, had a lot of passion, and he had the money for it, and we had a roster of guys that I felt could do something. When I got involved, we were able to get on TBS and kind of went from there. So I just think it was one of those things where I thought, 'I've done all I can do in WWE, and I can stay here, but I don't want to just stay here. I don't want to just be a guy. Let's try and change history. Let's make wrestling a better industry.’” [H/T: Wrestling Inc.]

Several decades into his career, Jericho continues to blaze new paths and find ways to stay relevant. While he is undoubtedly on the backend of his journey with pro-wrestling, the Demo God is showing no signs of stopping just yet.

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AEW exceeded expectations to break through WWE's monopoly

Continuing from his above point, Chris Jericho proudly explained how he and AEW managed to change the wrestling industry forever, despite the odds being firmly against them:

"And we've done that because now there's a viable second company that people can work at and fans can watch. But it was a real risk, man, because WWE had such a monopoly for so many years. For us to come in there and get such a great demo and a great fanbase out of the gate is something I don't think anybody really expected. They thought we'd be dead and gone in six months.”

In truth, AEW's arrival in the wrestling world has brought out the best in WWE. The global leader in sports entertainment has addressed many of the glaring issues fans incessantly complained about prior to Tony Khan's company bursting onto the scene.

While the social divide between AEW and WWE fans can be toxic at times, here's to hoping that both promotions continue to succeed and provide top-notch entertainment for viewers around the world.

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Where do you think AEW would be without Chris Jericho? Sound off in the comments section below.