More has come out on Mercedes Mone’s move to AEW.
On the March 13 edition of AEW Dynamite, fans watched on as Mercedes Mone opened the show by announcing that she was ‘All Elite’. It ended a period on the sidelines for Mercedes as she nursed an ankle injury and put to bed months of speculation over her future as fans wondered whether she’d make a return to WWE or cross over into AEW.
Now, per PWInsider, more has come out over the All Elite Wrestling debut of Mercedes Mone. First, the report notes that both WWE and AEW were willing to offer an eight figure sum to the former IWGP Women’s Champion, meaning that it’s now highly likely that she is the highest paid female wrestler in the history of wrestling.
“PWInsider.com is told by multiple sources from both WWE and AEW that each side had pursued and were willing to commit to deals that amounted to eight figures in total over the course of the deals, which would be record breaking numbers for a female performer in professional wrestling – and now makes her likely the top paid female performer in the history of the business.”
-PWInsider
It’s said that AEW had been holding discussions with Mone for about 18 months before she signed, with WWE coming in later to try to convince the former Sasha Banks to rejoin the company. PWInsider write that the decision was made to go with All Elite Wrestling as Mercedes felt as if it held stronger potential for both herself and women’s wrestling overall.
“PWInsider.com is told that in the end, the final factor in the decision-making as to where to go on Mone’s part was which destination would allow for stronger potential, not just for herself but for additional and future women in professional wrestling.”
-PWInsider
Interestingly, as well as it being a place that she’d been before, it’s said that WWE’s schedule was also a factor in Mone’s decision-making process, as committing to a return to her former employers would limit her ability to take on other projects such as her previous work in acting. PWInsider also reveal that the door has been open for her to explore fashion and music opportunities while outside of WWE.
This can be contrasted to AEW, where Mone felt as if she could come in as an immediate top star, as well as being given the opportunity to form a relationship with Warner Bros. Discovery who could offer Mercedes access to their various franchises.
“In AEW, however, Mone saw more opportunity in that she could arrive as a full fledged top tier player for the company, giving them a female star that they could build around by bringing her goodwill and popularity as a ratings draw there, given her WWE TV appearances usually meant a spike for those quarter hours. One person close to the situation pointed out that Mone brought in a million viewers for her debut on Dynamite as proof in execution, but also stated that there will need to be a lot of work to be done as AEW tries to capitalize on that. AEW also provided a chance for Mone to build a direct relationship with Warner Bros. Discovery as well as potential access to their film and television franchises.”
-PWInsider
It’s believed that an important point for Mone is the ability to own her legacy in professional wrestling. This includes having the rights to her new entrance song, as well as possessing all her trademarks, which just wouldn’t happen in WWE.
Also, Mercedes’ is said to have the aspiration of wanting to help AEW grow. When it was reported that she’d be coming in, many looked at the company’s acquisition of Jen Pepperman as someone who may work closely with the 32-year-old, however it’s noted that Pepperman is set to work with AEW talent as a whole when it’s needed.
“By signing with AEW, we are told that Mone’s hope is that she can assist the promotion in growing stronger and evolving overall – hence the signing of Jen Pepperman to work for AEW as their new Vice President of Content Development, who worked with her closely in WWE. The hope is that Pepperman will help all of AEW and that the intent is not for her to work exclusively on Mone’s content.”
-PWInsider
On Dynamite, Mercedes talked about her desire to take the revolution ‘global’, with the report noting that this was about the desire to push women’s wrestling to the top in what is described as a ‘someone has to draw the line, so it’s going to be me’ type of situation.
However, just days before her AEW debut, the former Sasha Banks admitted that she will likely find herself back in WWE one day. Though, it’s clarified that this wasn’t meant to undermine All Elite Wrestling in any way, attempting to touch on how she started there many years ago.
“There are some who have asked about Mone mentioning she still has unfinished business in WWE on a recent podcast appearance and that she believes she will return there one day. One source close to the situation noted that it wasn’t meant as anything that would undercut AEW but to acknowledge that she started with WWE and that perhaps, she’ll close things out there.”
-PWInsider
As mentioned earlier, Mone has started to break through into other media such as acting. On this, PWInsider state that there is actually a belief among sone in AEW that she could be their John Cena or The Rock in that she draws in viewers from other avenues thanks to her work in different industries.
“The belief among some in AEW is that Mone could potentially fill the type of role that The Rock and John Cena have with WWE, someone who can take their outside success and cascade it back to the company. There is a hope that she will bring the goodwill she built with the audience to AEW.”
-PWInsider
Mone is certainly set to be a huge star for AEW, and immediately inserted herself into the TBS Title picture this past Wednesday when she saved Willow Nightingale from a beatdown at the hands of Skye Blue and current champion Julia Hart. We will hear from The CEO on this Wednesday’s Dynamite just a week on from her very impactful debut.
As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on Mercedes Mone’s AEW debut as soon as we hear more.
