A typically off-screen AEW personality has been fined after uttering an expletive on last night’s broadcast of Dynamite, though the funds made will go to a good cause.
All Elite Wrestling has been a TV-14-rated product since its inception, but this appears to be taking a step back as the company progresses. The Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer reported last week that Warner Bros. Discovery had requested AEW tone down their language; failing to do so will have consequences, as proven.
Wednesday’s Dynamite saw former ROH star Ace Steel involved in a fiery promo alongside ex-Second City Saints partner CM Punk. He dropped an F-bomb during the exchange and, according to PWInsider’s Mike Johnson, he suffered from the repercussions, paying a fine for an undisclosed amount of money to be donated to a charity.
After #AEW Undisputed World Champion Jon Moxley dropped the signed open contract for a World Title Match at the #AEWAllOut PPV in the middle of the ring, Ace Steel, long time friend of CM Punk, picks it up and walks out. The plot thickens! #AEWDynamite is LIVE on TBS! pic.twitter.com/hPrAoJQmYc
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) September 1, 2022
It’s said that Ace Steel immediately took responsibility for his actions. AEW officials allegedly praised Steel for acting in such a manner, using him as an example of how to react in those situations.
Steel was hired by AEW earlier this year after being cut from WWE during their 5 January round of backstage releases. He’d initially been signed to WWE as a coach in late 2019 and, although he was placed on furlough for a few months in 2020, he remained with the company for just over two years.
Prior to his work backstage in WWE and AEW, Ace Steel was a stalwart of the 2000s independent scene, winning the prestigious IWA Mid-South Sweet Science Sixteen tournament in 2001. He formed The Second City Saints trio in ROH alongside CM Punk and Colt Cabana, where they feuded with The Embassy and Generation Next.