Former TNA World Champion Josh Alexander shed light on the circumstances surrounding his departure from TNA Wrestling and his subsequent signing with AEW. In a recent interview with The Wrestling Classic, Alexander detailed the contract situation that led to his decision.
Alexander explained that while TNA picked up his contract option the year prior, he felt obligated to explore free agency. “I’m like, ‘Okay, guys. I would be doing myself and my family a disservice by not seeing what else is out there from a financial perspective, from an opportunity perspective. So you guys come to the table with an offer’,” Alexander recalled telling TNA management.
Despite expressing his love for TNA and its locker room, and indicating a desire to potentially stay if the offer was competitive, Alexander claims TNA never formally presented him with one. “For a part of me, I was just like, I don’t want to leave,” he admitted. “It’s just it doesn’t make sense to stay if it’s not even in the same ballpark, and they never made me an offer, ever.” He felt TNA misinterpreted his desire to test the market. “They just took that and were just like, ‘Oh, he’s leaving.’ I was like, okay, even though we had conversations several times where I was just like, ‘Just make me an offer, guys’, and they just never did,” Alexander stated.
This ultimately led him to discussions with other promotions. “So obviously I went and talked to two other companies, and I had to make my decision there,” he concluded. “And I chose AEW because it was just the right fit for me, right fit for my family, and I’m very happy to be there.”
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article, please credit The Wrestling Classic with an h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
