In a fascinating “what if” scenario for the wrestling industry, newly surfaced details have revealed that AEW President Tony Khan attempted to purchase WWE during its 2023 sale process.

The revelation comes from court documents tied to the ongoing WWE shareholder lawsuit, first highlighted in reporting by Brandon Thurston. These filings shed new light on the bidding war that ultimately saw Endeavor Group Holdings secure the deal and merge WWE into what is now TKO Group Holdings.

Previously redacted documents from November 2023 outline several interested bidders, including TKO, Liberty Media, KKR, and a lesser-known entity called Base 10. While Tony Khan is not directly named, the filing describes Base 10 as “the owner of All Elite Wrestling, a professional wrestling promotion that plainly would enjoy significant synergies with WWE,” making the connection clear.

Base 10, incorporated in 2014, is separate from Beatnik Investments, LLC, another entity linked to the Khan family.

Financially, Base 10’s bid came in at approximately $6.9 billion, making it the lowest of the four offers. By comparison:

• Endeavor: $8.5 billion

• Liberty Media: $8.5 to $8.9 billion

• KKR: $8 billion to $8.7 billion

Another major distinction was the structure of the bids. Endeavor’s successful proposal was an all-stock deal, converting investor shares into TKO stock. The other bids, including Base 10’s, were structured as all-cash offers.

Thurston also noted that the non-AEW bidders were granted access to a “data room,” providing confidential, nonpublic WWE information as part of the process. There is no indication that Base 10 received similar access, which may have been due to the lower valuation, Khan’s ownership of AEW, or both.

This revelation adds a compelling layer to the story of WWE’s sale, raising questions about how different the wrestling landscape might look today had the outcome been different.

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