Tony Khan states that the creation of the National Championship responds to AEW’s current needs

AEW Full Gear will witness the coronation of the first National Champion of All Elite Wrestling. The announcement of this new title was surrounded by controversy when some NWA talents accused Tony Khan of plagiarizing an existing championship belt. Another reaction came directly from the fans, who believe that the company already has too many championships.

One topic that the president of AEW was asked about during the media conference call prior to Full Gear. The question?: What was Tony Khan thinking when he decided to add a new championship to the already extensive list of titles held by AEW and ROH?

"I think it's important to look at the content that any wrestling promoter produces and what the business model of that company is. In the case of AEW, revenue mainly comes from television and pay-per-view events, and we produce many hours of television and pay-per-view. We also hold many live events and produce over 100 shows a year and several hours per week," he said.

"This was different at the beginning of AEW because, at the start, we only had two hours of television and I had no association with Ring of Honor, and certainly was not the owner or promoter of that company," he continued. "So you mention the Ring of Honor Championship, and that changed, of course, when I acquired Ring of Honor, and I have largely kept the ROH championships intact, except for adding women's championships and expanding the women's championships of ROH. I have not made changes to the men's championships in ROH... I definitely think it's important to look at the ecosystem of a wrestling company."

AEW Full Gear will feature the traditional Casino Gauntlet Match, where an undisclosed number of wrestlers will compete to become the first National Champion of AEW. So far, the company has confirmed the participation of Bobby Lashley, Shelton Benjamin, Ricochet, Kevin Knight, and "Speedball" Mike Bailey.