Charles Barkley has been a lifelong fan of wrestling, or ‘rasslin’ as he loves to call it. But unlike best friend Shaquille O’Neal, Chuck is yet to have a match on live TV. In fact, Barkley had previously spoken about being best friends with 16x World Champion Ric Flair. Even though he has such deep connections, he has yet to appear on a wrestling show. But that could change soon, thanks to Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.

Yes, the same WBD that is in a legal battle with the NBA for the streaming rights could pave the way. Currently, WBD is in its last year of contract with AEW. The rival promotion to WWE is ranked overall 3rd Most Valuable Combat Sports Promotions 2024. Forbes also valued the Jacksonville-based promotion at $2 Billion behind only WWE ($6.8B) and UFC ($11.3B). With the contract expiring in January, the President of AEW is in a similar boat to Charles Barkley. Although the 11x All-Star will continue with WBD, will he be able to live his dream?

Appearing on the LeBatard Show, Tony Khan had nothing but high praise for Charles Barkley. “I don’t know what the future of the NBA holds, but Charles Barkley, as far as being one of the top hosts in all of sports and being one of the most entertaining people in all of television, I think he adds to any sport he’s involved in.” After taking back his retirement, the onetime MVP revealed that the Inside show would continue. Despite not being sure how the show would look in the future.

Although Barkley was unsure of his show format, Tony Khan was very clear with his message to him. “If he wanted to come to AEW, we would love that. Absolutely, I would encourage that and support that.” Charles Barkley is yet to comment on his future in the ring. But unlike the 76ers legend, Shaquille O’Neal already made his debut with AEW a few years ago.

Apart from breaking tables, Charles Barkley’s friend broke the viewership records as well

The 7-foot phenom appeared on the premier show AEW Dynamite 3 years ago. The Clip on YouTube has already garnered 2.1 million views, where Shaquille O’Neal goes through tables. Yes, in a mixed tag team match, Shaq teamed up with Jade Cargill, and just like her teammate, is built differently. Facing them were the crowd’s favorites, Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet.

It was Rhodes who would dive over the top rope, taking out Shaquille O’Neal through two tables. 2 tables were enough to stop O’Neal from participating again, but the crowd enjoyed every second of it. With his presence, the show had 934,000 viewers, 100k more than the previous week’s episode. A lot has changed since then, Rhodes chose to come back to WWE and is the current undisputed WWE champion. Shaq’s partner Jade Cargill too signed with WWE and in less than a year, she already has been a former Tag Team Champion.

Just like Charles Barkley, Tony Khan had nothing but respect for Shaq. Stating that he would love to have Shaq back in AEW at any time. Also dubbed him “The greatest celebrity wrestler in wrestling history.” So not only does Shaquille O’Neal have more rings than Charles Barkley, but he also has more wins in AEW than him. That surely should be a motivating goal for Chuck, but let’s see if WBD can close this deal, unlike their negations with the NBA. The latest reports suggest that WBD has nearly offered double the current AEW deal. Will it be enough? Only time will tell.

“Stay tuned for more such updates and join us for the exciting second episode of the “Dual Threat Show” as our host BG12 sits down with Georgia Bulldogs star and Mountain West All-Freshman Team Selection, Asia Avinger.”