Backstage Details On Swerve Strickland's New AEW Contract, Reported Reaction From WWE

Swerve Strickland lost the AEW World Championship to Bryan Danielson at AEW All In, but he could rest easy knowing that he's got a long time to get back to the top, as he signed a new deal he signed with the company. Strickland put pen to paper on the Zero Hour pre-show portion of All In, and in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer revealed some of the finer details regarding the contract.

Based on what Meltzer has been told, Strickland looks to have signed a five-year deal with AEW, keeping him with the company through to September 2029. The deal was apparently agreed upon many weeks before All In, but officials wanted to save Strickland signing the contract for the London event to give people another major talking point. Strickland is said to be a very rich man thanks to the new deal, with Meltzer saying that it's among the biggest deals in pro wrestling today, with only the likes of Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, and Randy Orton in WWE, as well as Kazuchika Okada and Mercedes Mone in AEW, matching or topping what Strickland is currently earning.

WWE reportedly tried to make a play for both Strickland and Prince Nana as a package deal, but were shot down. WWE also reportedly made a play for Strickland shortly after he originally signed with AEW in 2022. WWE's reaction to the deal has been interesting, to say the least, as the company reportedly see Strickland's new contract as bad for the sport, due to officials believing that Tony Khan is spending more than he needs to on salaries.