Tony Khan was buying shots and rubbing elbows with wrestlers as early as 2012.
Tony Khan has always been a self-professed pro wrestling fan living out a dream by being the President and booker of AEW. However, Khan has hovered around the industry for years. According to former Nexus member David Otunga, he once met Khan back in 2012, years before he'd found AEW.
During an episode of his YouTube vlog, Otunga recalled bumping into Khan during a night out at a pub and taking a picture with him.
"This was not an uncommon thing at this time, you know, especially with people seeing me there," he added, claiming that people often wanted to buy him a shot at the pub and he didn't want to take twenty shots a night, but when it came to Khan, he took the offer.
"He introduced himself, said that his name was Tony Khan, and that his family owned the Jacksonville Jaguars. He was a huge wrestling fan, and he started talking to me, but, like, in depth. He knew things about my career and my storyline," Otunga added, claiming that this made an impression on him because Khan was clearly not a casual fan. "That meant something to me at the time, so, you know, we talked a good bit, you know, bought me a shot, and then we ended up exchanging numbers."
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David Otunga claims he was too loyal to WWE to ever consider going to AEW
David Otunga claimed that he eventually began seeing advertisements for All In in 2018, and by 2019 he was surprised to see the announcement of AEW, but still had no idea that Tony Khan, who had started it, was the one he had met years ago. However, when it came to signing with them, Otunga claims it was never something he considered.
"I had been so loyal to WWE, 'cause during this time, they stuck by me and literally helped me to secure my family. And so, like, even after I was released in 2020, I still would hear from Vince McMahon," he explained.
"Would I sign with AEW now? So, I'm going to go ahead and give you my answer. My answer is: Tony Khan? You still have my number," Otunga added.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit David Otunga's YouTube channel and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
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Read the original article on Wrestling Inc.
Category: General Sports
