Chris Jericho: Why Paul Wight Is A Great Signing For AEW

Chris Jericho has hit back at criticism of All Elite Wrestling's signing of Paul Wight, saying his status as one of the most recognisable wrestlers in the world will open new doors for AEW. 

The wrestling community was shocked last week as AEW confirmed the acquisition of Wight to a long-term deal, in which the former 'Big Show' - who spent 22 years with WWE - will work for the promotion as an in-ring performer and a commentator. 

Wight is the latest former WWE talent to move to AEW, something that a portion of wrestling fans consider a drawback, but Jericho says AEW are selective over the people they bring in. 

Having worked closely with Wight before, the first-ever AEW World Champion knows how important of a signing he could be to AEW, pointing to his global appeal that will, in turn, help to get more eyeballs on the product.

Jericho told Brandon Walker on Rasslin: "People say to me, 'you can't sign all these WWE cast-offs.' We really haven't. If you look when there was the big purge last year, I don't think we hired any of those guys. Nothing against them. A guy like Big Show transcends that. 

"He's one of the most recognisable pro wrestlers in the world. When you're dealing with a new company, if we want to try and get a TV deal in India for example, who is on the show? Chris Jericho, we know him. Sting, we know him. Paul Wight, we know him. Those are the guys that can open the door to get people's eyeballs on Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks, Darby [Allin], Cody, Ricky Starks. 

"He is super valuable in that he has the one thing you can't teach - two things, because you can't teach someone how to be a giant - but you can't teach someone experience. We have a lot of big guys on our roster and Paul can help with that. He can also be very funny and charming. A motivated Paul Wight is very dangerous. He doesn't have to wrestle every week, nor should he, but when he gets the call and wants to be there and prove what he can do, he's one of the best big man workers who has ever lived. 

"He's a great signing for AEW and anyone who doesn't know for sure will have their minds changed very quickly."