Recently retired star discloses surprising details about her AEW in-ring debut

A recently retired AEW star has shared some surprising details about her debut match.

On the June 16, 2023, episode of Rampage, AEW Referee Aubrey Edwards wrestled for the first time in a mixed Trio match where she teamed up with Mark Briscoe and Papa Briscoe to take on Jay Lethal, Jeff Jarrett, and Karen Jarrett.

During the AEW Unrestricted podcast, Edwards talked about her first and only match in the company. She said although she was fine playing a referee, when an opportunity to wrestle showed up, she just took it to see how things turn out.

Edwards was excited to team up with Mark Briscoe and Papa Briscoe and thought it was amazing. She said:

"I was perfectly content yelling at dudes and shouting rules and stuff. So when this whole thing happened, I'm like, 'Sure, whatever. We're just going to ride the ride and see how it all works out.' And then I heard I was tagging with Mark and his dad. I'm like, 'Okay, this is pretty much the greatest thing in the world.' It's not even like hyperbole, right? This is so wonderful and amazing." (H/T - Wrestling Inc)

The AEW referee praised her tag team partners, calling Mark an amazing human being and Papa Briscoe the sweetest person she ever met. She added that Papa Briscoe was super proud of her performance in the match and hugged her after the match.

"Mark already is an amazing human being, but Papa Briscoe is just the sweetest person I've ever met. I was like, 'Oh, this is like my dad.' He's just super proud of me. He was hugging me after, like, 'You did so great. I'm so proud of you. Yeah, we did it! This is awesome.'"

Edwards won the match for her team by submission after she locked Karen Jarrett in the figure-four.

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AEW referee Aubrey announced her retirement from in-ring competition

Soon after victory in the mixed Trios match, Aubrey Edwards announced her retirement on Battleground Podcast. Although she enjoyed the match, she was glad that it got over. The referee stated that she never wanted to do it again and is retiring undefeated at 1-0.

"It felt cool, the way we structured everything. I went over with the figure four because that's also Jay Lethal's move. So there's a little bit of meta-ness that long-term fans appreciate because they get it in the moment. It was cool. I'm glad it's over. I'm retiring undefeated. Not being able to walk for two days without pain. I never want to do that again." (H/T Fightful)

Aubrey has been signed with Tony Khan's promotion since 2019 and was the promotion's first full-time female referee. At AEW All Out (2019), she became the first woman in history to referee a World championship match on a pay-per-view.

Edwards also made a few appearances in WWE as a referee for WWE Evolution and the Mae Young Classic.