Christian Cage took a shot at WWE/TKO on Wednesday (September 2) when he referenced reports that the company asked some stars to take 50% pay cuts.
Cage dropped the line during a promo on Dynamite, during which he was joined by his tag team partner, Adam Copeland. Both men, of course, had storied careers in WWE before joining AEW.
The moment came when Cage and Cope, the reigning AEW World Tag Team Champions, were engaged in a verbal standoff against The Young Bucks and FTR.
The segment began with the
Bucks stating during an in-ring promo that Cage and Cope cheated to hold on to their belts during their recent bout at All In London. Nick and Matt Jackson then demanded a rematch. Their challenged was interrupted by FTR, another former WWE team, who came to the ring to announce they had returned to reclaim their gold.
Soon enough, the champions emerged to address both teams. When Cage took to the mic, he suggested FTR and The Young Bucks might want to work at another company for less money.
“I’m surprised that the four of you aren’t more embarrassed. I’m surprised that you’re not so embarrassed that you wouldn’t consider willingly taking a 50% pay cut and going somewhere else,” Christian said, resulting in an audible reaction from the AEW audience.
Following a massive roster purge at WWE in the spring, reports surfaced that claimed TKO had asked some stars to take a 50% pay cut. Among those reportedly asked were The New Day, who were said to have rejected the offer and requested their release.
Kofi and Austin Creed (fka Xavier Woods) made their AEW debut at All In London last weekend as The New Level, and the duo discussed the money talk with WWE management on The Ariel Halwani Show on Tuesday (September 1).
According to Kofi, the duo was actually asked to take an even bigger pay decrease than what had been reported.
“I don’t know exactly what’s out there. I will say, it was more than 50%, which a lot of people don’t know,” he said to Halwani.
As for Cage & Cope, FTR, and The Young Bucks, the segment on Dynamite set up a “Chairs, Tables, and Ladders” match between the three teams at AEW’s All Out pay-per-view on September 26 in Chicago.
What do you think, Cagesiders? Did you enjoy Christian’s line? Let us know in the comments.
