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According to SoCalUncensored.com, Joey Ryan has signed a multi-year deal with Impact Wrestling. Ryan made previously an appearance in the Call Your Shot Gauntlet match at Bound for Glory. He later confirmed the news that he had indeed signed with the company.
Who is Joey Ryan?
Joey Ryan is probably one of the most controversial wrestlers in the industry.
While he's a veteran at this point in his career, he has been one of the biggest proponents of intergender wrestling.
Why didn't Joey Ryan sign with WWE?
Joey Ryan was part of WWE early in his career as an enhancement talent but felt that the company was not the right choice for him at this point in time. He said,
"I try not to overthink on that level. It would always be nice to have job security or a place where you know you can still provide after your time in the ring is done. That does weigh on me because I am 39 now, which is something I think about, but I don't want to get caught up in something that I don't have an urgency to get to."
From the looks of it, Joey Ryan would have been working under Triple H's NXT and not on the main roster. Given his current gimmick, it probably wouldn't have meshed well with WWE's PG environment.
Why didn't Joey Ryan sign with AEW?
Joey Ryan had a good relationship with Cody Rhodes and the rest of the AEW crew. He was part of All In and even appeared on Being The Elite several times. But he rejected their offer and said,
"They are obviously a new company and they're still figuring it out as they go, but as it came to decisions with them we realized that they are going to be successful without me, I am going to be succesful without them. Maybe our paths will cross at some point but there is no urgency to it and neither one needs the other right now. It would be nice to work with my friends but it is not a necessity right now until they figure out and learn their own product with how they present it"
Again, it looks like Ryan felt that the company has some ways to go and could be an asset for them in the future.
Why did Joey Ryan sign with Impact Wrestling?
Joey Ryan was actually part of Impact Wrestling in 2012-2013. He even recently appeared in a segment with Melissa Santos as a male stripper a month ago. Ryan revealed why he signed with Impact Wrestling and said via Twitter,
"It made the most sense. Impact Wrestling has been the most consistent wrestling program on TV for the past 2 years, I get to keep all of my indie dates and best of all, they let me be me."
It sounds like Impact Wrestling was offering the freedom that Joey Ryan was looking for. With AEW and WWE, he would have not been allowed to do his independent wrestling shows or creative freedom. Moreover, his gimmick fits in with the current Impact Wrestling product which has more in common with WWE's Attitude Era.
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