"I give 100 percent of the credit to Kenny" - Tony Khan on how the AEW/IMPACT alliance came together

The current alliance between AEW and IMPACT Wrestling has been the talk of the wrestling world for the last two months. It has now been confirmed that this all came from the mind of the AEW World Champion, Kenny Omega.

AEW owner Tony Khan was the guest on this week's Oral Sessions with Renee Paquette, talking all things AEW. When Paquette brought up IMPACT and AEW working together, Khan quickly gave credit where credit is due.

"It was Kenny's idea. He asked me about it, and I love good ideas and I don't do every idea. I try not to do the bad ones. And like I said that's been something I try to do a better job of. And also, I don't do every good one, sometimes because I don't realize they're good because I'm not perfect I make a lot of mistakes too and I think that sometimes there are also good ones that just don't fit like 'That's a great idea but you can't do it because that person is already doing this' or 'I can't do it because we're having another plan that we're locked into'. This was something that Kenny brought up that I thought was a great idea. He put a lot of time and thought into it. I give 100 percent of the credit to Kenny."

Hey hey hey!!! Tuesdays are for Oral Sessions y’all!! And this week I’ve got on the president of @AEW , @TonyKhan ! He was so open and honest! So glad to have him on and pick his brain out wrestling, AEW, and just his life! https://t.co/ppDzMja2mn

— Renee Paquette (@ReneePaquette) January 19, 2021

"The best two wrestlers in the world right now" - Tony Khan on AEW World Champion Kenny Omega and Jon Moxley

The AEW owner went on to say he believes that the relationship between Omega and Don Callis was the driving force behind AEW and IMPACT working together.

"Don Callis and Kenny have a very close relationship and, you know, I think that is what was behind it, but I also think Kenny believed Don would be a very powerful advocate for him and fill the role of a really, really strong heel manager for Kenny as the top heel in the territory. Really, I think the top heel in wrestling right now. I think that's something people wanted to see. There are some wrestlers, like say Steve Austin in 2001, where I don't think people were ready to boo him, or that they wanted to see that person be a villain, but I absolutely think people were ready to see this Kenny Omega. And he was excited to present it. But he didn't just want to present the Kenny Omega that people have already seen. He put so much thought into innovating and changing. That's why I always say I think the two best wrestlers in the world are Kenny and Jon [Moxley] are the two. And that's why we showcase them as the top two."

Khan goes on to reveal that he actually went with Omega to the television tapings in Tennessee to support him and strengthen the alliance between AEW and IMPACT.

"I think this is the Kenny, people were ready to see but we didn't just want to flip a switch, it's been a slow progression over the course of a year. And if you look at the story with Kenny and Hangman and how it built and then the eliminator tournament to fight Jon and how it built and then at the end of Jon versus Eddie [Kingston] when Kenny walked out and it's like, 'Hey, here we are, winter is coming'. And I think, Kenny, is the person that I would give the credit for that idea too, and then I went with Kenny to the taping. And they've got their pay-per-view this weekend and it was something he believes in. He wanted to help Don but he also thought it could help us and he was right and I wanted to support the idea so I greenlighted it, I said we'll do this we will partner with them. And I'll come with you."

Thank you for having me on your show! It was so much fun catching up, & you’re such a great host, it was the best conversation! So good, in fact, that I forgot several times throughout the chat that we were recording a show! Also, I can’t wait for Jon to finish writing this book!

— Tony Khan (@TonyKhan) January 19, 2021

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Oral Sessions with a H/T to Sportskeeda for the transcription.