Is Ricky Saints still in AEW

Ricky Saints (birth name: Richard Starks) is an American professional wrestler who is with WWE and competes on its NXT brand as of April 2025. The New Orleans native initially wrestled across numerous promotions in Texas, United States. The winner of the 2020 NWA World Television Championship Tournament later became the inaugural NWA World Television Champion. His career-defining moment came in AEW as Ricky Starks, where he became the longest-reigning FTW Champion.

Saints, the winner of the Dynamite Diamond Battle Royale and Men’s Owen Hart Cup (2023), has held the AEW World Tag Team Championship once with Big Bill. Upon leaving the company, he went on to compete in promotions like Game Changer Wrestling, DEFY Wrestling, and House of Glory just before closing a deal with WWE.

Is Ricky Saints currently a part of AEW?

Ricky Saints (formerly Ricky Starks) is no longer in AEW, as per The Ringer. His AEW run ended on February 10, 2025. He made his WWE NXT debut the very next day, on February 11, 2025, under the new name Ricky Saints. As of April 2025, he is part of WWE NXT and is the NXT North American Champion. Saints is now set to defend his title at the NXT Stand & Deliver event, potentially against Ethan Page.

Read More: Ricky Saints Finisher

The reason behind Ricky Saints leaving AEW

Ricky Saints, formerly known as Ricky Starks in AEW, opened up about his exit from the company. After being absent from AEW TV for a significant period, he was officially released on February 10, 2025. The next night, he debuted in WWE NXT under the new name Ricky Saints.

In an interview on Busted Open Radio, Saints discussed his departure and the challenges he faced, saying:

“It was probably personal. Because if it were professional, it wouldn't have happened this way. That's how I believe it. That's not to disparage anyone there, just so we're clear... There's nothing disparaging for me to say. What I am saying is the truth that I don't know exactly what it was, and if you point to those two times that I was caught on footage at WWE, I can tell you that you're wrong."

"Some people will say, 'We could tell he was phoning it in.' Bulls***. There's never a match of mine in my entire career that I gave less than 1,000 percent. You can jump off a cliff with that opinion because it's not even real. Don't disrespect me and say I gave something less than 1,000 percent. That is not in my bones. There is no part of my body that I am capable of doing that. There are situations that will probably pop up again when it comes to, let's say, politicking and guys putting their noses in businesses that don't belong. I will say this: There are some people who stuck their nose in my creative business that shouldn't have happened...veterans, and that's it. I'm going to leave it at that," he added.

Ricky Saints continued:

"I think what it was...if it didn't work for their creative, then someone had to get the boot. That's how I see it. I'm not trying to be negative in my thought process about it, but I do think that, for sure. That's okay. That's fine. If you want to step on me to get ahead in your illustrious career—everyone should have an illustrious career—but at the same time, I'm not wet behind my ears."