In the hours ahead of AEW Dynamite 200, it’s been announced that Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and Adam Page will be staying with AEW.
There has been a great deal of speculation around the quartet in recent months once it became clear that their contracts would be coming up in the relatively near future. Furthermore, it’s something of an open secret that WWE has varying levels of interest in all involved.
Despite this, it’s been confirmed by Sports Illustrated that The Elite has signed “multi-year deals” with AEW.
Tony Khan was quick to pay tribute to the group who played an instrumental role in the creation of the company.
“The Elite have been so important to the launch of AEW, with the Young Bucks going all in when I first approached them in 2018 about my dream to create an international pro wrestling promotion. Shortly after that, their partners and closest friends Kenny Omega and ‘Hangman’ Adam Page joined us to formally launch All Elite Wrestling. All four of them have been instrumental to AEW’s success from the very first episode of Dynamite in 2019 through the present day.
Now, as we celebrate tonight’s 200th episode of Dynamite, I’m excited to share that Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and Hangman Adam Page will all be staying in AEW for years to come. We look forward to celebrating the great news with fans around the world.”
Kenny Omega said that he’s weighed up his options, but saw that AEW was the best place for him to continue his career.
“I was careful to weigh out all options and was open minded to all possibilities,” says Omega. “I’m here to help whomever I can while I’m still around.
Up to this point, I’ve made the choice to sacrifice everything in the name of pro wrestling. I can’t say that family or my kids influenced the decision to stay with AEW–I’m not married and without kids–but what I can say is that I’m incredibly proud of my match catalog and the wonderful people I’ve met and continue to meet. AEW not only allows me to continue doing what I do at a high level, but allows the freedom to pursue some other passions I have in life–which, after nearly 25 years in the ring, have become more and more important to me.”
Recently Dave Meltzer reported that The Young Bucks are the highest paid tag team in wrestling history.
Was Kenny Omega Ever Going To Leave AEW?
Much of the speculation in recent months centred around Omega and the Young Bucks. Interestingly, it was reported in April that WWE believed they had a good shot at landing Omega — someone they have had their eye on for some time.
However, it was reported on July 28th that WWE had given up on doing a deal with Kenny Omega, as it became increasingly clear that he would be staying with AEW.