Update on The Elite signing new AEW contracts

Further details regarding The Elite signing new contracts with AEW have become available. 

Our own Dave Meltzer addressed Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and Hangman Page’s decision to remain in the company, interest they received from WWE, and more in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. 

Details regarding the length of the new deals is being kept under wraps, Meltzer reported. However, he did mention the unconfirmed “story going around” is that they are for four years. 

“There was no specific length of time mentioned on the deals past the term several years and the belief is that the agreement was to keep the time frame under wraps. The unconfirmed story going around was that they were four-year deals,” Meltzer wrote.

Meltzer continued to say the money offered by AEW was enough that The Elite opted to sign early and not wait until WWE would legally be able to negotiate with them. The Young Bucks and Page’s deals expired at the end of 2023 while Omega’s deal was set to expire earlier this year but was extended due to the nine months he was out with injury from Full Gear 2021 to August 2022. 

The better schedule and executive positions for Omega and The Young Bucks played a factor in their decision to sign as well. 

As previously reported, WWE had significant interest in Omega. 

“No formal offers could have been legally made for months but Omega was number one on [WWE’s] most wanted list. All four would have been in a great position in an open market so Khan must have made a strong deal to get them to stay without even strongly playing the WWE card,” Meltzer wrote. 

It is believed the deals were completed ahead of Blood & Guts in Boston last month, although that is not confirmed. 

Agent Barry Bloom represented all four members of the group, who made a pact to stick together with only a majority vote, as opposed to a unanimous one, needed to decide if they would sign with AEW or WWE.  

“You’d probably be surprised who voted where,” noted one member of The Elite.

Meltzer reported the group went back and forth on where they wanted to end up. 

“Votes changed at times during the discussions based on the emotions of the time, but ultimately all agreed the key, with the strong AEW offer, was to accept the offer made at this point with the other key factor being the AEW schedule,” Meltzer wrote. 

Bloom told The Young Bucks that, as far as he knew, the new deal they signed with AEW is the highest guarantee any tag team has received in wrestling history, including the WCW deals for Scott Hall & Kevin Nash, although it’s not clear if that takes inflation into consideration

“The term was that Khan had really put his money where his mouth was and that because of that they were confident that he still saw great value in all four of them,” Meltzer continued. 

Meltzer also commented on the still unresolved backstage issues regarding The Elite and CM Punk. 

“Even with the signing, there do remain significant behind-the-scenes issues that haven’t been settled, between them and C.M. Punk, which keeps Khan having to do a balancing act,” he wrote. 

Swerve Strickland posted a clip of The Young Bucks discussing their new deals on an episode of his podcast that will be released on Monday.