Tony Khan Says AEW Grand Slam Australia Was Always Going To Air On TV And Not On Pay-Per-View

AEW is set to hold its first event ever in Australia as it heads to The Brisbane Entertainment Centre for Grand Slam Australia on Feb. 15.

Mariah May and "Timeless" Toni Storm are expected to headline the show for the AEW Women's World Championship, a match that has been in the works since May won the title from Storm at AEW All In: London back in August.

AEW founder Tony Khan spoke with TV Insider about the upcoming show, noting he has never taken a trip down under before and is looking forward to bringing the event to those fans.

"It’s my first time going to Australia. I’m really excited about it," Khan said. "I’m excited to learn more about the fans, meet new people and have a great experience. It’s something I look forward to have AEW make its Australian debut in Brisbane for Saturday night, Collision, Grand Slam Australia. I think it’s going to be a great event. We got huge matches, and I believe it will be one of the greatest Grand Slam cards in AEW’s history. It’s always one of the biggest events on the calendar. There are already some huge matches with 'Timeless' Toni Storm returning to fight her protégé 'The Glamour' Mariah May for the AEW Women’s World Championship in Toni’s home country. It’s a return and a homecoming."

Storm will no doubt have major support from her home country, and Khan believes the event could become one of the most significant TV events of the year in wrestling.

"It’s an important chapter in one of AEW’s greatest rivalries unfolding before us now," he said. "The huge tag team match with Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay teaming for the first time ever in AEW to take on the AEW International Champion Konosuke Takeshita and 'The ProtoStar' Kyle Fletcher, who is returning to his home country of Australia. This will be one of the biggest TV events of the year. This will arguably the biggest TV card of the year."

The show was originally intended to be a stadium show at Suncorp Stadium, but ticket sales that were lower than anticipated resulted in the company moving it to an arena. It will air on TNT and stream on Max on tape delay following Warner Bros. Discovery's NBA All-Star Weekend coverage.

Khan says the event was never planned to be a pay-per-view, and was always going to be available to audiences for free.

MORE: Exclusive: Rookie Phenom Toni Storm Reacts To Life-Changing Opportunity At AEW Grand Slam

"Yes," Khan said regarding it being supposed to air on TV originally. "Having this be a TV event has always been the plan. That’s something that the network wanted. It’s something the network brought to us recently as an opportunity to follow NBA All-Star Saturday. We saw it as a huge opportunity. It was a great vote of confidence for our partners at Warner Brothers Discovery. It will be one of the biggest nights of the year on TNT. It’s a great opportunity given the lead-in."

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