WWE Hall of Famer Booker T has enjoyed plenty of success in the wrestling world, both in WWE and in other promotions. Given his experience, he’s a respected mind in the business.
Booker T has observed the competition between All Elite Wrestling and WWE, and in an interview with Alfred Konuwa of Forbes, he shared his thoughts on the matter. He praised WWE for its remarkable production and the way it makes its performers look like genuine stars, but the former world champion also praised AEW by emphasizing its wrestling. The legend compared the promotion to WCW and the way the latter was known as a wrestling company before the Monday Night Wars.
“Of course, WWE has always been leaps and bounds ahead as far as packaging. Making wrestlers look like superstars on film. That’s just something that they’ve always done very, very well,” Booker T said.
“Storytelling in WWE has been really, really good also. But then you look at AEW, and I kind of look at AEW like WCW back in the day. Kinda. Before the Monday Night Wars, WCW was a wrestling company. The only thing we did was wrestle. The storylines didn’t really matter as much as the wrestling, and I think that’s what AEW focuses on and does very well at certain times is go out and give the fans good old fashion professional wrestling.”
The Hall of Famer then clarified that AEW’s wrestling isn’t necessarily better than WWE’s in-ring action because the latter has plenty of excellent performers in its own right. He praised Seth Rollins, Riddle, Finn Balor and Roman Reigns and stated that, in different ways, both promotions have talented rosters.
“I wouldn’t necessarily say [AEW’s wrestling is superior] because you’ve got guys in WWE that are really, really good entertainers. Really, really good performers outside of the ring, and then you look at them in the ring—just say, for instance, a Seth Rollins who’s been playing this Riddler character for the past year or so.
“But then you put Seth Rollins in a position where he’s gotta go out and give you a five-star match, he’s gonna do it. Finn Balor, you put him in a position, Roman Reigns, they’re gonna do it. So I think the talent is there on both sides, I just must say both are different.”
Both WWE and AEW are gearing up for big shows; AEW Revolution is set to deliver a star-studded card, while WWE WrestleMania 38 is right around the corner on April 2-3.
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