Ahead of Saturday’s inaugural AEW Worlds End pay-per-view, news broke that Andrade El Idolo was reportedly set to part ways with AEW following his match at the show against Miro. His contract was said to expire in early 2024 and with the conclusion of the match seeing Miro come out strong against El Idolo, it sure seemed to confirm those reports.
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Following the show, AEW President Tony Khan discussed the recent AEW departures and El Idolo’s contract status. “Andrade El Idolo’s contract is up at the end of the year,” Khan confirmed at Saturday’s post show media scrum. “We’ve had great talks. I have a ton of respect for Andrade El Idolo. He’s been a huge performer in the Continental Classic week after week I talked about this great run Collision‘s been on, Andrade El Idolo has been a huge part of it. Also has wrestled on the other shows and the Blue League of the Continental Classic.”
Khan also stated that if they had been able to come to an agreement, he would have slotted El Idolo in a prominent position. “He’s outstanding. I wanted to keep him involved at the top. If we had been able to reach an agreement, certainly he would be somebody we would slot in, in a prominent position. I think we did everything we could to show Andrade El Idolo we really do value him.”
Further adding, “I think this last run he’s had in recent months has been tremendous. If this is going to be the way he’s gonna leave AEW, talk about leaving on a high note because he had a great match with Miro tonight.”
Khan also talked about QT Marshall, an integral member of the roster behind the scenes who helped mold a lot of AEW’s young stars for the future. Marshall announced in November that his time with AEW would be coming to an end after reportedly signing a short-term extension that would allow him to finish out 2023. “QT Marshall, his contract is up. Somebody I really respect. The door would always be open for QT to come back, in any capacity, wrestling or coaching. I know he wants to go out and apply his trade, and he’s somebody that has done a great job,” Khan said. “When you see somebody like Julia Hart, her development, QT had such a huge hand in that, and a lot of great wrestlers here. I know he wants to go out and focus on his wrestling career, but he’s been a huge part in AEW, in addition to wrestling, as a coach. He’s been in great matches. I consider him a good friend. QT’s contract is up, but I would welcome QT back here anytime and I think any wrestling company in the world would be very lucky to have him. I will always wish him the best and hopefully see him, either here or any place down the road because anybody who has QT would be very fortunate.”
During the media call on Thursday, Khan discussed other departures, including Dana Massie and Rafael Morffi and the plans he has for the future on the business side of AEW. “I have some pretty big things to announce going forward. Obviously, it’s a lot of people that I really value [that left],” Khan said. “I could write a book on each of these people. Dana, Raf, QT, each of these people have been with us since the beginning and have made huge contributions to the company. It’s really, very challenging to have people like that step away. I think the company is growing and I’m very excited about what we’ll be doing in 2024.”
