Major AEW star was "difficult to work with" in WWE, veterans claim, and had a "reputation" backstage
AEW has signed several former WWE Superstars since its foundation. According to two former WWE employees, one of these stars was "difficult to work with" and had a negative reputation backstage.
The competitor in question is Mercedes Mone (fka Sasha Banks). The 32-year-old spent a decade in the Stamford-based company and held many titles. However, she walked out of the promotion during a Monday Night RAW episode in May 2022 due to being unhappy with her creative plans. She later officially left the promotion.
During a recent episode of the Behind The Turnbuckle podcast, former WWE employee Tommy Carlucci and ex-interim RAW General Manager Jonathan Coachman addressed The CEO's backstage reputation in the Stamford-based promotion.
Carlucci disclosed that he never thought Mone was as great as others thought. Meanwhile, he claimed she was "difficult to work with!''
"I don't think she's [Mercedes Mone] great at all. So, I never thought she was this whole bag of chips that everybody thought she was here [in WWE] as Sasha Banks. And she was difficult to work with, too," he said.
Coachman also recalled returning to WWE while Mone was still there, nearly six or seven years ago. He claimed that the current AEW TBS Champion had a reputation backstage. The former interim RAW General Manager stated that Mercedes was never on the same level as Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair.
"There are certain superstars that, over the years, act a certain way backstage, and they get a certain reputation, and they can't get rid of that. And Sasha [Mercedes Mone] had that. So, when you heard some of those numbers that she was asking for, you know, WWE or AEW, I was blown away that either side was even entertaining a deal the magnitude of what she reportedly got, because I agree with you, she's never been the star that Becky [Lynch] is, that Charlotte [Flair] is, or that Rhea [Ripley] is," Coachman said. [12:58-14:02]
Ex-WWE employee Tommy Carlucci says Mercedes Mone didn't move the needle in AEW
On May 26, Mercedes Mone made her in-ring debut in AEW at Double or Nothing. The CEO defeated Willow Nightingale to capture the TBS Championship.
During the same episode of the podcast, Tommy Carlucci claimed Mone's maiden in-ring performance did not help the company, claiming that Tony Khan would have been taken aback by the crowd's feeble reaction to her victory.
"I watched that pay-per-view, Coach. The needle didn't move. She [Mercedes Mone] won the TBS Title; whatever that title is, right? Another made-up title. And the crowd was crickets. They didn't care. Nobody cared, Coach! And when the crowd doesn't care, that's gotta make Tony [Khan] think, 'Wow!' This is her first match, and they [AEW] give her the title, and their crowd doesn't react at all?" he said. [12:23 - 12:48]
While Carlucci claimed AEW must turn Mercedes Mone heel because she was "not well-liked," it would be interesting to see what is next for the 32-year-old TBS Champion.
What do you think of Mercedes Mone's AEW run so far? Hit the discuss button and sound off.
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