Tossing Salt Presents:
Ultimate Wrestling Q&A
Jinder Mahal, Swerve Strickland, Tessa Blanchard & More
DougMaynard.com
Doug Maynard

Well, your Guiding Light and party host is back after nearly a week in the hospital. They finally set me free last night and I’ve got a lot of things to catch up on. What better way to start than with the Ultimate Wrestling Q&A? Let’s roll.

Do you believe that AEW is worth $2 Billion?

I find this a little hard to believe and I’m wondering what standards were used to come up with this number. Was it based on outstanding contracts and potential income, the amount of money that Tony Khan has invested into the company, or just speculation by a wired-up guy trying to piece together a column and just throwing everything against the wall to see what sticks? It’s Forbes coming up with this so I’d take it with a grain of salt at best.

Where will Jinder Mahal go next?

I’m hoping that a nice big-money deal with AEW is next so Tony Khan can build on the heat with Jinder and Hook from late last year. If not AEW, then maybe TNA for a while until WWE comes to their senses and realizes that they were wrong to hinder the Jinder.

Goldberg recently stated that there’s not a chance he’d ever work for AEW and called the product “cheesy”. Thoughts?

I never thought I’d agree with Goldberg, but on this analysis of AEW, he’s right. I’ve never been a big Goldberg fan, but if he doesn’t need the money, AEW would be a huge step down for him and his legacy. They wouldn’t know how to use him as part of their product.

Matt Hardy says he’s still a free agent after showing up and working at TNA. Thoughts?

It looks as if Matt Hardy is going the Matt Cardona route, picking and choosing his spots while keeping his options open for whatever comes up next. For a person in this stage of their career, that’s probably a smart move. If the right deal and position become available, jump on it, but make the best of it until then. Cardona set the blueprint and has shown it can work. Dolph Ziggler and Mustafa Ali are following the example and it looks as if Hardy is doing the same.

Mike Santana is back with TNA. Thoughts?

I’ve always thought of Santana as more of a TNA guy than anything else, so it seems he’s just gone home. More power and best wishes to the former multi-time tag team champion. Now let’s see what he can really do.

Xia Li and Xyon Quinn were released by WWE. Thoughts?

I hate it for Li. She always seemed to have some good potential, but the on-off booking of Vince McMahon took its toll and she could never gain any momentum or find her stride. She can now go join her husband, Keith Lee, in AEW, where she’d probably get a bigger push and find more potential success. She’ll do fine. As for Xyon Quinn, I had honestly forgotten about who this is and had to look them up. I guess it’s back to the Indys.

Swerve Strickland is the new AEW World Champion. Thoughts? Who should be the next person to challenge for his championship?

Swerve is the next big thing in AEW and while I don’t personally see the appeal of Strickland, I’m happy for him and maybe he’ll be the one to turn things around for AEW. He’s got charisma and good in-ring skills and AEW is doing this while the fire is hot, a smart move for all parties involved. As for the next person to step up and challenge Swerve once the Samoa Joe factor is dealt with, I wonder, does Swerve have a father? Is his dad alive or dead? What about Christian Cage?

Do you think Will Ospreay will win the AEW World Title this year?

It’s only April so we have seven months left to go for 2024 and that’s a lot of time for stuff to happen and things to change. I would say yes.

Jack Perry is back in AEW. Thoughts?

We knew it was just a matter of time and it was coming. I actually like the new Scapegoat character and Perry plays a good chicken-shit heel. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out. Welcome back, Jungle Boy.

Allegedly, Tessa Blanchard has been in talks with and might be returning to TNA. Thoughts?

Tessa is a very talented young woman and it seems that maybe she’s put the drama in her life and baggage away and is ready to get her career back on track. I hope so. She brings a lot to the table and if she can avoid the backstage issues, she could and should be a huge name in professional wrestling. I still want to see her versus Charlotte Flair at some point and time, preferably in the WWE. But that being said, TNA is a good place to begin her tour of redemption. I hope the rumors are true.

And there you go. Thanks for reading. I have a lot to catch up on so expect to see plenty of stuff coming up over the next few days. You’ve been warned. Questions, comments, and any thoughts are welcome and appreciated. Be sure to like, share, and subscribe. And with that, let’s wrap it up for now. Take care and be well, my friends. Thank you for your continued support. I do this for you. Watch out for Samoan wrestlers wearing hoodies. I’ll see you at the matches.

Ubuntu!