Until a month or so ago, AEW World Champion MJF had been boasting about the ensuing “Bidding War Of 2024,” which will see WWE and AEW jockeying for his services. Friedman has led many to believe that his contract with Tony Khan expires on January 1, 2024 and that he plans to put himself on the market.
Haus of Wrestling reported last month that, after speaking with a higher-up at WWE, there have been no talks between Friedman and the sports entertainment juggernaut. Furthermore, we reiterated what we were told from that higher-up and have heard from many others that the internal belief at WWE is that MJF has already quietly re-signed with AEW. Since our report, Friedman has not referenced the impending bidding war of AEW TV.
On the SI Media Podcast, Friedman addressed his current contractual status with All Elite Wrestling.
“I’ve never lied,” he began. “January 1, 2024. When stuff like that gets leaked out, it makes me laugh because I remember something got leaked out about Cody having secretly re-signed, and then he showed up. Somebody got leaked out about, you know, CM Punk and Tony Khan, you know, actually fine, everything. You know? I think fans leak out things that they want to be true. I love AEW. I want to stay in AEW. After this pay-per-view, it’s time to assess the situation from a professional setting.”
The host asked Friedman again to clarify whether or not he had re-signed with AEW, to which he flatly stated, “Not yet.”
At 394 days, Friedman is currently the longest-reigning AEW World Champion of all time. He is also one-half of the ROH World Tag Team Champions with Adam Cole and a five-time AEW Dynamite Diamond Ring winner. At the moment, Friedman is also the centerpiece of the buzziest angle in AEW that has seen a group of masked devils attacking members of the roster and, allegedly, Friedman himself. With so much invested in the young star, if he were to pick up and leave after the first of the year, it would leave Khan with a very big hole to fill.
If you use any quotes from this article, please give a h/t to Haus of Wrestling and credit The SI Media Podcast