Mark Henry Explains The Difficulty Of Booking AEW Talent

It's no secret that AEW has an incredibly stacked roster in terms of in-ring talent and young stars, but there has also been plenty of criticism leveled at the booking of the on-screen product, largely directed at Tony Khan. While there have been plenty of highlights over the years, domestic ticket sales and TV ratings have either stagnated or in some cases fallen off a cliff, leading to question marks over the direction of the promotion under Khan's guidance.

During a recent episode of "Busted Open," AEW's Mark Henry explained the difficulties of attempting to manage the countless high-level performers on the company's books, with the discussion point surrounding the utilization of both Lance Archer and Daniel Garcia on "AEW Collision" this past Saturday.

"Booking is a delicate thing, and it's harder than it looks when you've got 75-100 people and you're trying to appease people and also trying to make stories come together," he said. "There's so many people that you cannot allow everybody to win — there's got to be a winner and a loser."

With six hours of television per week across "Dynamite," "Rampage" and "Collision" — as well as the Ring Of Honor brand floating in the background — there is plenty of opportunity for stars to shine. But Henry believes it is still a tough ask to get everyone screen time and urged fans to be patient.

After an entertaining loss in his AEW World title match against current champion MJF last Wednesday night, the aforementioned Daniel Garcia went on to lose once again just days later in singles competition against Andrade El Idolo. Many have questioned why he was booked to lose shortly after a breakout performance. 

According to Henry, the wins and losses don't matter as much for Garcia, who turned 25 earlier this year and has been touted as a future champion. 

"Daniel Garcia is in that category of young guys where you look and he's got a lot of wrestling ahead of him ... wait your turn, you're gonna get your shot," Henry explained. "If I was ever gonna start a wrestling company, Daniel Garcia is one of the guys I would roll with. It's about his future and not right now. In my opinion, Daniel Garcia is a guy that I don't take a lot of stock in him having a loss here and there because of his youth and where his future is gonna be."

Garcia has been given a small taste of a main-event push since signing with AEW over two years ago, trading victories with Bryan Danielson in a critically-acclaimed feud, before ultimately teaming up with Chris Jericho prior to the J.A.S disbanding. Despite being portrayed as a heel for the majority of his run with AEW, Garcia has become a popular performer, with his trademark dance and immense technical ability getting the audience on his side. 

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Busted" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.