The Young Bucks were among the wrestlers and backstage officials suspended earlier this week following the locker room brawl after Sunday’s All Out pay-per-view. It was then reported that the pair had sent “feelers” out to WWE about possible interest in finally joining the promotion once their contracts expire in 2024. The pair were founding members of AEW but nearly signed with WWE back before the young promotion launched. The two former tag team champions have remained quiet about the situationย
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However, a new report via the Wrestling Observer‘s Ryan Federick seems to indicate the situation isn’t as bad as it initially seemed.ย
“In this instance, though, what I said is 100% true and I have it from multiple people. It’s also not a big deal and not really newsworthy. It’s not like they actually reached out to WWE management,” Frederick stated. “They told a friend in the company, a fellow wrestler, that they would be willing to listen to offers when their deals are up (I believe January 2024) and to let it be known. It’s something every single wrestler in the business should be doing- it’s called maximizing your leverage. It is no different than an NFL or MLB player coming into the final year of their contract and letting it be known they are going to free agency and listening to offers from the other teams. And, in the sense of independent contractors, it’s not different than a NASCAR or Formula One driver letting other teams know that their contract runs out at a certain time and they’ll be listening to offers. Except wrestling is a weird business where you have to use your friends on the other side to let this message be known.
“It does not mean they want to leave. It means they’re looking to get the best deal they can. That’s it. It’s a non-story. And if you’re a wrestler with a deal coming up in the next 18 months and you aren’t playing both sides, you need to fix that,” he continued.ย
