AEW News Roundup: Top star's merchandise removed; Women's Champion reveals frustration with company; Cody Rhodes sends heartfelt message to tag team wrestler (3 June, 2022)
In this week's edition of AEW News Roundup, the top women's champion has expressed her frustration with the company and the young star paid tribute to his late mother.
WWE Superstar Cody Rhodes sends an emotional message to a popular tag team wrestler. Catch up on the latest AEW events here.
#5. AEW Women's Champion reportedly frustrated with the company
Regarding Thunder Rosa, Sources have said that they feel like the primary women's title has taken a backseat to two other women's title belts on the show.
- @FightfulSelect https://t.co/4kfXDDgia4
AEW Women's Champion Thunder Rosa successfully defended her title at Double or Nothing against Serena Deeb in an outstanding, technical match. However, she hasn't been seen since. La Mera Mera didn't appear in the post-ppv scrum nor did she appear in either Dynamite or Rampage the following week for the company's Californian debut.
According to an exclusive report from WhatCulture, Thunder Rosa has grown frustrated with her lack of television time recently. Despite being one of the supposed cornerstones in the women's division, the Mexican-American star's title match felt like it was swept under the rug. It's even arguable that Jade Cargill's TBS Championship has been presented as a bigger deal than Rosa's. It would be interesting to see what's in store for the 35-year-old and who could step up as her challenger next.
#4. Varsity Blondes member Brian Pillman Jr. pays tribute to her late mum
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Thank you mom for bringing me into this world and for trying your best. You were my number 1 fan.
Rest In Peace. I love you ❤️. https://t.co/2XLk46p6Pr
AEW star Brian Pillman Jr.'s mother Melanie Pillman has sadly passed away at 56 years old. The Varsity Blondes member revealed the heart-breaking news on social media this past week while confessing that he regretted not spending more time together a couple of weeks before her death.
Pillman Jr. expressed his gratitude to his mother on Twitter for bringing him into the world and being his number one fan while on Instagram, Pillman went into more detail about their strained relationship at times. The 28-year-old said:
"A couple weeks ago she had been tuning into my twitch stream when she told me in chat that she was coming over to Linda’s house to drop off some trading cards. I didn’t see it in chat so I was annoyed at her for showing up un-announced. I met her outside and accepted the gift and gave her a hug and she went on her way."
"I truly regret not sitting down with her for a little bit or going to grab lunch with her. I regret being upset with her simply because she wanted to see her son. She actually looked really healthy and sober. That was the last time I saw her."
Melanie Pillman's issues have been well-documented. Just last year, the Dark Side of the Ring on Vice chronicled her ex-husband Brian Pillman in an episode that featured interviews from both her and her son. We would like to share our condolences with Brian Pillman Jr. and his family at this time.
#3. Jeff Hardy reveals his reaction to WWE's Hall of Fame induction offer
John Laurinaitis called Jeff Hardy to get him back a few weeks ago, including an offer to put him in the 2022 Hall of Fame class.
Hardy turned it down and asked for his drug test results because he knew he wasn’t going to test positive for recreational drugs.
- WON https://t.co/o4TuaJDuW9
Jeff Hardy was offered a place in the WWE Hall of Fame class of 2022 earlier this year. However, the Charismatic Enigma was already on his way out of the company at the time and had his heart set on joining All Elite Wrestling, which led him to decline the offer.
The 44-year-old's most recent stint with WWE ended on a sour note as the company released him after he stumbled away from a match at a live event and then refused to enter rehab. Hardy's drug test came back negative, which proved that WWE had jumped the gun on this occasion.
Speaking on the Talk Is Jericho podcast, Jeff opened up about his emotional response to the Hall of Fame offer:
"I couldn't help but think about it. I cried a little bit because I was like, well, first of all, I don't want to go in there without my brother [Matt Hardy], and it's not my time. This is too early. This is crazy. So yeah, it was very emotional man. I was like, what are they trying to do?"
"Because naturally I'm going to be reuniting with my brother in AEW, now that when I'm free of WWE, so yeah, I just went there, and I told my wife what had happened. I can't believe what they just offered me. So, it's very emotional man, but I happily declined it," Jeff Hardy said. [25:32 onwards]
Jeff feels that there is certainly a lot more he can accomplish in wrestling despite his advancing years and has already made it known that he wants to go after the AEW Tag Team Championships next.
The Hardys recently defeated long-time rivals The Young Bucks at Double or Nothing, with Jeff getting the decisive victory. Here's hoping the Enigmatic One gives AEW fans a few more memorable moments before finally hanging up the boots.
#2. Cody Rhodes sends heartfelt message to ROH Tag Team Champion
“I start thinking like, Okay, do they want us or do they want AEW to not have us?
You know, it’s cool for Cody (Rhodes) to do what he’s done. But you know, there’s just so many unknowns there.”
- Dax Harwood on WWE’s interest in FTR
(via The Sessions) https://t.co/VtQqnZFc7C
FTR is one of the most popular tag teams in AEW and the current ROH tag team champions. One half of the tandem, Dax Harwood is regarded as one of the best technical wrestlers in the company, but even he feel underappreciated at times.
He posted a cryptic tweet this past week:
"Sometimes you work so hard, and love even harder, for a business that ain’t gonna love you back. Remember that."
He was met with a reply from an unlikely source: former AEW EVP and current WWE Superstar, Cody Rhodes responded to the tweet with some kind, encouraging words. Taking to Twitter, The American Nightmare wrote:
"It loves you homie. Just sometimes has a quirky way of showing it. Fans know you’re one of the best."
Rhodes and Harwood are close as they spend time together in AEW and the former TNT Champion will have intimate knowledge of how great the FTR member is in the ring.
#1. MJF's merchandise possibly removed from the AEW shop
AEW pulls MJF’s merchandise from their website wrestlingnews.co/aew-news/aew-p… https://t.co/dgq8gqlkuV
MJF is the name on everyone's lips after his scintillating promo on this week's Dynamite. After losing his match to Wardlow at Double or Nothing, The Salt of the Earth was given a live mic on Wednesday, where he proceeded to rip through the company and his perceived injustices.
He called out ex-WWE stars on the roster and criticized Tony Khan for not increasing his pay, despite being one of AEW's biggest-drawing stars. The 26-year-old finally ended the promo by demanding to be fired from his current contract.
Taking to Twitter, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful revealed the fallout from the controversial segment. He noted that MJF's merch has been pulled from the AEW shop. While the company's official social media pages didn't post any clips of the promo, commentators completely ignored it as well and proceeded with the rest of the show as if nothing had happened.
AEW could potentially be sitting on the biggest storyline in the company's history. Khan should keep a hold of MJF at any cost and push him to the moon. Judging by the fan reaction to his segment, he is ready to be the lead star in the promotion.