The first time around for the AEW All Out Media Briefing, we had Tony Khan answering questions about AEW and the event. For the Full Gear event, Cody Rhodes, yes Rhodes, was answering questions from the media about the upcoming event. It started off with a softball about Cody getting his last name back from the WWE.

That softball turned into a pretty big revelation about him not using the name in AEW. Yes, he might have gotten the legal rights to the name back, but he won’t be using it in AEW. For his third-party ventures like acting, he will be Cody Rhodes once again.

Following that major revelation, the questions came about AEW’s product.

Cody Praises The Talent And Medical Staff

Some of the questions were about talent and sports related content in AEW. Cody basically stated that the MJF-Jericho sing-a-long was more Jericho’s doing and not something you should expect from the rest of the roster.

The questions also came about AEW’s medical staff and how they’ve made some questionable decisions in the past during shows. Cody assured the audience that the medical staff was taking the necessary precautions about the safety of the talent. They actually had a meeting after this media briefing about concussion safety. So while they might have had some problems in the past, they’re on it, and fixing that issue.

Cody went on to give tremendous praise to talents like Hikaru Shida, Darby Allin, and Serena Deeb. He went on a pretty big diatribe about how he had gained weight during his time off from AEW. The TNT champion did give Darby his due though. Cody promised a great match with Darby at Full Gear.

Some other things that he had to say were more high praise for AEW Dark. Cody said that he would love to be “The King Of Dark” if he wasn’t always on Dynamite. Ricky Starks also got some love here from Cody about how well he’s been doing on the show.

AEW Takes Notes From The Past On Factions And Talent

While AEW might be a tremendous product with plenty of new faces in Wrestling, the show also hearkens back to the past. They have lots of tag team wrestling, they have factions, and they bring in legends. Cody made sure to talk about how he would feel sick about when his dad was brought on to shows and wasn’t treated properly. He assured that when legends are brought on to AEW, that they’ll be treated as such.

Cody’s next question was about the UK market. Jericho made sure to mention the UK a lot on last night’s broadcast. AEW did have plans to run a UK show this year before the pandemic hit. Overseas, AEW is doing very well on UK and European TV. He assures that AEW will be bigger and better across the world in 2021.

“I Will Never Challenge For The AEW Title Again”

The next question was about The Young Bucks. That led to their stipulation that if they lose against FTR at Full Gear, that they won’t be able to challenge for the AEW Tag Team Titles again. Cody reiterated that he will not be able to challenge for the AEW Title again. He won’t be the “Midnight Rider”, Cody Rhodes, or anyone else. He can’t challenge for that title again. The claims of nepotism that have been levied against Cody are big in this stipulation. He doesn’t want to be seen as just using his last name to get somewhere in the wrestling business.

That might give some reasoning why the TNT Title means so much to Cody. That he’s using his prestige and clout to raise up a “secondary” title. Although he’s said that the TNT Title is seen in AEW as equal to the AEW Title.

The Young Bucks might have put themselves in a bad situation by making this stipulation. Cody warned that it might be a terrible idea for them to have locked in that part of the match.

“The World Is Not Enough”

Cody made sure to talk about how the climb to the top for All Elite Wrestling isn’t over. They’ve been doing well for themselves in the first year of existence. He wants them to be around for years and years to come. But it’s important to remember that the show could end at any point. They want to build stars, keep stars, and grow for the future. He mentioned Ricky Starks, Britt Baker, Sammy Guevara, and MJF as future stars that they’ve cultivated so far.

Speaking of growth. The next question was about a new “hour-long” show for TNT. He made sure to differentiate about it being a new show and not a third hour to Dynamite. He also stated that AEW Dark will stay on YouTube. The next show would be an all new wrestling show. He was pretty tight lipped about this one, so no new news on the show.

The second to last question was about the NWA-AEW partnership. Cody put a wet blanket on any cross-promoted show between the two companies. He also put out a flame for the third match between Nick Aldis and Cody Rhodes. It was another classic case of “never say never”. But it sounded like he was walking on eggshells with this question. Weird.

Last question was about music used in promos and packages in the Kenny Omega-Hangman package. Cody praised the in-house team for music. But he also said that the company will use more licensed music when it’s necessary.

Wrapping-Up With Cody And Full Gear

As for this media briefing, there weren’t any huge quotations along the lines of Tony Khan’s “Double or Nothing kicked Wrestlemania’s ass“. But it was informative about a lot of things going on in the AEW umbrella. Cody gave his personal thoughts on several AEW talents and the goings-on in the company. So while it wasn’t earthshaking from a media standpoint, it was a great briefing to be part of.

AEW Full Gear is this Saturday. You can get it on the BR Live app in the United States or Fite TV outside of the US.

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