Chris Jericho And All Elite Wrestling Bring The Fight To Edmonton

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“I think Edmonton is a little bit of a badly kept secret when it comes to how great it is as a pro wrestling city, and also how crazy the crowd is,” Jericho said

Published Jul 05, 2023 • Last updated 1 hour ago • 3 minute read

Pro wrestler Chris Jericho is shown in a handout photo. All Elite Wrestling will make its Alberta debut at Edmonton’s Rogers Place on Wednesday, July 5. Photo by Supplied photo /All Elite Wrestling

Chris Jericho is no stranger to wrestling in Alberta.

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After all, it was in October 1990 when the Winnipeg native made his in-ring debut taking on Calgary’s Lance Storm in a 10-minute time-limit draw at the Moose Hall in Ponoka, AB, a small town just one hour south of Edmonton.

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So as the 52-year-old pro wrestling icon prepares to make his All Elite Wrestling (AEW) debut in Alberta at Edmonton’s Rogers Place Wednesday, he can’t help but think back on those earlier “good ol’ days” of his career.

“The world was, kind of, your oyster and you didn’t know for sure what your fate was going to be and would you really make it, or when your next match was going to come,” Jericho told Postmedia, as he awaited a transfer flight to Edmonton from Toronto’s Pearson Airport Tuesday. “You really had to hustle back then. You didn’t know for sure what was going to happen but it was exciting along the way no matter what.

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“I’ve never been jaded — I still appreciate every single thing I do — but back then, you were super appreciative even more because you had a match. ‘Oh my God, I get to go to Ponoka, Alberta!’ I had never been to Ponoka before, never been there since, I don’t think. But just to go there for a match it just seemed like wrestling in Madison Square Garden, even though it was the Ponoka Moose Hall.”

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After spending more than a decade with WWE, and wrestling in Japan, Jericho announced he was “All in” with AEW, an upstart pro-wrestling promotion founded in 2019 by owner Tony Khan. He quickly became the cornerstone of the newborn company and was crowned AEW’s first-ever world champion.

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Wednesday will mark the tenth time Jericho has been to Edmonton — his last match in Alberta’s capital was nearly seven years ago in a losing effort to then WWE-superstar Cesaro, who now wrestles in AEW under the name Claudio Castagnoli.

Pro wrestler Chris Jericho, left, stares down Sting, right, during an episode of AEW Dynamite. All Elite Wrestling will make its Alberta debut at Edmonton’s Rogers Place on Wednesday, July 5. Photo by Supplied photo /All Elite Wrestling

With more than 30 years of pro wrestling experience, Jericho has truly done and seen it all.

And yet, Wednesday will mark another first for Jericho when he makes his Rogers Place debut. It’s an area he’s come to know quite well after spending some time last year in downtown Edmonton’s Ice District while filming a wrestling-themed horror movie called ‘Dark Match’ with Edmonton studio production company, Dept.9 Studios.

“I was really impressed with just how beautiful it was as far as the hotels and the arena,” said Jericho. “It seems like Edmonton has done a really nice upgrade over the years to make it a much more metropolis and higher-class area.”

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Calgary Connection

Alberta wrestling is undoubtedly synonymous with Calgary-based Stampede Wrestling and the Hart family. Jericho has been described as the last graduate, or survivor, of Stu Hart’s dungeon, which produced countless pro wrestling stars including brothers Bret and Owen Hart.

However, Jericho maintains Edmonton is a “badly kept secret” for how great it is as a pro wrestling city, thanks in large part to its rabid fan base.

“It might be a little controversial to say, but if you take the Harts and Stampede Wrestling away from the Calgary scene I think in this day and age Edmonton is a way better wrestling city than Calgary is,” Jericho said. “It’s always been an arena-level attraction. I know for the ticket sales, we have the two shows that are coming up, Edmonton is outpacing Calgary quite a bit.

“So to be debuting at Rogers Place is not lost on me. I did so many shows at the Northlands Coliseum, which was great, but after a while, it’s the house that Gretzky built in the late 70s and early 80s and it’s time maybe to build something new.”

AEW’s Canadian tour will culminate at the Scotiabank Saddledome for a live, televised episode of AEW Collision during the Calgary Stampede on Saturday, July 15.

On Twitter: @TrevorRobb_

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