AEW Rumor Roundup: Could Brian Cage situation lead to relationship with Impact?

Today’s AEW roundup takes a look at another politician’s kind words for the new promotion, more fallout from Jon Moxley’s appearance on Talk is Jericho, and a report that Brian Cage attempted to wrestle at Double or Nothing.

AEW currently has working relationships with OWE and AAA, with both deals helping the promotion put together a, as Eric Bischoff calls it, “wrestling buffet” at Double or Nothing.

However, AEW hasn’t forged a mutualistic relationship with a bigger promotion, in spite of the fact that Jon Moxley has a match against NJPW star Juice Robinson. An AEW/NJPW partnership would be more lucrative than NJPW’s current relationship with ROH, with the disparity in quality between NJPW and ROH having been underscored at Madison Square Garden in April.

One promotion to keep an eye on, though, is Impact Wrestling. PW Insider’s Mike Johnson reports that Impact stopped Brian Cage from performing at Double or Nothing. Cage, the Impact World Champion, was in gear and ready to compete in the Casino Battle Royal. Impact officials, per Johnson, swiftly informed Cage that he would not be able to compete due to the terms of his contract.

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Now, I must make myself clear: Impact Wrestling had every right to prevent Cage from wrestling. He’s under contract, the terms of the contract are clear, and, furthermore, Impact cannot run the risk of their current top star getting injured, especially with the all-important Slammiversary on the horizon.

That said, I can’t help but think how awesome it would have been to see Impact’s World Champion make a surprise entrance on the televised show, giving Impact some added rub. Cage would have boosted his own stock even further, and, well, Impact could use the additional positive attention with their own television deal in a state of limbo. Plus, there’s some history for Cage, since he was a stand out at the “All In” Battle Royal in 2018.

AEW already has a positive relationship with AAA, which is a critical partner for Impact. Hence why Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fenix have been major players for both promotions. Impact could use a powerful friend, while AEW would benefit from making the most out of wrestlers like Cage, Jordynne Grace, Rosemary, Tessa Blanchard, Kiera Hogan, and Moose. There’s no doubt that Impact has some of the most talented wrestlers on this planet, and perhaps an added source of revenue by occasionally making surprise appearances at AEW shows would help ease the apparent financial burden on Impact stars.

There are pitfalls, though. AEW wants to build its own identity and needs to develop its own stars, whereas using another promotion’s best and brightest could detract from its current talent. On the other side of the coin, these surprises matches at various shows could add buzz and generate fresh matchups without crowding the roster.

For Impact, the issue would also be related to identity. Impact wants to stand on its own and doesn’t want to play “little brother” to any promotion, which could be a worry when entering a relationship with a company that has AEW’s financial backing. Carefully done, however, a working relationship could be mutually beneficial, and Impact’s gain would, in some ways, potentially be NJPW’s loss.

There are so many dream matches involving Cage, Blanchard, Rosemary, Johnny Impact, Jon Moxley, and more between Impact and AEW, so it’s something to keep in mind in the aftermath of Impact understandably preventing Cage from risking injury at Double or Nothing. Maybe Cage will have subtly opened the door for something between both promotions.

Jon Moxley’s words continue to make an impact

By going on the record with Chris Jericho about all the issues in WWE, Jon Moxley has planted a powerful seed in the wrestling business. As Dean Ambrose, Moxley was one of WWE’s most successful and beloved superstars until his own upside was capped by a creative process that greatly hampered his ability to shine as an individual artist. Moxley’s words highlighted the issues with Vince McMahon’s leadership because, in spite of WWE’s financial success and dominance, the cracks are beginning to show.

Fightful.com’s Sean Ross Sapp had another important report, as he spoke with several wrestlers and backstage employees at WWE about Moxley’s words on Talk is Jericho. Their comments to Sapp made it clear that Moxley’s appearance validated their own issues with WWE, as well as the physical symptoms they feel when they attend tapings each week.

It seems like talent are becoming more frustrated with the backstage infrastructure, Vince’s inaccessibility, the red tape, and everything else in between. Moxley, Sasha Banks, Pac, Luke Harper, Shawn Spears, and others have left WWE or may leave WWE, and it’s safe to assume that more will follow. Perhaps Moxley has been an important nudge in that direction, and, given the strength of Sapp’s report, I’m willing to bet on that.

Sting at Starrcast III

While The Undertaker and Kurt Angle were pulled from headlining Starrcast II over Double or Nothing weekend, the same fate is unlikely to befall the headliner of Starrcast III at “All Out” weekend on Aug. 31.

Sting, per the official Starrcast III account, will be the event’s headliner, and there’s no doubt that he’s a massive get for the AEW-adjacent event.

More political rub for AEW

After Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez praised AEW’s Cody Rhodes for recognizing the importance of diversity, the new promotion received some more praise from a politician. Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang (cue the “Who?” comments) likened he and his supporters to AEW, identifying them as the “underdog” promotion in comparison to WWE, just as his campaign is the “underdog” of the Democratic presidential hopefuls.

The significance of this goes beyond an entrepreneur and politician whose platform centers around the noble goal of establishing a universal basic income. No, between this and AOC’s recognition of AEW in some positive way, it’s an example of a wrestling promotion receiving positive attention from the political sphere.

This is significant because politicians rarely speak of wrestling in positive terms. Wrestling is usually seen as “below” the political sphere or is fodder for criticism, and politicians generally only pay attention to wrestling when there’s some sort of controversy (steroid abuse, concussions, and Saudi Arabia come to mind). Politics are seen as above wrestling, in spite of the fact that political discourse often seems to mirror a series of outlandish wrestling promos.

AEW is getting the rub from seemingly all corners, and that’s huge for them. It’s also a positive for all wrestling promotions, and perhaps other companies will take notice at what generates uplifting conversation from fans and people in the public eye. Because, after all, people like Andrew Yang are just wrestling fans like the rest of us, even if they’re evidently richer and actually have Wikipedia pages.