When Tony Khan officially debuted Mercedes Mone at Big Business in Boston, it felt like a major addition to the AEW roster.
Suddenly, AEW had found the focal point of a division that had long been looking for a public face, and if booked correctly, could help to really round out the promotion as a whole, with yet another front-facing performer who could do media, sell merch, and put butts into seats at arenas around the world. And the best part? Mone's reach extends far outside of the usual professional wrestling bubble.
Discussing what Mone means to AEW now that she's in place as one of the faces of the promotion, Chris Jericho celebrated on Gabby AF not only what the former SmackDown Women's Champion brings to the table as an in-ring worker but for everything else she can do for the company.
“She’s more than just a star in the women’s division. She’s a star overall. She’s got that star quality to where, I don’t even remember her as Sasha Banks anymore, it’s Mercedes Mone, which is a much cooler name to me anyways. When she shows up on a AEW show, it’s, ‘Oh my gosh, she’s here too? Everybody is coming to AEW.’ We have a very talented women’s roster, but it’s always good when you can bring in somebody of that level of stardom, with that type of experience and star power. You mentioned Deonna [Deonna Purrazzo] and Toni [Toni Storm], Britt [Britt Baker] will be coming back soon, I’m assuming. Kris Statlander and all these girls. Anna Jay is coming into her own. Skye Blue, Julia Hart. Riho, she’s amazing. There are a lot of great women in the company. When you see Mercedes come in, you know the matches are going to get more interesting, the match-ups that you can put on pay-per-view and Dynamite are going to get even bigger,” Chris Jericho told Gabby AF via Fightful.
“Once again, the star power she has just takes things to a different level. I know from experience, it’s good when you show up in a new company, it really is. That’s one of the best things about having AEW and WWE so strong, even New Japan. When you see Nic Nemeth or Jack Perry show up in New Japan, it reinvigorates your career and gives you a fresh coat of paint. It makes you a bigger star when you go from one company to another, I really believe that. It shakes things up, it’s exciting for the fans, it’s exciting for the roster, and it’s exciting for talent. I think she’s going to be reinvigorated. We do things completely different here, which in some ways is good and in some ways not as good, but mostly it’s good. There is a system in WWE that works, our system is completely different and when people come here, it’s like, ‘Oh my Gosh, really, I can do that? I don’t have to do this?’ That’s exciting as well. I’m really looking forward to seeing what she does in AEW.”
From appearing in acting roles like on The Mandalorian, to presenting at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, and all of the other extracurricular activities now open to Mone as part of the Warner Bros Discovery family, it's clear the pride of Bo$$ton, Massachusetts, has the potential to become an even bigger star in AEW than she was able to as a wrestler in WWE. And the best part? The bigger the star power she amasses, the more fans will tune in to see her on AEW, making her signing a real win-win for fans of Tony Khan's company long-term.
Dustin Rhodes is excited to see Mercedes Mone's addition to AEW too.
Speaking of future WWE Hall of Famers who are incredibly excited to see what Mercedes Mone brings to the table in AEW, Dustin Rhodes commented on her debut in an appearance on the Sports Guys Talk Wrestling podcast and let it be known that the women's divisions about to be supercharged by her addition.
“There’s a big thing when we’re backstage, and we know somebody is about to debut. We’re all there, and we wanna watch this big debut, especially with a talent the caliber of Mercedes. Her music hit and it was deafening, the Boston crowd, they’re always like that, but that’s her home. She’s from Boston, she loves Boston and that crowd just blew the lid off of that place,” Dustin Rhodes explained via Fightful. “It was great to see that, great to hear that. I’m happy for her. She came in because of our women’s division, because our women’s division has gotten so good. To have all of these dream matches that she could set up and have with all of our talent man, it’s just incredible. I can’t wait to watch her journey here, I’ve watched it from day one, have always been a big fan, and I love her to death. She’s coming into AEW and is only gonna do big business for us, and it’s truly a great time to be a wrestling fan.”
As one of the performers who keeps a close eye on the AEW women's division, it's safe to say Rhodes is going to get a first-hand opportunity to work alongside Mone plenty moving forward, which, considering how much more of a spotlight will be on the entire division moving forward, is very good news for everyone involved.
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