Tony Khan discusses Athena’s ROH legacy, Women’s Division focus, Jazwares uncertainty ahead of Supercard of Honor

Ahead of tonight’s ROH Supercard of Honor event in Salisbury, Md,, AEW and ROH President Tony Khan spoke with wrestling media Thursday afternoon to preview the show, discuss Athena’s historic title reign, the state of ROH’s Women’s Division, AEW’s relationship with Jazwares, and more.

•Athena balancing ROH identity and AEW exposure: I asked Tony Khan about ROH Women’s World Champion Athena and how AEW balances protecting ROH’s brand identity while recognizing fan demand to see Athena featured more prominently across AEW programming.

Khan praised Athena’s historic title reign, calling her dominance “the stuff legends are made of,” while emphasizing how closely associated Athena has become with the modern ROH brand.

Khan also referenced both Athena and ROH World Champion Bandido participating in the upcoming Owen Hart Foundation Tournament, noting that each champion could potentially enter the tournament still holding their respective championships following Supercard of Honor.

•Women’s Wrestling Talk asks about ROH’s Women’s Division momentum: When asked whether ROH’s presentation of women’s wrestling could potentially serve as a blueprint for future AEW Women’s Division pay-per-view main events, Khan said ROH has featured some of the best women’s wrestling in the industry over the last several years and pointed to the company’s continued emphasis on the division across television and pay-per-view.

During the response, Khan confirmed Persephone had been removed from the Survival of the Fittest match due to injury, but said both Persephone and Saraya are still expected to participate in the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament later this summer if recovery timelines remain on schedule.

•Athena competing in Survival of the Fittest: Khan clarified that the elimination-style rules still require Athena to be pinned or submitted in order to lose the championship. He added that the multi-person format poses a very different challenge than Athena’s traditional one-on-one title defenses.

•AEW’s relationship with toy partner Jazwares: Khan did not directly confirm any pending changes but acknowledged. “There’s probably something to what you’re asking about,” he said, while suggesting that any potential shift could ultimately benefit AEW and fans.

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•The status of Persephone and Saraya within the Owen Hart Foundation Tournament bracket: Khan stated the current expectation is for both performers to return in June and remain part of the tournament schedule leading into Forbidden Door.

•The importance of ROH having three women’s champions: With ROH having champions in Athena, Deonna Purrazzo, and Red Velvet, Khan praised Purrazzo’s rivalry with Diamante, highlighted Red Velvet’s recent international appearances in CMLL, and continued to emphasize Athena’s dominance atop the ROH Women’s Division heading into Supercard of Honor.

•Updated thoughts on Nielsen metrics and MyAEW data: Regarding how AEW currently evaluates business performance metrics given fluctuations in Nielsen ratings methodology and the addition of streaming distribution through Max and MyAEW internationally, Khan said Nielsen remains his primary source of performance data, while also praising AEW’s international rollout of MyAEW. Khan further emphasized that Warner Bros. Discovery remains the company’s most important media relationship in the United States.

Other Notes:

•Khan praised Lacey Lane’s recent performances and called her a “tremendous wrestler.”

•Regarding Lio Rush’s recent character presentation changes. Khan said Rush recently approached him with several new creative ideas and described Rush as a performer with “multiple sides” to his personality.

•Regarding the impact of taping ROH television regularly at WJCT Studios in Jacksonville, Khan said the setup has helped improve both consistency and overall TV quality.

•Regarding Blake Christian’s recent momentum heading into his ROH World Championship match against Bandido, Khan praised Christian’s recent performances and said he believes Christian has the potential to become a future ROH World Champion.