5 Current AEW stars who rejected WWE contracts

#2 AEW star Will Hobbs didn't mince words while rejecting WWE offer

Team Taz is currently a mainstay on AEW TV, and consists of some promising young talent. Will Hobbs is one such talent, and at 30-years-old, has lots of years left in the tank. In his appearance on the AEW Unrestricted podcast, Hobbs revealed that he had a WWE tryout a while ago, but didn't make it in the end. Later, WWE contracted him for a deal when he had a match in AEW. Here's what he told WWE:

"The (WWE) try-out was good. They said 'we don’t have anything for you right now.' Years later, they carrot dangled in front of me and I pretty much told them, 'F you.' Right when I appeared on AEW, you wanna be like, 'Hey, remember me?' The way I was raised, I don't have time for that s**t. I'm not 'boo boo the fool' as my Grandma would say. 'Hey, we've been thinking about you and are interested in you.' No, f**k you. I ain't no sucka. I'd rather you tell me 100% no than try to BS me."

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Hobbs kicked off his AEW journey in July 2020

Hobbs initially wrestled in a bunch of matches on AEW Dark. His work in the 21-man Casino Battle Royale at AEW All Out 2020 impressed AEW President Tony Khan, and he soon bagged a contract with All Elite Wrestling. He is currently aligned with Team Taz, a heel stable that's feuding with Darby Allin and WWE Hall of Famer, Sting.

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Kaushik Das