*By Request*
“Hey, man. I was thinking about the WWE Performance Center and how they have different Coaches working there. It gave me a request idea for an article. What if you were placed in charge of the PC, and you were given a green light to hire anybody you want for any coaching role you want. For bonus points you could do it for AEW, too. What if Tony Khan hired you to run a brand new AEW Performance Center and gave you the green light to hire anybody you want for any coaching role you want. What would you do?”
Well, damn. I don’t think I’ve ever thought about something like that before. Not in-depth, at least. Like everyone else, I’ve thought about things at the surface level when we hear that so-and-so has been brought in to coach at the Performance Center, but never to this level.
If I’m going to tackle a topic like this, I suppose I need to set some ground rules for myself.
For the WWE Performance Center, I’m going to wipe the entire slate clean. All of the current coaches are being told about the move, and they’re being informed that some will be brought back under new contracts.
For the brand new AEW Performance Center, I’m also going to wipe the entire slate clean. All of the current coaches will have their contracts terminated, and they’re also being informed that some could be brought back under new deals.
Finally, everyone is in the proverbial “draft pool,” so to speak. Even if they’ve never done coaching work… even if they’re on record saying that they’d never do something like that… they’re available to be hired for either PC.
Since the initial request was for the WWE Performance Center, that’s where I’m going to start.
Where better to begin than right at the top? Matt Bloom has been working as a trainer at the Performance Center for nearly 12 years now. While I have no personal issues with Bloom himself or the in-ring work he did during his career, I want to take things in a new direction.
Well, sort of new, anyway.
To take over as the Head Coach of the WWE Performance Center, I want to go with someone who is already working there. This person has received a ton of credit for the coaching that they’ve done over the past two-and-a-half decades. They’ve been directly responsible for the careers and the growth of wrestlers like John Cena, Randy Orton, Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Batista, Trish Stratus, Liv Morgan, Bayley, and much more. One of the toughest men to ever step foot inside of a wrestling ring, I think my choice to run the WWE PC is a good one. For my first move…
Fit Finlay is named the Head Coach of the WWE Performance Center.
When people speak about Fit and the role he played in coaching them and building their careers, you always hear about how patient he is, but also about how he gets to know every “student” on a personal level, understanding what makes them who they are. That’s the mark of a great teacher. Not everyone can be taught in the same cookie cutter fashion, and Fit understands that. You cater your teaching on an individual level, and everyone can advance in the best way they know how to.
Now, it’s time to put a coaching staff around Fit, with everyone chipping in to assist in different ways. There’s no particular order to list them in, as they all play integral roles in the process. The first person I’m going to mention is someone who is already under WWE contract, but not as a coach at the Performance Center. Instead, this person can be found in the Gorilla Position at shows because they’re currently in a Producer role. While I haven’t heard anything negative about their role as someone who helps put matches together, I think they’re better suited for a coaching gig. He and his wife (who also happens to be on the WWE roster) have their own wrestling gym where they spend countless hours training people and working with them to improve their careers. They’ve even been tasked with helping to work with different celebrities that come to WWE for one-off appearances. When the company trusts you to do stuff like that, it says everything to me. My next move…
TJ Wilson (aka Tyson Kidd) is named as one of the WWE Performance Center Coaches.
The legacy of Stu Hart will continue on in my version of the Performance Center, and will hopefully last for generations to come.
The next person on my list is someone that will probably make a portion of you confused. On one hand, this person is a WWE Hall Of Famer, and they’ve been a World Champion in their career. However, on the other hand, they aren’t necessarily who you would first think of when the idea of a wrestling coach. However, if you know about the Performance Center, you know that some of the people who coach there are responsible for a particular thing or have a particular group of people that they’re training. This person’s main job is going to be teaching a “big man” class, of sorts. It seems like a simple idea, but not every “large” wrestler knows how to work as someone their size. This guy is someone who knows what he brings to the table, and I would fully trust him to pass that on to the next generation. As an added bonus, he is absolutely, positively someone that can also be used in a Strength & Conditioning role and can be valuable in the weight room. Next up…
Mark Henry is named as one of the WWE Performance Center Coaches.
Let’s keep the “works on a specific thing” trend going, shall we? My next target is someone who has had a serious physical toll taken on his body thanks to the wrestling business, and although he may not be able to roll around in the ring hour after hour and day after day, he will still be able to contribute in other ways. When it comes to in-ring psychology… “these are the moves I know” not being as important as “this is why I do the moves I do” in the grand scheme of things… this man is easily one of the greatest of all-time.
I think I would also take advantage of this man’s promo skills in the Performance Center. If he’s teaching Promo Class, it’s something that people are going to pay close attention to. He was never the flashiest in the ring or on the mic, but he was excellent at making you pay attention to everything he said and did at all times. For my next move…
Arn Anderson is named as one of the WWE Performance Center Coaches.
With WWE having a controlling stake in the AAA promotion, and with the company seemingly wanting more and more interaction between the two rosters, I think it would behoove them to have a full-time Coach at the Performance Center who can connect both worlds.
If you’re looking to bridge the world of Lucha Libre with WWE, why not go with one of the most legendary and respected surnames in both places? Like TJ Wilson, this is someone already under contract with WWE as a Producer, but unlike TJ, he does his job on the AAA side of things. While I think he’s a good choice for that Producer role, I’m able to convince him to “jump ship” and take up residence in the Orlando, Florida area. Next…
Chavo Guerrero is named as one of the WWE Performance Center Coaches.
My next pick is someone that had something of a “coaching” gig during his early days wrestling with the WWF. It’s on record that the company would put new signees and prospective signees in the ring with him right away. If the match was good, and if he gave the proverbial thumbs up, the signee’s career would continue on. However, if things didn’t go well, that would pretty much be the end of their time.
Keep in mind that this guy was in his early 20’s when the company entrusted him with that. That’s incredible. He has always shown himself to have a very knowledgeable wrestling mind, and I want to take advantage of that in my version of the Performance Center. Since I’m all about those added bonuses, he brings one to the table, too. He can serve as a cautionary tale for the younger talents out there. Even with all the talent in the world, he spent a good chunk of his life making poor personal decisions, and it nearly cost him his life. Now that he is clean and sober, I think he could be a very beneficial member of Fit Finlay’s PC team. For our next hire…
Sean Waltman is named as one of the WWE Performance Center Coaches.
There isn’t a set number of people that WWE wants to feature on its Coaching Staff, so I’m going to put an end to the WWE part of this exercise here. There would be more people on the team, but in the interest of keeping things to a certain length, I’m going to move on to the AEW side of things.
My pick to run the AEW Performance Center is someone who has had one of the most illustrious coaching careers of the past three decades. The list of people that he is responsible for training is extensive, and it includes the likes of The Rock, Kurt Angle, The Hardy Boyz, Sheamus, Kofi Kingston, Brock Lesnar, Mark Henry, The Miz, The Usos, Bray Wyatt, Dolph Ziggler, and much, much more. The level of expertise that he could bring to AEW would be more valuable than words can express. To kick things off…
Dr. Tom Prichard is named the Head Coach of the AEW Performance Center.
For the WWE group, I didn’t list Fit Finlay’s staff in any particular order, and I will be continuing that here for Dr. Tom’s staff in AEW.
In building the AEW staff, my mind first went to someone that is already under AEW contract. At one point, he was an on-screen talent, working as a manager type, but now, he does more backstage stuff, being a part of the company’s community outreach work. However, I want this person to be a full-time member of the AEW Performance Center for one reason… psychology. Take everything I said about Arn Anderson earlier, and amplify it. This man was never a wrestler that did a bunch of moves in the ring… because he didn’t need to. Everything he did meant something, even down to the look on his face or how he would stand in the corner during a pre-match introduction. He also became famous for standing out by minimizing his own promos. In an era where everything was becoming more and more over the top, from attire colors to yelling and snarling in promos, this man went the opposite direction, purposely speaking in hushed tones, which forced you to lean in and pay attention more. That’s brilliant, and I want to see him pass that type of brilliance on to an entirely new generation of wrestlers. Next up…
Jake “The Snake” Roberts is named as one of the AEW Performance Center Coaches.
Let’s continue the trend of former WWE wrestlers here.
Up until recently, the idea of this man doing any sort of work at all for a company other than WWE seemed too far-fetched. He seemed like a “lifer” for the promotion. Then, he decided to stand up for what he believes in, even if it would ultimately cost him money, and he walked away from WWE.
In the entire history of pro wrestling, I don’t think there has ever been anyone that put more time and thought into their character and every aspect behind it. Hearing him speak about the reasoning behind why he did what he did in this match, or why he said what he said in this promo, or why his character would feel a certain way about something, is like witnessing a masterclass. If given the chance to bring this man in to teach character work, I would be like Eric Bischoff with Ted Turner’s checkbook in the 90’s, throwing around whatever it would cost to make it happen. For my next move…
Mick Foley is named as one of the AEW Performance Center Coaches.
This isn’t even real, and I’m all excited over the thought of Mick being brought in for the job.
My next selection is someone who was best known for his time wrestling for WWE, although he saw slightly more in-ring success during his time with TNA/Impact Wrestling. Some will be confused to see him included here, as he was never a huge star that reached the top of the card and made a trillion dollars for anybody. The sooner people realize that type of thing isn’t the most relevant aspect when it comes to the training of pro wrestlers, the better we’ll all be. Just look at my two choices for Head Coaches here, for example. As talented as Fit Finlay was in the ring, how many World Titles did he rack up in WCW and WWE? How many times did Dr. Tom Prichard main event WrestleMania?
Sorry. Back to the lecture at hand.
This choice is someone who has not only done some impressive work as a trainer in recent years, but has strong connections to AEW because of that training. MJF, Kris Statlander, Hook, Max Caster, Bear Bronson, and “Smart” Mark Sterling are among the names of people that this man (and his business partner, Pat Buck, who would also be a good fit here) have trained through the years. If so much AEW history runs through this man’s hard work and dedication, why not see if you can keep that up for years to come? Next…
Brian Myers (aka Curt Hawkins) is named as one of the AEW Performance Center Coaches.
For my next selection, I’m going to do something similar to what I did with my WWE picks. Earlier, I made sure to hire Mark Henry for the WWE PC, with the thought process being that he could help to teach a “big man class,” of sorts, and help the larger wrestlers fully take advantage of the gifts that they’ve been given. Let’s do that again here.
My choice for that role is someone who has decades of experience being the biggest man in the room anywhere he went. From the moment he made his debut, he has been all about being a “giant,” so much so that it became his name for multiple years. Too many “big man” wrestlers in today’s scene try to wrestle like men half their size, and it can often look silly. When this guy speaks against it, he means it, because he, too, used to wrestle like someone half his size until he was told that it wasn’t a good career move. Once he made the switch, he would go on to become one of the absolute best that the business has ever seen. I want him to pass that knowledge and know-how on to more people. Next up…
Paul Wight is named as one of the AEW Performance Center Coaches.
How about a two-for-one sale? My next selection will bring not one, but two new members of Dr. Tom’s staff.
I love tag matches in AEW, but if there’s one complaint I have about them, it’s that they often bypass psychology for the sake of doing as many moves as possible. To help with that, I want to bring in a tag team from days gone by that mastered the art of psychology in their matches. It helped them to become successful everywhere they went, having over 40 total Tag Team Title reigns in their career. They may very well be the purest, most over babyface tag team to ever grace the sport, and their match “formula” is seen in tag matches today. Time for some new hires…
The Rock N Roll Express (Ricky Morton & Robert Gibson) are named as two of the AEW Performance Center Coaches.
Again, I do want to keep things relatively short, so I won’t go on and on with more names. I will say, however, that some of the other names I had on my list for potential WWE Coaches were Timothy Thatcher, Robbie Brookside, The Dudley Boyz, Sara Amato, Santino Marella, and Meiko Satomura, just to name a few. My list of names for potential AEW Coaches includes Chris Hero, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, QT Marshall, Jerry Lynn, Emi Sakura, Dustin Rhodes, and more.
How did I do? What do you think of the Coaching Staffs that I put together for my WWE and AEW Performance Centers? Now, put yourself in the same spot. You don’t have to give me entire staffs, but if you were in charge of such things, who would be doing the coaching at your WWE and/or AEW Performance Centers? As always, feel free to hit me up in the comments section below, on Twitter (@HustleTheSavage), or on Bluesky (@aaronhyden.bsky.social), and let me know what’s on your mind.
Now, let’s switch things over to my Weekly Power Rankings before closing things out with the list of songs I was listening to as I put this column together.
Weekly Power Rankings
Kenny Omega vs Andrade El Idolo: It really does look like everything is clicking for Andrade this time around. His connection with live crowds is strong, his in-ring is even stronger, and he is picking up huge wins. Future AEW World Champion?
CM Punk & Roman Reigns: They had a tremendous promo battle to sell their WrestleMania main event against each other. Roman had the better promo, but Punk’s promo was good, too. From the moment Punk returned to WWE at Survivor Series 2023, he has been involved in some great promo segments with several wrestlers. Everything seems so real, with lots of emotions and hurt feelings over things that Punk did/said in the past. It makes for must-see television.
Stephanie Vaquer vs Raquel Rodriguez: A really physical Street Fight that was given nearly 25 minutes to work with. Both women worked their asses off here. Stephanie remains one of the best wrestlers in the world, but I want to continue giving Raquel her flowers. She is on an incredible run right now, and she deserves to be at the top of the women’s division at some point soon.
Rhea Ripley & Iyo Sky vs Giulia & Kiana James: Kiana continues her in-ring hot streak, and Giulia continues to point out that she deserves more opportunities to shine. Rhea and Iyo are, of course, Rhea and Iyo. Enjoyable match, even with an outcome that was never close to being in question.
Jon Moxley, Pac & Daniel Garcia vs Konosuke Takeshita, Josh Alexander & El Clon: It feels like there’s at least one AEW Trios match on my Power Rankings every week, and for good reason. The matches are full of action, usually with insane paces, and they keep my attention. Lots to like.
Joe Hendry vs Keanu Carver vs Dion Lennox vs Sean Legacy vs Jackson Drake vs Shiloh Hill vs Ricky Saints: There was much more of a focus on younger talent in this match, which did “hurt” the overall quality of the match, but it was still enjoyable. Obviously, with the NXT Championship on the line, it allowed for everyone to work a little harder. In the end, the right man won, and a Joe Hendry reign atop NXT should be fun to watch play out.
Tommaso Ciampa vs Roderick Strong vs Claudio Castagnoli: R-O-H! R-O-H! R-O-H! I like the run that Ciampa is on in AEW, and his upcoming match against Kyle Fletcher has the potential to be amazing and perhaps even top my Power Rankings next week. We shall see.
Randy Orton vs Aleister Black vs Solo Sikoa: A good match that saw all three men work hard, but I think the outcome was pretty obvious. Orton is the right choice to land a spot in the Elimination Chamber.
Carmelo Hayes vs The Miz: While I wouldn’t rank it on the same level as most of the other matches in this impressively long United States Title Open Challenge series, I still enjoyed it. It was probably the best singles match Miz has had in a long time, too. Somewhat on topic… it’s wild to think that it has now been over two full calendar years since Miz has won a singles match on television. His last such win was over JD McDonagh on the February 5th, 2024 episode of Raw. We’re also coming up on the five-year mark since the last time Miz won a singles match on pay-per-view, going all the way back to when he cashed in his Money In The Bank shot to beat Drew McIntyre for the WWE Title at the 2021 Elimination Chamber event. Say whatever you want about The Miz, but that run doesn’t make any sense.
Je’Von Evans vs El Grande Americano: Impressive work from both men here. Two of the more athletic men on the roster, having a fun match, although it’s worth pointing out again that the outcome was never really in question.
Dragon Lee & Gunther: I love that Dragon Lee showed no fear in going after Gunther. It was a move that made sense, as AJ Styles was Dragon Lee’s friend and recent tag partner. He got some offense in on Gunther during his attack, and it popped the crowd, but boy, when Gunther regained the momentum, it was brutal. Gunther, standing in the ring, pulling Dragon Lee up from the floor to the ring apron by his mask, then locking him in a Sleeper was great. The visual of Dragon Lee going completely limp in mid-air was a memorable one. Effective segment overall.
This Week’s Playlist: “SAFETY” by J. Cole… “WHO TF IZ U” by J. Cole… “The Villest” by J. Cole & Erykah Badu… “What If” by J. Cole & Morray… “Little Things” by Ella Mai… “Still Here” by Lecrae… “Fragments” by Joji & Don Toliver… “Cry” by Charlie Puth & Kenny G… “House Of Cards” by The Amity Affliction… “Lacerations” by Sylosis… “Pieces” by Lost In Hollywood… “Everlasting Bass” by Rodney O & Joe Cooley… “Get Fucked Up” by Iconz… “Int’l Players Anthem” by UGK & Outkast… “Murder” by UGK… “My Love Is All I Have” by Heavy D… “Moonlight” by Coyote Theory… “Flavorless” by Dexter and The Moonrocks… “Taste” by Melrose Avenue… “Can’t Stop” by Red Hot Chili Peppers… “The Middle” by Jimmy Eat World… “The Kill” by Thirty Seconds To Mars… “Between Angels And Insects” by Papa Roach… “Face Down” by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus… “Sex On Fire” by Kings Of Leon
