Alan Angels Reveals Why He Didn't Accept New AEW Deal
Alan Angels is no longer under contract with All Elite Wrestling, as the former Dark Order member has aspirations to pave his own path in the sport. Angels joined "The Two Man Power Trip Of Wrestling" to speak about his time in AEW and how his exit came to be.
"They didn't renew it, they offered me a per appearance deal," Angels said, referring to his expired contract. "I just felt there wasn't really enough room for me to grow in AEW, at the moment at least. You never know where the wrestling business is going to take you next, but I just felt that it, yeah, maybe it was time for me to do my own thing."
Angels was a pleasant surprise for AEW and wrestling fans during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, as he had a memorable match against Kenny Omega on an April 2020 episode of "AEW Dynamite." That performance led to him getting signed by the company, but Angels ultimately had a different plan in mind. He had always envisioned himself making his hay on the independent wrestling scene.
"As a wrestling fan, that's what I really wanted to do," he said. "I tell my buddy AC Mack, who is also a wrestler. He's currently the Independent Wrestling Champion, and I told him, 'Man, your career is kind of the career I pictured myself having, just because he's worked up from these smaller independent companies and now he's like one of the bigger names in independent wrestling just because [he's] built up from his independent shows and stuff. He's never been signed to a major company or anything like that, and he's now killing it on the indies, like doing all these cool-ass shows. Just like traveling the country defending the title and all that stuff.
"I just wanted to spread my wings and see what else I can do. I felt like it's kind of hard to have an independent career while still signed to AEW," Angels said, noting that you'll never know when you're going to get hurt working the independent shows, which could cause problems when working with AEW. Angels also pointed out that AEW's massive roster played a role in his departure.
"That's part of it for sure, and nothing against those guys," Angels said. "I think all those guys are very deserving of the spot they're in, and I'm not at all angry or anything about any of this ... It's definitely harder to get TV time and stuff like that, and they are getting their young guys, they're giving them their flowers, so to speak." Angels cites names such as the Gunn Club and the Acclaimed getting those well-deserved opportunities.
"I just felt like the right move for me was to try and do it on my own. That's all," he said.
Angels recently showed up on a taping of Impact Wrestling, where he faced "Speedball" Mike Bailey. He's the second member of AEW's Dark Order stable to leave the company in recent months, but on the July 6 episode of "Dynamite," the Dark Order came out to state that the faction wasn't going anywhere.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Two Man Power Trip Of Wrestling" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.