At DEFY Wrestling on February 12, Nick Wayne was in for a big surprise as he was greeted by Darby Allin, who offered him a contract with AEW.
Wayne has become one of the top names in independent wrestling at only 16 years old and had just finished up a match with Christopher Daniels when he was greeted by Allin. His AEW contract will officially begin when he turns 18.
Speaking to Denise Salcedo of Instinct Culture, Wayne discussed where he currently stands with AEW before his contract begins.
"From now until I'm 18, it's like a learning experience there, I'll go to the shows, learn TV wrestling, learn how AEW does things, meet the agents, learn the production, so when I turn 18 we'll be ready to rock and roll. People I'm looking forward to working with, Jerry Lynn, one of the agents, he's one of the best. I love Jerry Lynn. In the ring, working with Daniel Bryan [Bryan Danielson], easily one of the best careers in professional wrestling ever. Other guys who have inspired me a lot throughout the way, Kenny Omega, so many names," he said.
When asked for his thoughts on the AEW product, Wayne replied, "It's incredible. They're doing something that other people aren't doing. They're pushing the limits and pushing boundaries. The matches they put on, on a weekly basis, are jaw-dropping. They were the first ever wrestling company to have a deathmatch on TV, that's never been done. Just going outside the box. The product is incredible and I'm beyond thankful that, out of all the places I got signed to, it was AEW."
Wayne has taken on some of the top names in Independent wrestling including Joey Janela, Bandido, Chris Bey and more. When Darby's music hit at DEFY, he thought he'd be locking up with Darby next.
"I didn't even know Darby was in town. When the match was over, stuff started to unfold, chaos kind of started to happen, I was in the corner, going up the ropes, I hear Darby's music and the crowd goes insane. 'Hold up, Darby is here?' He came out, him and Christopher Daniels did their thing, it was me and him, I had no idea he was there or what was going to happen. He grabbed the mic and I thought, 'Maybe he is going to come back to the Independents for one match against me at DEFY.' He starts talking and he's like, 'I'm not here to fire you, I'm here for something else,' and pulls a paper out of his pocket. Instantly, goosebumps, a lump in my throat, I looked at my mom and was like, 'No way,' I saw him unfold the paper and I could see the shadow of the AEW logo on top of the paper. Once he showed the fans, the fans went crazy. I had no idea that anything was going on. I didn't know how to react. It was such a surreal moment, the best thing that has happened to me in my life," he said.
Asked about conversations with Tony Khan, Wayne said they have spoken in the past, but he never knew a contract offer would be on the table this early.
"I went AEW before that, me and Darby were training and he told Tony Khan about me, showed Tony my stuff and Tony was like, 'He's awesome, he's great, tell him to come to Jacksonville.' I came to Jacksonville, hung out, saw everything backstage, hung out with Darby and met awesome people. A few months later, I went to All Out. I knew Tony liked my work, I've only met him one time, he's always busy, running around and doing something. He said he liked me work and to 'keep doing what you're doing.' He never mentioned a future contract or working with each other, he just said, 'you're great, I love what you do.' He said on a podcast, 'Once Nick Wayne turns 18, that's my guy.' I got goosebumps hearing that," said Wayne.
Wayne noted that there is no current length to his AEW contract as it doesn't officially begin until he's 18. Once he's 18, he'll see how many years he ends up signing for.
Wayne remains active on the independent scene and is set to face Will Ospreay on June 19 at GCW I Never Liked You.
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