Speculation on WWE refusing Mercedes Mone's salary demand - Reports
Mercedes Mone is reportedly on her way to All Elite Wrestling and is expected to make her debut at AEW Dynamite: Big Business on March 13 in Boston. Amid the hype of her potential debut, speculation has surfaced regarding the level of pay she asked for from WWE.
WWE was in the running to get the former Sasha Banks back on its roster late last year as the 32-year-old fielded offers from multiple companies. When it became clear that the Stamford-based company had fallen out of negotiations, it was reported that Mone's asking price was beyond what her former home promotion was willing to pay.
Many have speculated that Mercedes Mone was demanding an exorbitant amount, but on a recent episode of Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer suggested that her price tag wasn't any higher than WWE's other top female stars.
Meltzer speculated that, while it was clearly more than WWE was willing to pay, it may have simply been on the level of Charlotte Flair, who recently became one of the highest-paid women in wrestling history.
"I don't know her [Mercedes Mone] actual money demands, but I know in a general what she was looking for from WWE, and it was kinda in the range, and for a star of her caliber, while it would be a little bit more than WWE would be paying her, what she was looking for, maybe even more than a little bit more, but it was not more than they pay other women, and she was one of their bigger stars," said Meltzer. [H/T: SEScoops]
Mercedes Mone was recently spotted with a former AEW star
AEW Dynamite: Big Business is coming to Mercedes Mone's hometown of Boston on March 13, and the company has hinted that the former WWE Superstar will make her All Elite debut at the show.
Mone has been out of action since May 2023, when she was injured during a title match against AEW's Willow Nightingale at NJPW STRONG Resurgence. However, she was recently spotted training for her comeback at Flatbacks Wrestling School in Apopka, FL.
The owners of the school are former WWE Superstars Tyler Breeze and Shawn Spears. The latter is also a former AEW star, having departed the promotion after his contract expired at the end of 2023.
Mercedes took to Instagram today and posted several photos from her training session with Spears and Breeze. She also thanked the former AEW star, as seen below:
Mercedes Mone recently sent a tease to her old friend Bayley, hinting that she may be going after a title in AEW. As of now, however, it's unclear what the former IWGP Women's Champion's plans are in All Elite Wrestling.
Are you excited for Mercedes Mone's AEW debut? Would you like to see her compete in a women's tag team division again? Sound off in the comments section below!