Austin Aries Discusses Controversial Impact Wrestling Exit
From one year ago...
One year has passed since Austin Aries, after losing to Johnny Impact (Morrison) in the main event of Impact Wrestling's Bound For Glory, popped up after the pinfall and stormed out of the arena, flipping off both Don Callis and the fans, while shouting angrily.
Though many speculated that the moment was designed to be a worked-shoot, Aries has not returned to the company since.
This week, Aries spoke with Impact Wrestling star Killer Kross on an Instagram Live chat session (some parts transcribed by Pro Wrestling Sheet), discussing how his final days with the company played out.
Aries revealed that his contract was set to expire the day after Bound For Glory, and prior to headed to the event, he was offered a three month extension. Aries instead requested a three-day extension to get through the subsequent TV tapings, and then they'd go from there.
Aries added he wasn't happy about creative plans for him after dropping the title, and claims he pitched the idea for him to walk out in a rage after brushing off the pinfall, to create buzz for his return. He doesn't say that he had approval to do the walk-out, but adds that others weren't told about the plan, to make it seem real.
Instead of being used at the subsequent tapings, Aries was held off. He was also held off of the next tapings in Las Vegas, where a contract was offered, and Aries ending up passing on it.
Said Aries, "If you put me in a position to trust me to be that guy, then I should have a say and an opinion in what’s going on. That’s part of my issue that I had with this thing with Morrison. It wasn’t dropping the title, it had nothing to do with that.”
Though many speculated that the moment was designed to be a worked-shoot, Aries has not returned to the company since.
This week, Aries spoke with Impact Wrestling star Killer Kross on an Instagram Live chat session (some parts transcribed by Pro Wrestling Sheet), discussing how his final days with the company played out.
Aries revealed that his contract was set to expire the day after Bound For Glory, and prior to headed to the event, he was offered a three month extension. Aries instead requested a three-day extension to get through the subsequent TV tapings, and then they'd go from there.
Aries added he wasn't happy about creative plans for him after dropping the title, and claims he pitched the idea for him to walk out in a rage after brushing off the pinfall, to create buzz for his return. He doesn't say that he had approval to do the walk-out, but adds that others weren't told about the plan, to make it seem real.
Instead of being used at the subsequent tapings, Aries was held off. He was also held off of the next tapings in Las Vegas, where a contract was offered, and Aries ending up passing on it.
Said Aries, "If you put me in a position to trust me to be that guy, then I should have a say and an opinion in what’s going on. That’s part of my issue that I had with this thing with Morrison. It wasn’t dropping the title, it had nothing to do with that.”
Written by Justin Henry
In addition to writing lists and commentaries for Cultaholic, Justin is also a features writer and interviewer for Fighting Spirit Magazine, and is co-author of the WWE-related book Titan Screwed: Lost Smiles, Stunners, and Screwjobs.
