AEW's Christian Cage Explains Why He Didn't Sign With WWE

Just over a month after he returned in the 2021 Men's Royal Rumble, Christian Cage arrived in All Elite Wrestling during Sunday's Revolution pay-per-view and signed a multi-year contract with the company. AEW president Tony Khan revealed in a media scrum after the show that the former World Heavyweight Champion personally reached out to him about joining the promotion, saying, "We saw him very recently compete on pay-per-view. There was a lot of interest in it, it generated a lot of interest. And he was interested in wrestling on a regular basis. And he gave me a call and said, 'I'd really like to come wrestle in AEW.' I said, 'I'd really like to come have you wreslte in AEW. That sounds awesome.' It all came together."

In a new interview with Renee Paquette on the Oral Sessions podcast, Cage gave his side of the story.

"I thought it would be a complete secret and I would just show up and be a surprise. On [last] Wednesday, there was nothing signed," Christian said [h/t Fightful]. "It was a shock to me when I heard [Paul Wight's announcement]. Obviously, Tony [Khan] and I hit it off pretty quick and we felt comfortable enough that we were going to work together. I wasn't sure I was going to go (to AEW after the Rumble) and all the talks I had (with WWE) were very cordial. [Jon Moxley] talked to me and had his opinions and made me think, 'Okay, I'm doing myself a disservice if I don't at least explore my options.' At this final stage of my career, I had a conversation with Tony and it escalated very quickly. Within a week, it was a done deal."

The move came as a shock, as many fans assumed Christian would keep working with WWE now that his tag partner and best friend Edge was back to wrestling for the company full-time.

"Anytime there is a life-altering decision, there is a lot of thought," he continued. "I didn't have a lot of time to think about this but what I really needed was the best platform for me — I got a second lease on life here to showcase (myself) but also help. Where could I help the next generation? That's what I felt at AEW. In my initial talks with Tony, the first conversation we had, we talked for two hours. From that initial conversation I was like, 'Man, I didn't think it would go that well.' It came together pretty quickly after that. We hit it off, we had the same feeling as far as where he saw me and what I could bring to the table and how I could help the roster and the show. That was intriguing to me and I like a challenge. It wasn't an easy decision, but it also wasn't a hard decision. There was something intriguing about being able to be hands-on with everything and having that challenge. It felt like the right situation. There's nothing wrong with WWE and how they do things."