WATCH: Mercedes Mone aka Sasha Banks makes surprise appearance at Backlash despite being signed to Tony Khan’s AEW

Mercedes Mone has been signed to AEW since late January.

WATCH: Mercedes Mone aka Sasha Banks makes surprise appearance at Backlash despite being signed to Tony Khan’s AEW

Mercedes Mone and Tony Khan (via Ringside News and @iyosthelimit/X)

The Women’s Championship triple-threat match at Backlash exceeded a lot of fans’ expectations. Bayley successfully defended her title against Naomi and Tiffany Stratton in an entertaining contest. However, what many members of the audience might’ve missed was the appearance by Mercedes Mone. The AEW star made a brief cameo prior to the match.

During the video package of the bout, Mone was spotted alongside Naomi while the latter’s accomplishments were being mentioned. The pair became Tag Team Champions at WrestleMania 38. However, this would be the beginning of the end for both superstars at the time. Months later, Mone and Naomi ended up walking out of WWE, handing their titles to John Laurinaitis. 

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Rumors spread that the former NXT stars were frustrated with the way their championship reign was booked. Naomi ended up returning to the company almost two years later, at the Royal Rumble. Meanwhile, Mercedes Mone hasn’t yet returned, despite heavy speculation of her re-signing in December 2023. 

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The former WWE Women’s Champion ended up joining rival promotion AEW. Mone arrived in her hometown of Boston on the Big Business edition of Dynamite. In fact, she’ll be making her in-ring debut at the upcoming Double of Nothing PPV. Mone will be taking on Willow Nightingale for the TBS Championship at the event.

Wrestling veteran accuses AEW of mishandling Mercedes Mone

As mentioned above, Mercedes Mone will finally step foot inside the squared circle, almost two months after her debut. As such, Eric Bischoff took issue with the way the Tony Khan-led promotion has treated the CEO. In a recent edition of his 83 Weeks podcast, the Hall of Famer heaped praise on Mone’s in-ring abilities and skills. 

Mercedes Mone
Mercedes Mone (via Forbes)

However, he opined that the 32-year-old isn’t a good talker on the mic. Therefore, Bischoff believes that by making her speak on live television, AEW is exposing her weakness. The former booker compared her current run to the way WWE handled her, pointing out that the Stamford-based promotion did a better job.

According to him, every time the former Women’s Champion cuts a promo, her stock plummets even further. For weeks, fans have been eagerly anticipating Mone’s in-ring debut. Hence, it will be interesting to see how her match against Nightingale plays out at Double or Nothing.

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