AEW faced serious backstage challenges in its early years. In 2022 and 2023, CM Punk had major issues with The Elite and also clashed with Jack Perry and Ryan Nemeth. Britt Baker and Thunder Rosa also had conflicts, while Sammy Guevara and Andrade were involved in a physical altercation.
In 2024, Baker had additional disputes with MJF and his wife Alicia Atout. Incidents like these created a toxic environment in the company.
Darby Allin recently appeared on The Ariel Helwani Show and spoke about the current environment in All Elite Wrestling. He said that much of the previous tension has been removed as the problematic figures are no longer with the company.
Here’s what the former TNT Champion said:
“The vibe around the company is amazing right now. Compared to a few years ago, it definitely felt like there was some tension, but now it’s like everyone’s on the same page – let’s make it the best possible.
What changed? The cancer got cut out. The egotistical wrestlers that didn’t want to lose – the groups of people that came in. That’s what I’m saying about wrestling. When I was climbing Mount Everest, it kept me so grounded and level-headed.
At the end of the day, this is all staged. So if you’re gonna have an ego about that, get out of the f**king sport. Go be in the UFC, go try that – but don’t bring that energy here.
This is about having fun. This is about putting out good energy. Like, come on, man, just stop. So once all that got cleared up, I felt like, okay, cool, let’s rock. I just don’t like egos. I can’t stand them.”
Darby Allin will face Jon Moxley in an “I Quit” Match at AEW WrestleDream this Saturday.
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