Frankie Kazarian had ‘really good conversations’ with WWE after AEW departure
When he left AEW at the end of 2022, Frankie Kazarian had some “really good” conversations with WWE about potentially signing with the company.
Kazarian ultimately ended up returning to TNA Wrestling and is one of the top stars for the promotion as their current World Champion. But Kazarian told Insight with Chris Van Vliet that there were talks with both TNA and WWE at the time.
“They were very, very gracious,” Kazarian said about WWE. “Some really good conversations with them too… There was conversations, you know, but logistically, it probably wasn’t going to work. You know, I wasn’t like a signature away, but there were a lot of, like, really good conversations.”
Kazarian noted that, when he returned to TNA in January 2023, he received a text message from Paul “Triple H” Levesque wishing him well and leaving the door open for them to do business together in the future. Kazarian did end up later working a couple of matches for NXT because of the partnership that exists between WWE and TNA.
“As a matter of fact, I can say this, when I debuted with TNA — re-debuted in January 2023. I just came out and basically the promo saying, you know, like, ‘I know I was here as a guest last time, but now I’m back for good. I signed a multi-year deal and I’m back.’
“After that, check my phone as we do, because we’re all marks and we want to see what people are saying,” Kazarian said. “I got a text from Triple H saying, like, you know, ‘Hey man, I know things didn’t work out and that’s cool. I look forward to you kicking ass. And you know, when it’s time for us to do business together, let’s do it.’ And I’m like, he didn’t have to do that. He didn’t have to. He went out of his way just to say like, ‘Hey, cool.’ It’s a [Killer] Kowalski guy too, so — but that holds a lot of weight with me.”
Kazarian told Insight that, at the end of 2022, he decided to request his release from AEW because he felt the need to bet on himself. Kazarian wanted to spend the rest of his career somewhere that valued him more than he was being valued in AEW. He had signed a new AEW contract the prior year, but Tony Khan granted his release because of the respect he has for Kazarian as a man and as a wrestler.
“Obviously, they probably didn’t see anything long-term in me,” Kazarian said. “Which was astonishing, because I was like, why would you re-sign me for very good money for another three years? And if they didn’t see anything, I get it, of course, that’s how it is. Look, I could probably still be there today, doing what I was doing. But I’m much, much, much happier where I am now.”
The 48-year-old Kazarian said he’s having a lot of fun in TNA and is not ready to put a timetable on how much longer he has left before retirement.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.