Tony Khan explains reasoning behind AEW faction name change to The Cut

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Last month, Jay White’s Bang Bang Gang turned heel and joined up with some of The Dogs to form a new heel faction in AEW. White cut a promo a few days later on Collision where he named this group “The Last Outfit.” However, shortly after that show went off the air, the team name was quickly changed to “The Cut.” A lot of fans are curious about why the name change was made. With that in mind, AEW President Tony Khan was on a call with the media today to promote this Saturday’s (Nov. 14) Full Gear pay-per-view, and he was asked a straightforward question about “what went into that change?” Here is Khan’s nearly four minute response. Good luck trying to find an actual answer to the question in his 500+ rambling words. “Uh, well, he referenced them being The Last Outfit. It’s a fair question. I think it was something new, something we’re trying. Clearly there’s been some big changes with the Death Riders specifically, recently. And I was trying something new, and building a new, rule-breaking stable that I believe could threaten anybody, including the most established heroes of AEW, including The Conglomeration, and in this case, the Death Riders, who have been at time have been untouchable in AEW, that The Cut could even get to them. So I had this concept of a group of people that I believed would fit very well. And I have such affinity for Jay White and the members of The Cut. And I had met with them, and they had really a lot of excitement about this. They are doing a great job, and people in The Cut were thrilled to have this opportunity, and they talked about how they wanted to establish themselves. Talked about that they’re a new group that represents a lot of tradition, and they’re the last of their kind. And they felt they were the last outfit of an operation. It’s a good expression, and I got what they were saying. And the fans were really resonated when they saw Jay White, and Juice Robinson, and The Gunns, and Ace Austin coming together with Finlay and Clark Connors. And I think that Gabe Kidd had been walking the line between The Dogs and the Death Riders. And even though David Finlay had no love lost with Jay White, it made sense for them to come together and make a choice to stop the Death Riders and The Conglomeration, these guys that have caused their… Really, I would say The Conglomeration and the Death Riders are some of the top stars, and also we’ve seen The Conglomeration and the Death Riders fight each other a lot, all over the world for years. The Conglomeration and The Death Riders have had great matches in every corner of the world. All over North America, in France, in Australia, and in England. We’ve seen it all over. So I thought this would be a really fresh and exciting thing to put The Conglomeration and the Death Riders in a fox hole together. It really felt like the fans loved the angle, and there was a missing piece. And I felt that missing piece was The Cut. Jay White completely agreed with me, and he embraced it. So, you saw that same day he identified what they are and what they would be. I think he’s doing a great job. I really believe in Jay White, and I believe in that group. And I think The Cut have come together. We saw Mercedes Mone joining with The Cut to fight the Death Riders last night. And I think they’re doing a fantastic job, and it’s great to have a fresh group that is a real threat to anybody in AEW, a real threat to anybody in wrestling. And I believe in those guys individually, and believe in them collectively as The Cut. Thanks for asking.” It’s worth noting that Khan had some awkward and/or deliberate pauses when he referred to “an operation” and how it’s a “good expression.” It’s almost as if the phrase “Bullet Club” was banned from coming out of his mouth. Also, the place where he says “these guys that have caused their…” didn’t have a part that I edited out. He simply trailed off in his rambling before continuing on to his next thought. My head hurts after listening to Tony’s answer multiple times, and the worst part is that I still have no idea why he changed the name of The Last Outfit to The Cut. Can you please help me out by interpreting Khan’s response in the comments below, Cagesiders? Thanks for answering.