Mick Foley is excited about his future with AEW and says the company reminds him of one of wrestling’s most memorable periods- the Attitude Era.
A little over a week after making his AEW debut at Double or Nothing, the WWE Hall of Famer shared a video on social media reflecting on his experience so far. Foley thanked the fans and AEW officials for making his first appearance special and said the reaction he received felt genuine rather than just nostalgic.
Mick Foley explains why AEW reminds him of WWE’s Attitude Era
While praising AEW, Foley made it clear that he was not taking shots at WWE. He said that he will always appreciate WWE and everything the company did for him throughout his career.
However, he pointed to one major difference he sees in AEW: the enthusiasm of president Tony Khan. Foley said Khan’s excitement for wrestling is easy to see, and that energy seems to spread throughout the locker room. For him, it brings back memories of wrestling’s boom period in the late 1990s.
That led Foley to compare AEW’s current atmosphere to WWE’s Attitude Era. According to him, AEW has created an environment where wrestlers can take chances and try new ideas without constantly worrying about making mistakes.
“The energy backstage reminds me of the way WWE felt during the Attitude Era, when we were all actively pulling for each other, but we also understood that striking out was part of the process of hitting monumental home runs. So, I’m really glad to be in a place where wrestlers are encouraged to swing for the fences, and it’s understood that not every hit will leave the park,” Foley said.
Looking back on his years in wrestling, Foley said many performers become afraid to fail because they worry about how management will react. That mindset is very similar to what made the Attitude Era so successful.
Read More: MJF Brutally Exposes Fan’s Years Of Negative Posts Over AEW Face Turn Debate
