Raj Giri is reporting that Malakai Black has asked for his release from AEW but it was not granted. Giri said the following on Twitter:
“I heard an AEW star requested their release, and follow up sources indicate it was Malakai Black. He reportedly has repeatedly shown concerns about his mental health due to personal life and demoralization due to the booking and handling of his character. (1)”
There has been no public comment from AEW or Black on this story but it is worth noting that Black is one of the names that Triple H pushed in NXT and WWE has reportedly reached out to several AEW talent in recent weeks. Dave Meltzer reported the following in the latest Wrestling Observer Newsletter about people who were contacted:
“Regarding the talent approached by WWE, as we noted last week it was multiple people, generally the people who had worked with Paul Levesque in the past in NXT. Several told AEW which led to the legal letter sent to Levesque, Stephanie and Nick Khan. There was at least one person who asked for his release, which hasn’t been granted and the person has a long time left on his deal.”
Several of the ex-WWE talent signed with AEW have years left on their deal.
I heard an AEW star requested their release, and follow up sources indicate it was Malakai Black. He reportedly has repeatedly shown concerns about his mental health due to personal life and demoralization due to the booking and handling of his character. (1)
— Raj Giri (@TheRajGiri) September 2, 2022
