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All Elite Wrestling (AEW) dropkicked a nationwide nightmare to make sure its talent and personnel made it to Phoenix for Full Gear on Saturday despite travel chaos that plagued millions across the U.S.
AEW owner Tony Khan brought in some wrestlers and other workers on private planes just to make sure they were going to show up for the fans, who were expected to pack the Mortgage Matchup Center for one of the company’s top pay-per-views on the calendar.
"I know it’s been an incredibly challenging few days for a lot of people," Khan said in a video posted to his social media. "My sympathies to everybody affected by all of the flight cancelations and delays. Yesterday, as you can imagine, was a hectic day as it was for a lot of people with the flights grounded and that applied to all flights yesterday – private and public flights. For AEW, we’re the same as everyone else, we’re not trying to break any rules. Everybody was grounded and we started formulating a plan that has come together really, really well."
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Khan said everyone on the Full Gear pay-per-view card arrived in Phoenix. Khan sent private planes at three "hub locations" to bring the wrestlers and other personnel to the Mortgage Matchup Center. The only thing that changed was the Tailgate Brawl – which will occur on the Full Gear pre-show.
Khan said he believed everyone probably would have made it on their scheduled flights.
"I think it was virtually impossible given how many flights of people who work in AEW have been canceled had I not dispatched the private planes to the three hub locations, I think it’s very unlikely everybody would have made it here. I think there probably would have been some changes to the main card."
Adam Copeland, who battles Kazuchika Okada for the AEW International Championship, said it was "challenging" to get from the East Coast all the way to Phoenix.
"I was going down the runway about to take off for Denver and the pilot came on and said there’s a ground stoppage nationwide. I was like, ‘OK.’ I called Beth (Phoenix) and she came and got me and I went home," he said. "No idea if I was going to make it today. All of my flights started getting canceled one after the other after the other. Everyone else’s flights were starting to take off but mine weren’t.
"Even still, my flight to get out here is tomorrow at 5:37. So, Tony Khan sent a plane to come get us. Poor (Tony) Schiavone got there early so he was sitting there at 9 o’clock. I don’t think we were taking off until 11 so I was like, come have a coffee, come pet my dogs. We had a big dog cuddle-fest this morning and my girls got to meet Tony and we had some coffee – we made the best of it."
Tony Schiavone, one-third of the AEW broadcast team, was set to fly out of Atlanta when he made the last-minute decision to take a smaller plane out of Asheville, North Carolina, because of the uncertainty that he may have been delayed or canceled. He told his wife he wasn’t going to drive all the way to Phoenix, but he would have if he had the time to make the 27-hour trip.
"But that was OK because I waited, got to hang out with Adam Copeland, which was pretty cool," he said. "It was a pretty cool day but it was a very challenging day. I guess I got here around 2 o’clock local time here in the afternoon. My car is still in Asheville. I have no idea how I’m gonna get it but it doesn’t matter. I’m glad I’m here. I would do anything to make it to Full Gear. … I would have driven to Phoenix! I would have, but I didn’t have the time."
Mark Davis and Jake Doyle, the duo known as Davis and Doyle, will challenge for the AEW World Tag Team Championship against The Young Bucks. But it was far from easy for them to get to the arena.
"Tumultuous last 24 hours leading up to Full Gear," Davis said. "For me, I had to run across the great state of Florida. I went from Tampa to Orlando, trying to get a flight – didn’t happen. Thankfully, the big guy had our back and I think he’s pretty excited to see Davis and Doyle take down some Young Bucks here this evening at Full Gear."
Doyle made it clear, "It’s a bad day to be a Buck."
"It was already a bad day to be a Buck but then I had to drive to Detroit, then drive to Chicago, then sit on a private jet, which is pretty awesome, but I had to sit on that jet for eight hours, waiting to get here to tear up these Young Bucks.
"So, Tony Khan, thank you for that jet. Young Bucks, I don’t feel sorry for you."
Matt and Nick Jackson – The Young Bucks – were only in California. They had to make the drive to Phoenix.
"We told each other, we’re blessed, we’re in California. A lot of these guys are coming further than us, but we will do anything – planes, trains and automobiles – we will be here at Full Gear," Matt Jackson said. "We have a big match tonight – Davis and Doyle. Two intimidating meatheads that actually had our number the last couple times when we’ve been in the ring. We talked about it on the drive. We had six hours to really think about it and strategize. Yeah, the travel sucked but we’re ready and we’re gonna rock the house tonight at Full Gear."
Excalibur, Schiavone’s broadcast teammate, said he was at the gym when he got a text about the travel chaos. He said he planned to jump in a car to go from Southern California to Phoenix. He drove five hours to get to the arena but took solace in the fact he got a chance to stop in the desert he doesn’t normally stop in.
"I made it. I wouldn’t miss this for the world. I know people have much tougher travel days than I did. I mean a five-hour drive, it’s doable, but in wrestling terms, it’s nothing," he said. "I wasn’t going to miss this for the world. I know a lot of people in AEW, everybody in AEW, has the same idea, same feeling, if there’s any way possible for them to be here today, they’re gonna be here at Full Gear. … There’s nothing that can keep me from Full Gear today."
Nigel McGuinness, the third person on the broadcast team, got to Phoenix from Los Angeles. He jumped in his car when he learned about the travel woes.
"There was no way I was gonna miss Full Gear," he said. "There’s something about being in professional wrestling where you make the show no matter what. I’ve never missed a show and there was no way I was going to miss Full Gear."
The main pay-per-view card begins at 8 p.m. ET and can be seen on HBO Max.
English (US) ·