AEW President Tony Khan reportedly granted permission to WWE to interview several of AEW’s top stars for the John Cena tribute package that aired on Monday’s RAW.
According to Fightful Select, WWE contacted Khan to seek his permission and received the green light to conduct the interviews. Given the circumstances surrounding the videos, Khan was said to be okay with the content and provided his approval. A WWE source told Fightful that they were able to land virtually everyone they hoped to for the Cena congratulatory videos
As noted earlier, the likes of Bryan Danielson, Paul Wight and Chris Jericho made cameo appearances on the show to congratulate Cena on his 20-year WWE anniversary.
“Wishing John Cena congratulations on 20 years of hustle, loyalty and respect,” Jericho said. “One of my all-time favorite opponents.”
This wasn’t the first instance of Jericho returning to WWE TV in some capacity since joining AEW. Last year, on WWE Hall of Famer Steve Austin’s Broken Skull Sessions podcast, Jericho spoke candidly about his reasons for signing with AEW and even went as far as to criticize WWE’s booking of his WrestleMania 33 match against Kevin Owens. In fact, Jericho openly admitted that WWE’s handling of his feud against Owens contributed to his WWE exit.
Other WWE legends who congratulated John Cena include JBL, Steve Austin, Stephanie McMahon, Randy Orton and Kurt Angle.
