Chris Jericho and Mike Tyson garnered a lot of attention for AEW on the most recent episode of Dynamite when they got into a pull-apart brawl to close the show.
The segment drew headlines across the Internet and while most seemed pleased with how it played out, some were critical that AEW would continue a decade old WWE segment where Tyson punched Jericho on Raw.
"It's a WWE angle? It's a Chris Jericho angle," Jericho told ESPN. "I was there. I don't just wash away my entire 19-year history with the WWE. That's ludicrous. Anybody criticizing that this was a WWE angle and we brought it over here -- this is my life. It's my story. Tyson knocked out Chris Jericho. He didn't knock out Chris Jericho and The Rock and Hulk Hogan and Triple H and Kurt Angle. He knocked me out. That's my story. It's like if I write a song and it's a huge hit and I released it on Sony records and then I signed with Warner Bros. and rerecorded the song. It's my song."
Using an old WWE storyline wasn't the only thing that drew the ire of some fans as there were others who don't see the appeal of wrestling using a crossover star who last fought 15 years ago.
"If we hadn't had Mike Tyson on the show, you and I wouldn't even be speaking right now," said Jericho when asked about criticism of using crossover athletes for ratings. "That's the reason why. We were focusing people to know what AEW is, to grow the audience, to grow our fan base. And that's how you do it. It's the same reason how AEW was able to get wrestling fans by bringing Chris Jericho in as the bridge. "Well, Jericho is there, we'll check this out. Oh, we really like this." Now you use Mike Tyson as the bridge. "If Mike Tyson is there, let's check this out. Wow, it's not just Jericho and Tyson." You get to see the whole roster of performers we have here and you realize this company kicks ass. That's why you do it. You do it smartly. You bring in the right person with the right opponent at the right time. There's nobody hotter in the sports world than Mike Tyson."
Tyson has teased a potential comeback fight in recent weeks, but nothing, not even an exhibition bout, has been confirmed.
It is unknown when Tyson will be back on AEW programming.
