AEW Announces New Championship To Be Crowned In 8 Wrestler Tournament

On AEW Road to Dynamite, Tony Schiavone and Cody Rhodes announced that AEW will be introducing a new championship. An 8-man tournament will crown the new TNT Champion.

The brackets will be revealed over the next two nights. The championship tournament will culminate at Double or Nothing.

Will it have a red strap? Given that it’s basically a new name for a TV Championship and Cody’s love for all things NWA and ’80s, it might!

Here is the official press release:

March 30, 2020 – AEW announced its first-ever “TNT CHAMPIONSHIP,” a high-stakes, eight-man tournament which kicks off on Wednesday, April 8, on the weekly AEW: DYNAMITE show on TNT. The single-elimination tournament will feature the biggest names in AEW all vying for the inaugural TNT CHAMPIONSHIP belt.

Wrestlers in the first half of the tournament bracket will be revealed this Tuesday, March 31, on AEW’s YouTube show, AEW DARK. The second half of the bracket will be announced this Wednesday, April 1, during the live AEW: DYNAMITE show on TNT.

The TNT CHAMPIONSHIP will culminate with an epic final match at DOUBLE OR NOTHING, AEW’s highly anticipated PPV event on Saturday, May 23, in Las Vegas.

“It’s been a privilege working with Kevin Reilly and TNT to bring fans the best live wrestling show week after week on AEW: DYNAMITE, especially during these tumultuous times,” said Tony Khan, president and CEO of AEW. “I’m glad we’re now able to announce the TNT CHAMPIONSHIP. The first ever titleholder will be determined by an unforgettable tournament that fans will not want to miss, and that our wrestlers will be desperate to win. I’m excited for the announcement of the full bracket live on Dynamite this week. And, it’s only fitting that the champion and the title belt will carry the logo of the globally-respected TNT brand, and that they’ll represent not only AEW but also the great quality programming, massive reach, and storied history in the wrestling business that are all associated with TNT.”