Many wrestling fans are eagerly waiting for the debut of All Elite Wrestling (AEW) later this month, as they already look like they could be WWE's biggest competitor in years.

AEW will have their first show, Double or Nothing, later this month on May 25, but they're already making an impact on the wrestling scene.

AEW's quick rise is causing WWE to almost panic by offering lucrative contracts to unhappy superstars in order to stop them from jumping ship for the world's newest wrestling company.

During a recent interview with TV Insider, Chris Jericho was asked about the impact that AEW has already made on the wrestling scene since their inception in January.

Y2J responded by saying everyone in WWE that recently received a pay rise should thank him.

He said: “I’m not surprised. I will say this…everyone in WWE owes Chris Jericho a thank you because the moment I signed with AEW, it became legit. That’s when everyone started getting these huge raises to not go.

"It was very similar to what happened to Bobby Hull in the early 1970s when he signed with the WHA (World Hockey Association) for a million dollars.

"Every other player got a huge raise to not jump with him. My dad [Ted Irvine] went from a $35,000 to a $100,000 a year because they didn’t want him going to the WHA. It’s the same thing for Vince [McMahon] is doing with WWE.”

Jericho also believes that AEW will be the first competition WWE has had since the end of the Monday Night Wars in the 1990s with WCW's Monday Nitro and WWF's Monday Night Raw.

“This is a war. Even if you don’t want it to be, it just is. There hasn’t been any competition for WWE on a national basis for 20 years or more.

"I think this is something they didn’t really want, but it’s great for the fans and great for the guys. I think in the long run it’s going to make a difference because it gives people a choice. And it’s always good to have a choice.”

Back in the 1990s, Jericho was only one of a handful of wrestlers who worked both in WCW and in WWF during their heyday of the Monday Night Wars.

Nearly 20 years later, it looks like Y2J is about to get himself involved in another wrestling war, this time between WWE and AEW.