Legendary commentator Tony Schivone made his full-time return to pro wrestling back in August 2019 when he joined All Elite Wrestling. He’s been a consistent presence on AEW programming ever since, serving as a color commentator for AEW Dynamite while also interviewing wrestlings both in the ring and backstage. But at 65 years old, Schiavone recently admitted that he’s considering retirement in the near future. He discussed the topic on a recent episode of hisย What Happened When? podcast.
“I ain’t got many more years left in this business,” Schiavone said (h/t Wrestling Inc.). “I don’t have, oh, it’s a young man’s business, and at the age of 65, I realized it. It’s a young man’s business.”ย
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“The day I turned 40, I needed glasses that day,” he continued. “The day I turned 65, I just woke up tired and I’ve been tired ever since then. I’m telling you, I’ve been tired … I just think that life is on the way downhill right now.”
After a brief stint with the WWF, Schiavone worked for WCW from 1990-2001 primarily as the voice of both Monday Nitro and Thunder. His involvement in AEW is one of the many reasons fans have been comparing the young promotion to WCW, something Tony Khan recently addressed while appearing on Grapsody.ย
“I think the reason people want to compare the two companies most of all is we are the only two wrestling companies to air on TBS and TNT and we both aired on TBS and TNT. There are some people that have worked in both companies. I think Sting is an important face for both companies. Tony Schiavone in particular and Jim Ross have been voices for both of the companies. The TBS and TNT names are so synonymous with wrestling,” Khan said.
“That is a utility that we have been able to provide to the fans is bringing wrestling back to TBS and TNT, so that is really why people are making comparisons, but they are very different,” he continued. “A lot of the reasons why WCW would go away or go out of business don’t really exist or aren’t really realistic business concerns for AEW is because it’s not a company owned by a network or even a media property. It’s a family business owned and operated by me. I love wrestling and I’m not going anywhere.”
