Jay Lethal explains how he became All Elite.
During AEW Full Gear it was announced that Jay Lethal had signed with All Elite Wrestling. During the post-show media scrums, the former Ring of Honor star said that it was an easy decision to join the company.
"I am a professional wrestler, and this is the fastest-rising, hottest promotion in the freakin'' world," he began by saying. "It was no contest. It was an easy decision for any professional wrestler, in my opinion. This place is amazing. AEW is on fire and I'm so happy to be here and I'm more excited that they are willing to have me here. That's even more exciting in my head."
It was recently announced that Ring of Honor would be halting operations for the first quarter of 2022 in an effort to re-envision what the company will be moving forward. All talent will be released from their contract at the end of this year unless their contract extends beyond this year, in which case they will be paid through March 31, 2022.
Lethal was asked to comment on his time with ROH coming to a end, saying the following:
"Well, unfortunately, doors are closing soon there. I've met a lot of friends there. I've wrestled there for over 10 years. I'm a very loyal professional wrestler. If you're good to me, I'll stay there until the doors close. The doors are closing and an opportunity presented itself and I was welcomed in with open arms. So to answer your question, my heart goes out to a lot of those guys who no longer have jobs. It's sad, but it's also a great time to be a professional wrestler because the wrestling world right now is freakin' booming."
As for how the deal to join AEW came about, Lethal revealed that it started just a few days ago. He even said that this was his first time speaking to Tony Khan in person.
"It all happened so quickly, only a few days ago. My head was spinning because -- Today was the first time we met and talked face to face. Imagine being, for lack of a better term, jobless and wondering how you're going to pay your bills and such. You're a professional wrestler so there's not a ton of jobs. You can't just fill out an application anywhere. I got a quick message from some of Tony's associates, which was like a beacon of light. But literally, that was only a few days ago. Then I flew in yesterday and had to sit in my hotel room and I couldn't get any sleep because all I could think about was, 'Well, I don't really know what's happening tomorrow because we haven't met yet. It was wild. All these thoughts going through my mind, 'Will the people like me? The company's on fire right now, I hope I make a good impression.' Just a wild rush of emotions in my head," he said.
He concluded by saying that AEW already feels like home and that he plans on it being that forever.
"This feels like home, immediately. Other than meeting Tony today for the first time, I walked into the building and instantly saw people that I have met throughout my 20 years of professional wrestling. Some I was very close with. Some I just met a few times in passing. Some men and women I hadn't seen in over 15 years and it was as if we had never skipped a beat. So right away, my first 30 seconds here I was like, 'This is home.' Like I mentioned before, I'm a very loyal professional wrestler, so I plan on being here until the doors close. I plan on this being my home forever," Lethal said.
Lethal is best known for his run in Ring of Honor where he won the ROH World Championship, Pure Championship, Television Championship, and Tag Team Championships. He's also a former TNA World Tag Team Champion and six-time TNA X-Division Champion.
He will waste no time looking for gold in AEW as he challenges Sammy Guevara for the AEW TNT Championship on the November 17 episode of AEW Dynamite.
If you missed anything from AEW Full Gear you can catch up by checking out our live coverage and post-show review.
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