Earlier this week, Renee Young made headlines when it was reported that she had given her notice to WWE and would be leaving the company soon after she works the SummerSlam pay-per-view on Sunday. Now, it appears that there’s a strong possibility she will eventually sign with AEW, where her husband, Jon Moxley, currently reigns as the promotion’s World Champion.
On Friday morning, Ringside News cited the latest issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter , where Dave Meltzer wrote that Young’s move to AEW is “inevitable.” He added that despite the fact that Young is married to Moxley, who spent several years in WWE under the ring name Dean Ambrose, the rival company was initially unaware of the television personality’s imminent departure and only heard about it when it was reported online.
In addition, Meltzer pointed out that if Young is indeed headed to AEW, it might be awhile before she makes her debut. As separately cited by Sportskeeda , this is due to a “serious” noncompete clause in her contract that prevents her from signing with other wrestling promotions for a certain period of time. Typically, noncompete clauses for WWE main roster talents are valid for 90 days from the time they leave the company, as was recently the case with many of the performers who were released in April.
Prior to his new update on Young, Meltzer had also discussed the alleged reason why she was unhappy with WWE in recent weeks. The 34-year-old was among the first few talents in the promotion to publicly disclose her COVID-19 diagnosis, and she had apparently done so without consulting with officials. According to Meltzer, none of these officials, including chairman Vince McMahon and high-ranking executives such as Triple H, Mark Carrano, and Kevin Dunn, bothered to check on Young’s well-being during the time she was recovering from her illness.
Although Young was apparently not the only person who didn’t get a call from WWE management after testing positive for COVID-19 and was upset due to the lack of communication, Meltzer also explained earlier this week on Wrestling Observer Radio that her situation was “different” from that of the others.
Apart from AEW, there are various other companies, including mainstream media networks such as ESPN and Fox, that are expected to show interest in Young once her departure from WWE becomes official. Per WhatCulture , the former WWE Backstage host is also busy preparing for the launch of her cookbook, Holy Bleep That’s Good , which was first announced last month.