Clarifications On Ricky Starks's Rumored Arrest And Animosity With AEW
Former AEW Tag Team Champion Ricky Starks has been the subject of much discussion in recent weeks due to his prolonged absence from the company. He last competed on AEW TV on the March 30 edition of "AEW Collision" where he looked to have sustained an injury during a tag team match against Top Flight, but has since revealed that he is medically cleared and is simply waiting for the call to return to AEW. However, much more has been said about Starks over the past few days, with claims of legal troubles and attitude problems all flying around the rumor mill.
It started with a now-deleted Reddit post claiming that an intoxicated Starks caused trouble at a Calgary bar after his Owen Hart Foundation Tournament win in 2023. The post was deleted due to no sources being linked, meaning that the claim couldn't be confirmed or denied. According to Fightful Select, there is a mix of rumor and truth in this report.
As far as the alleged incident at the bar in Calgary is concerned, everyone who Fightful spoke to within AEW claimed that nothing of the sort ever happened and that no one had heard of anything prior to the post on Reddit spreading around social media. Starks himself has claimed he was never in trouble, and his match with Top Flight on March 30 took place in Canada shows that there were no legal issues in his re-entering the country this year. Canadian authorities didn't give any information, AEW higher-ups made no official comment, and all those alleged to be involved have directly denied anything taking place.
Ricky Starks Has Reportedly Been Frustrated With Creative
While no brawling in a Canadian bar seemed to have taken place, the same can't be said for having problems with AEW Creative.
Sources within AEW, as well as some roster members, have confirmed that Starks has reportedly turned down pitches to be on TV. One source with more direct knowledge of the situation that the only pitch that can be confirmed to have been turned down by Starks was the disbandment of his tag team with Big Bill. Some have criticized Starks due to there being a belief that he didn't want to do business, although it has been reported that the split ended up being more amicable as Starks didn't believe Bill losing the feud would be beneficial to the former WWE Superstar, despite many in AEW believing it would make Starks a huge babyface and Bill an even bigger heel.
It's unclear whether Starks hasn't listened to creative ideas as of late, but what was clear was that the former AEW Tag Team Champion wasn't too fond of being in a tag team in the Fall of 2023. Starks wasn't booked for the All In London event in August 2023, leading to AEW running a suspension angle to explain his absence, but when the company returned from England, Starks believed that period of time was a big turning point for how he was booked within the company.
It's also been reported that he was frustrated with the lack of follow-up to his feud with Bryan Danielson in September 2023 and that Starks himself believes that the firing of CM Punk slowed his momentum massively due to Punk being his rumored opponent for that year's All Out event in Chicago. As for upcoming creative plans, nothing seems to be in the pipeline for Starks, but that could change at any moment.
Conflicting Reports Regarding Ricky Starks and Tony Khan's Relationship
While Starks waits for his next move, he is confirmed to be medically cleared by those Fightful spoke with in AEW. This was evident by Starks' recent match against current AEW name QT Marshall at Big Time Wrestling's Welcome to Paradise event on May 31. However, there are conflicting accounts on the relationship between Starks and AEW President Tony Khan.
Khan himself stated in a recent interview that he would love to have Starks back in AEW when the time is right, and there are those within AEW who believe that the two men have been in regular contact over the past few months. However, some have claimed the opposite, which seems to be the case with the vast majority of things when the former AEW Tag Team Champion is brought up.
Due to these frustrations, the persistent rumor of Starks potentially wanting to jump ship to WWE has circulated once again. There is a belief from multiple people within AEW that this rumor has some truth to it, but nothing has been said from Starks or those close to him regarding his current deal. The last time this rumor was brought up was in the lead-up to the Revolution pay-per-view in March, which Khan addressed after the show had finished by saying Starks is still under contract with AEW for a long time.
Overall, it seems that until Starks appears on AEW TV again, rumors will continue to swirl about his future with the company. The man himself has admitted that he has no idea when he'll be back or why he isn't being used as he is confirmed to be healthy, so fans will have to sit and wait to see what is next for 'Absolute' Ricky Starks.