Report: Reason Dragon Lee Chose WWE Over AEW Revealed

WWE made a major signing to end 2022, with it being revealed this week that Dragon Lee has put pen to paper on a contract with the company and the former IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion will report to NXT in the new year. Dragon Lee made the announcement after he and Dralistico defeated FTR for the AAA World Tag Team Titles on December 28 before the team immediately vacated the belts. 

WWE became interested in signing Dragon Lee after he competed in a trios match alongside Andrade El Idolo and Rush against The Elite on the August 17 edition of AEW Dynamite. Finn Balor reached out to the luchador soon after and this led to a couple of tryouts for Lee before he signed with the company.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, AEW made an offer to Lee but the 27-year-old ultimately opted to sign with WWE instead. Lee reportedly sought out advice before he made a final decision and those he spoke to told Lee that NXT would be the better option for him to make a name for himself in the United States as they thought he would get lost in the shuffle in AEW due to the promotion's sizeable roster. 

Having signed with WWE, it is believed Lee will be the highest-paid wrestler on the developmental brand but he is not making main roster money. His deal is for three years and the feeling Lee was given is that he will be called up to either Raw or SmackDown in 2024.

Lee also has a unique clause in his WWE contract that allows him to continue his existing licensing deals with Legends of Lucha Libre and a book series he is working on with La Faccion Ingobernable.