A former AEW tag-team champion has opened up on the rumors of their possible split.
Over the years, several tag-teams in professional wrestling have broken up while a few have remained intact. Multiple top tag teams have split throughout the years over internal tension or a lust for singles success. And, a similar theme has been running for the past few months in AEW.
The extremely successful tag team, ‘The Acclaimed’ has been rumored to split for the past few months. In the last couple of months, several teases on television have prompted fans to discuss the possible breakup between Max Caster and Anthony Bowens.
Addressing the rumors ahead of Full Gear, former champion and a member of The Acclaimed, Anthony Bowens opened up in an interview with ROAR Around The Ring. Discussing the possibility of the team breaking up, Bowens shared:
What do you mean if something that could work? The Acclaimed are the best tag team, like I said, in the history of AEW. Max and I, we have a lot more stuff that we need to accomplish. I’m not particularly worried about anything that’s been happening. MVP can drop as many cards as he likes. Max is entitled to think about it, just like I’m entitled to think about it as well. So I am a lot more focused on making sure we get a W this Saturday at Full Gear, and I’m sure he is too.”
H/t Fightful.com
Recently, MVP and The Hurt Syndicate have teased allegiance with Max Caster during the promotion’s weekly episodes, although AEW is yet to explore that angle. The Acclaimed is now scheduled to challenge for the AEW World Tag Titles at Full Gear.
AEW Employee Details The Promotion’s Ranking System
AEW had the popular ranking system in place during its launch in 2019, however, it was soon quietly disbanded. Surprisingly, the rankings made a return earlier this year in January 2024, only to vanish soon after.
In an interview with Denise Salcedo of Instinct Culture, AEW’s Wrestling Administrative Coordinator Will Washington shared the details behind the ranking system.
(Samoa) Joe established that he wanted to see competition in crowning a World Championship contender. He said it, ‘Bring your record.’ That was the catalyst — I see a lot of people who bring up the rankings all the time. We brought the rankings back and people are like, ‘What happened to the rankings?’ That was a storytelling device. That was a storytelling device for Samoa Joe, for what Joe had literally said. ‘I want competition-based contenders. You are not just going to get a shot at my World Championship. You’re not going to demand it. You’re going to earn it and you’re going to climb the rankings to earn it.
That led to a number of guys; HOOK had the best record and it led to him being the number one contender. Swerve and Hangman had the exact same record, and they kept flip-flopping one and two until they tied and had the draw. In order to get to Samoa Joe, he demanded competition from his contenders and he demanded that you climb the ranks to get to him. When people ask, ‘What was that about? Why were they brought back?’ What was the point. It was for Joe. That’s what it was about and that was the type of champion Samoa Joe represented.”
In other news: Here is the latest injury update on Jade Cargill.