On a recent episode of the “Busted Open Radio” podcast, WWE Hall of Fame inductee Bully Ray shared his thoughts about AEW’s portrayal of Swerve Strickland, the current World Champion. He contrasted this with AEW’s past presentations of world champions.
Highlights of the podcast discussion are provided below:
Regarding AEW’s handling of Swerve Strickland as world champion: “During the first week, it’s a common sentiment that we would have appreciated hearing directly from Swerve, as the newly crowned AEW World Heavyweight Champion. Moreover, as the first African American to hold this title in AEW, his absence was evident. There is an inexplicable feeling that Swerve’s treatment is distinct from the protocols AEW employed with their previous world champions,” said Bully Ray.
Bully Ray further questioned why Swerve Strickland was not given the opportunity to start the show after winning the AEW World Championship when Mercedes Mone was allowed to initiate ‘Dynamite’ following her television championship victory. “Why was Mercedes Mone given the chance to commence the ‘Dynamite’ show last week after her TV championship win, while Swerve Strickland couldn’t do the same after he bagged the AEW World Championship?” asked Bully Ray.