MR. TITO: In Defense of Chris Jericho’s Recent AEW Activity…

Lately, Chris Jericho has been pushing his “Learning Tree” gimmick in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) and the online criticism has been rampant. Here are some examples on the “X” formerly known as Twitter:

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“F*** Chris Jericho”

“Chris Jericho seems to be married ot an absolutely horrendous person”

“@TonyKhan, a friendly reminder that Chris Jericho, whose household is racist and homophobic is in your company, your locker room. Are you doing something about it?”

“Chris Jericho with shooters in 2024….? I’m waiting for the Chris Jericho with Weight Watchers ads.”

“Sting and Chris Jericho are like polar opposites when it comes to “how to wrestle once you get old and can’t go like you used to” because one is generally seen as a dead weight on shows anymore and the other is Sting”

“The aew “this is wrestling” sh** was so corny just a bunch of fat redditors in the crowd jacking each other off while a bloated chris jericho gets superkicked by a midget”

“It’s sad to see #ChrisJericho become a joke and #Chump. He should do the right thing, hang up his boots, and go into a shameful exile from the business. I guess #Money is more important than his overall career. He’s too slow and fat to stick around. @TonyKhan #ForbiddenBackDoor”

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And that is just a FRACTION of the stuff that I could have pulled.

First and foremost, let’s address said physical condition of Chris Jericho. He’s a shade under 6 feet tall and around 230 pounds. That doesn’t seem too abnormal to me, especially for Jericho who has been in weight training for decades. Sure, he could hit that gym harder to look even more shredded, but remember, Jericho had some back issues that he advised DDP Yoga helped him to resolve to continue his wrestling career. It’s not easy to hit the gym often or do crunches/sit-ups with back issues.

Secondly, for those criticizing Jericho’s weight, why don’t you LOOK IN THE MIRROR.

I guarantee those who rip Jericho online for his current look at the tender age of 53 going on 54 don’t look much better. Hell, I’d bet that most look a thousand times worse at their younger ages than Jericho does at his current age.

Many of you haters should try to join Weight Watchers yourselves. Geesh.

I don’t see any issues with Jericho’s look now, nor did I see any issues with a few years ago when he purposely put on a few pounds to fit his character. He still wrestled well and gave everything he had in the ring, while still being able to perform most of his moves.

Again, y’all need to look in the mirror and criticize yourselves first while Jericho gets to swim in a large money bin full of money like Scrooge McDuck.

Now, let’s address any of Jericho’s recent feuds or storylines… Ultimately, if you dislike what he’s doing in the ring, ask who he reports to… Jericho is not an EVP over there, nor is he President/CEO. Those higher roles could add some suggestions to help make his feuds/storylines better or hold him accountable of the quality isn’t there.

Ultimately, what Chris Jericho can control is himself. If AEW hands him a large contract to sign, he’ll sign it. If he has a character trait that he’d like to add for himself on AEW Dynamite, that’s something he brings up and ultimately Tony or the EVPs could either tweak or shoot down. If Chris Jericho is doing something outside of the ring that is frowned upon, like concerts during COVID or anything politically, that’s up to the management of AEW to have a discussion with him.

To me, people began to sour on Chris Jericho mostly through 2020. Why? Because his politics came out. Campaign contributions became public, Jericho had Don Jr. on his podcast (look at the heat Logan Paul is getting for having Donald Trump on his podcast), and his wife and her family appear to be big fans of the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, as both were in Washington, D.C. during January 6th, 2021. THAT is where the criticisms of Chris Jericho ramped up, as half the country supports Trump and the other half does not. Longtime friend of Jericho’s, Jim Cornette, even turned on him during 2020 once he found out his politics.

Michael Jordan once said “Republicans buy shoes, too” when someone inquired if Michael could get more involved with Democratic Party fundraisers and events. He stayed out of the political spotlight, choosing to focus on basketball and keeping that as a form of entertainment for everyone. The Undertaker, for years, has heavily donated to the Republican Party but you didn’t know about it because it was kept quiet and personal. Ditto with Kane, until he came out heavily in favor of the Republican Party and he’s very much backing Donald Trump. While the Undertaker only had donations revealed, Kane being much more vocal has seen his views online getting more heat on social media and other avenues.

With Chris Jericho, I think most were perfectly fine with him through 2019 and were happy for him getting new life in 2019. He was celebrated as their first AEW Champion and he did great building that brand up so quickly. By 2020, things began to change as his politics became more well known. Suddenly, his in-ring work, his storylines, and his weight are major issues by hateful wrestling fans.

Wrestling fans need to back off on Jericho and if they are mad at any of his storylines, promos, or matches, they need to contact Tony Khan and hold HIM accountable, not Jericho. Jericho can only sign the contract you give him and only use the television time that you allow him. Period. If he’s doing a poor job, then why isn’t Tony or the EVPs changing something?

In my view, wrestling fans need their own “learning tree” for online etiquette, manners, and not being a d*** to people or using someone online as a punching bag for frustrations they have in their own lives. This is exactly what I said in my May 22nd, 2024 column entitled “Internet Wrestling Community Has Always Been Cynical and About Tribalism”:

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You need to dig into the ROOT CAUSE of why someone wants to yell about wrestling online… If something was so terrible, wouldn’t they stop consuming it? If WWE or AEW was so bad, then why do people keep watching them? Why are they so loyal? They secretly enjoy it, but other things are on their mind and WWE/AEW become vehicles to vent, especially if they show doesn’t provide a big enough escape for them. Then, an angry email, message board post, comments below a post/column, or social media thread becomes a vehicle to vent such frustrations.

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Surprise, yelling at celebrity wrestlers is another vehicle for venting. You’re upset with your own life, so you take it out on someone online. As a wrestling fan, Jericho is someone you’re watching weekly on AEW.

My advice for Chris Jericho is to keep doing what you’re doing and keep padding that bank account. You can only do what you’re allowed to do inside the ring by the promoter. When there’s no filter, anything goes.

Many of you need to look in the mirror or self-assess yourself. Something is wrong to the point where you’ll viciously attack someone online, especially someone sacrificing their body inside a wrestling ring.

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