"I’d rather make less money and be useful" - Former AEW star on why he left Tony Khan's promotion
AEW has parted ways with several stars this year, and one of these former "All Elite" athletes recently shared why he decided not to re-sign with the promotion.
All Elite Wrestling has become one of the premier wrestling companies since its inception in 2019. The promotion currently has a stacked talent roster, including former world champions like Kenny Omega, CM Punk, Bryan Danielson, and Chris Jericho.
During his recent appearance on Slam Wrestling, former Dark Order member Stu Grayson revealed that lack of TV time and overutilization on AEW DARK led to his departure from the promotion in May 2022.
“It’s very hard to show the world how good you are in such a limited amount of time, I would trade in a hundred dark matches for 15 minutes on television,” Grayson said.
youtube.com/watch?v=gzllte….@stu_dos wipes out Starks! #AEWDark
▶ youtube.com/watch?v=gzllte… https://t.co/ML4Kr4vQQo
Grayson also pointed out that he never intended to get paid to do nothing:
“I never wanted to get paid to do nothing. I’d rather make less money and be useful than being useless and make a ton of money. That’s not how I am. I need to be challenged. I would go to the gym and hit a massive leg day so that way I’d feel challenged.” - (H/T: SEScoops)
Unfortunately for The Dark Order, Stu Grayson wasn't the only member to leave AEW in recent times, as Alan Angels soon followed. It will be interesting to see what the future holds for the popular stable after recent departures.
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Stu Grayson's former tag team partner and Dark Order member, on the reason behind the star's AEW departure
Stu Grayson and Evil Uno made a name for themselves on the independent circuit before joining All Elite Wrestling in 2019. The duo became known as the Super Smash Bros. and later joined forces as part of The Dark Order.
During an appearance on NBC Sports Boston, Evil Uno opened up about Grayson's exit from the company.
"He's my friend so I have an understanding of what he was going through, it's not like it took me by surprise. This was a mutual decision," Uno said. "He wanted something out of his contract and they did not have that for him and he's not upset in any way.” (H/T: Cultaholic)
An interesting fact: Evil Uno and Stu Grayson used to wrestle in PWG as Player Uno and Player Dos. Collectively known as Super Smash Bros.
#AEWDynamite https://t.co/zuydLccH9f
Stars like Kip Sabian and Brian Cage have made sporadic appearances on AEW programming over the past year, which has led to multiple speculations about their status with the company. Considering All Elite Wrestling's bloated roster, could more stars follow Grayson out of the promotion? Time will tell.