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What's the story?
AEW women’s wrestler Kylie Rae received a lot of comparisons to WWE Superstar Bayley after she appeared in a recent episode of the ‘Road to Double or Nothing’ YouTube series.
Speaking during a Starrcast panel before Double or Nothing, AEW executive vice president Cody Rhodes seemingly took a shot at Bayley when discussing Kylie Rae’s personality, prompting a negative reaction from fans on social media, but he later clarified that he was only joking.
In case you didn't know…
AEW’s first pay-per-view, Double or Nothing, will take place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, May 25.
The show will be headlined by Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho, with the winner going on to face the winner of the Casino Battle Royale at a later date to determine the first AEW World Champion.
Nine matches will take place in total, including Cody Rhodes vs. Dustin Rhodes and The Young Bucks vs. The Lucha Brothers, while there will also be a women’s Triple Threat between Kylie Rae, Nyla Rose and Britt Baker.
Kylie Rae has previously mentioned on social media how she views Bayley, the current SmackDown Women’s champion, as a huge inspiration, even describing her as her “idol” during an Instagram post in October 2018.
The heart of the matter
Cody Rhodes and The Young Bucks took part in a panel at Starrcast to talk all things AEW ahead of Double or Nothing.
When discussing the women’s division that AEW will have to offer, he appeared to suggest that Kylie Rae is genuinely nice whereas Bayley only pretends to be nice.
“Somebody was sent to Chicago to interview Kylie and, man, what a ball of emotion. That’s what we want. It’s someone passionate, and it’s not like wacky inflatable tube men pretending to be nice, she’s actually…”
When the audience reacted with surprise and laughter, Rhodes added:
“Well, come on, guys! Come on, come on! It was touching to see her [Kylie Rae’s] energy for all this and I’m excited to see that match.”
Following a backlash on social media, Rhodes clarified that his comments were only meant as a joke:
What's next?
Cody Rhodes and Kylie Rae both have huge weekends ahead of them at Double or Nothing, while Bayley looks set to continue feuding with Charlotte Flair on SmackDown Live after cashing in her Money In The Bank contract to defeat “The Queen” at the recent Money In The Bank event.
