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AEW's success story has been a revelation over the last year and a half. The company announced itself on the big stage with the signing of Chris Jericho in a moment etched in history. They have only gone strength to strength since.
Most fans have understood that it was the All In show in 2018 that set things rolling for AEW's creation. While there is truth in that statement, Chris Jericho said the idea was spawned earlier than that, and he was part of the reason why.
Tony Khan got the AEW idea because of Chris Jericho vs. Kenny Omega in NJPW
On his Saturday Night Special, Chris Jericho revealed that his now-famous match in Tokyo Dome against Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom lit the spark in Tony Khan's mind. He said: (H/T Wrestling Inc)
"That made Tony Khan go, 'Holy Smokes, I think I can start my own wrestling company' because my match against Omega at Tokyo Dome did such good business worldwide."
Chris Jericho also said that AEW's rise in the pro wrestling business is one of his career's proudest moments. Had it not come to fruition, he would have retired. He said:
"Right now [is the proudest moment of my career]. To have AEW built up, and the stuff we've done in just a year, just makes me feel incredibly proud," he said. "There was a certain time in 2015 [in WWE] when I just did house shows. I was not on TV. And then the feud with Kevin Owens really reinvigorated me, and then the match with Kenny in Japan made me go, 'Oh my god, this is wrestling.' I would have probably quit wrestling if not for AEW, and now I have no plans to stop."
It's interesting to note that Jericho is probably at his creative best in AEW, and it's on display every time he's on screen. It would have been a shame had Jericho retired from pro wrestling altogether. Instead, wrestling fans will have, at least, a few more years of Le Champion to look forward to.
