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WWE veteran Jim Cornette has slammed Tony Khan for his handling of one of AEW's most popular groups during their recent title reign.
At the Grand Slam edition of Dynamite in September 2022, The Acclaimed won the AEW World Tag Team Championship. They held the belt for 140 days, defending it against the likes of Swerve in our Glory, FTR, and Private Party during their reign.
Since losing the titles to The Gunns on the February 8, 2023, edition of Dynamite, Max Caster and Anthony Bowens have done very little on AEW programming. Their most notable feud came against Angleo Parker and Matt Menard of the Jericho Appreciation Society.
But who is to blame for The Acclaimed seemingly falling down the pecking order? Speaking on his podcast, The Jim Cornette Experience, the WWE veteran claimed that Khan botched The Acclaimed's title run by having them lose to The Gunns.
"Now he's f**ked up and realized Tony has that the people started liking The Acclaimed and he had absolutely no idea what to do with them when he got surprised by that, and so he botched the whole thing by having them drop the belts to The Gunn boys. He's been confused ever since as to what to do besides, for no apparent reason, get them out there so [Max] Caster can rap, and they can do the scissor and win a match," said Cornette. [1:41:01 - 1:41:31]
Cornette added that the duo's recent matches hadn't benefited Caster, Bowens, or Billy Gunn.
"But it's not even in regular tag team matches where you could say it was being beneficial to them or building their reputation in some way, it's just goofy battle royales and meaningless eight-mans with partners that they're forced into a situation with, or battle royale trios matches with Billy [Gunn]. Help me." [1:41:32 - 1:42:00]
The Acclaimed will have a close eye on the AEW World Trios Championship match on Dynamite
On the May 3 edition of Dynamite, The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn won the Tres De Mayo trios battle royale. While it wasn't a number-one contenders' bout, the former AEW World Tag Team Champions might have their eyes on securing a new set of titles.
Shortly before the battle royale, the World Trios Champions House of Black challenged the locker room that if they wanted a match, they would have to compete under "house rules." With the battle royale following their promo, fans have started to believe that the Malakai Black-led group could be on a collision course with The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn.
The House of Black will have to get past Bandido, Chuck Taylor, and Trent Beretta, who will challenge for the AEW World Trios Championships this Wednesday on Dynamite. The winners could then face Caster, Bowens, and Gunn at a later date.
Do you think The Acclaimed and Billy Gunn will become the AEW World Trios Champions? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit The Jim Cornette Experience and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling when using quotes from this article.
