MJF has been under contract with AEW since the company was founded in 2019. He'd previously competed for MLW and has since held the AEW World Championship twice, the AEW International Championship once, and the AEW Dynamite Diamond Ring a record six times.
There's been a lot of chatter about MJF signing with WWE in recent years, but he ultimately chose to remain in AEW. Many fans have argued that he did so to his detriment, especially as the company has cooled off in a big way, losing much of the momentum it once had.
With a wrestler like MJF, it's always tough to know what is and isn't a shoot when he does an interview. Talking to Denise Salcedo, the reigning AEW World Champion once again addressed his future and the impact he believes his signing with WWE would have on Tony Khan's company.
"You can’t say never in wrestling. It’s pro wrestling. Somebody who I hate once said they would never go there, and they went there, so you never know," he shared. "But if you ask me my honest, genuine opinion, All Elite Wrestling is my company. I’m the biggest star this company has. I’m the star this company needs. If I leave, this company is f***ing done, if we’re just being honest."
Ultimately, for MJF, becoming a WWE Superstar and having a WrestleMania moment isn't worth it if he isn't paid what he feels he deserves.
"People will jump to the other place to get booked the same or worse to be compensated for less. Why? I don’t know. If the answer is legacy, you know what I want my legacy to be? I want my legacy to be that my children are able to afford to go to any school they want, they can go to any restaurant they want. They’re gonna be able to go on vacations, they’re gonna be able to wear the nicest clothes. That’s happening because I get compensated what my talent is worth. I’m not gonna settle for less compensation so I get to have a WrestleMania moment."
"That doesn’t make sense to me. My legacy is my family, my legacy is my wife, my legacy is my children, my grandchildren, etc. My legacy is also what I do in the squared circle and on this microphone, and I can assure you, if you make a big enough name in All Elite Wrestling, your legacy is gonna go a long way in this fanbase. We’re not models, we’re not ex-football players or ex-volleyball players or whatever, this is what we’ve wanted to do from the jump. We’re getting compensated the way we should be compensated."
"I think it’s really important to pay your pro wrestlers, to pay your fighters, to pay your football players, soccer players, baseball players, what they deserve to be compensated. Tony Khan, is he a mark? Yes. But he’s also caring and genuine and understands what we’re doing, we’re putting our bodies on the line for him to make money, so the least he can do is shill some of that back to us."
Many professional wrestlers view WWE as the pinnacle, so taking a cut is worth it for those who want to compete on the Grandest Stage of Them All. That's pretty rare, given that AEW is the only real "competition" capable of matching what WWE offers Superstars, but in MJF's case, it seems WWE wasn't willing to top Khan's offer.
You can check out the full interview in the player below.