Former TNA Wrestling referee, Brian Hebner, has expressed his skepticism regarding TNA’s alliance with AEW, asserting that the partnership seemed to favor Tony Khan and AEW excessively.
In 2021, a collaboration between AEW and TNA, which was then known as Impact Wrestling, was initiated. This arrangement allowed the talents from both wrestling companies to perform for the other.
In a recent episode of the podcast titled “Rewind, Relive, Recap,” Hebner opined that AEW gained significantly more from this deal with Impact than the reverse. Hebner voiced his concerns,
“The alliance with AEW that we’re referring to was not all it was cracked up to be. It was something of a one-sided affair; we gave a lot but received little. I may not understand every detail, but I was somewhat involved behind the scenes as I was traveling and doing all the stuff intertwined with AEW.”
“I felt the matches were biased. It seemed to be entirely about promoting their own talent. I do not think WWE operates in the same way. I don’t expect Jordynne Grace will win their title while she holds the TNA’s, but I do believe they would ensure she is given a fair chance and portrayed positively. That is all TNA could really expect.”
Hebner’s viewpoint becomes clear when considering that during the alliance, AEW’s Kenny Omega won the Impact World Title, which was later claimed by another AEW talent, Christian Cage.
Matt Hardy, a former AEW star now associated with TNA, asserted in his recent podcast that the paid advertisements from Tony Khan during the crossover painted TNA as greatly inferior to AEW.
Currently, TNA Wrestling and WWE NXT are pursuing a separate collaboration, which has received positive feedback from insiders at both companies.