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The highly anticipated main event of AEW's Double or Nothing pay-per-view featured a no-holds-barred clash between the Blackpool Combat Club and the reunited members of The Elite in an intense Anarchy in the Arena match. This brutal encounter showcased extreme maneuvers, including an explosive superkick and thumbtack-filled madness.
However, legendary wrestling manager Jim Cornette did not hold back in expressing his disappointment with the chaotic spectacle. During a recent episode of The Jim Cornette Experience, Cornette aimed at the match's initial moments, where both teams brawled into the stands during the Blackpool Combat Club's entrance.
He criticized the camerawork for failing to capture the action, stating, "The fight started in the stands because The Elite went up to meet [BCC], they fight in stands, all eight guys and you can't see anything, and the cameras are trying to cut back and forth, and the band is still playing, and there's bad indie wrestling everywhere going on.
It's the dream of any outlaw indie mud show wrestler to be on TV and do the stuff they all do."
Referee's Controversial Bloodshed in Main Event
Cornette then shifted his focus to referee Rick Knox, disapproving of Knox's decision to bleed during the main event.
He insinuated that Knox's friendship with The Young Bucks, members of The Elite, likely influenced his involvement in the match. Criticizing Knox, Cornette stated, "Then there's Claudio, poor Claudio, who has such talent goddammit...
and he's holding the corpse referee Rick Knox, that desiccated fcking liver motherfcker, and he's done a blade job, it was only a pap smear, but the referee is bleeding. But I bet you because he's a Mark friend of The Buckeroos...
He approached them and said, 'Can I bleed tonight too? It's going to be badass.' " Cornette's strong words highlight his discontent with the overall presentation of the main event at Double or Nothing. As a respected figure in the wrestling industry, his criticisms carry weight and reflect a viewpoint shared by some traditionalists who prefer a more structured and controlled wrestling style.
While AEW has garnered praise for its innovative approach to professional wrestling, Cornette's remarks emphasize the ongoing divide between different schools of thought within the industry.