Another AEW Star Pulled From GCW?
This AEW star will no longer be in action for GCW this weekend.
With Ricky Starks having been pulled from several upcoming GCW dates, another AEW talent also looks set to miss out on appearing again for GCW.
Per Fightful Select, Willie Mack will no longer be working this coming weekend's GCW show. As for why that is, there's a little uncertainty on that front.
Initially, it was reported that GCW believed Mack had been pulled by AEW as a result of Effy's recent comments about AEW, Tony Khan, and Shahid Khan. However, it's since been noted how several people in AEW claim that the promotion didn't pull Mack from GCW, and that at least one person in AEW communicated that to GCW. Fightful also reports that another source told them that talent relations encouraged Willie Mack to not take this booking, rather than the company outright cancelling his appearance.
Either way, Willie Mack will no longer be competing at GCW Highest in the Room on Saturday, where he was scheduled to face Sidney Akeem, aka the former Scrypts and Reggie.
It's also worth noting that AR Fox - another AEW talent - was in attendance backstage at a GCW show last weekend, with him specifically told to not appear on camera during that event.
The AEW & GCW Situation
As alluded to, the issues between AEW and GCW stem from comments GCW mainstay Effy made on his Weekend at Effy's podcast last month. AEW took umbrage with certain remarks Effy made about AEW's financials, AEW running the Hammerstein Ballroom, and how Shahid Khan pays Tony Khan to "stay away".
The first person to feel the repercussions of this situation was Ricky Starks. Having made a surprise appearance at GCW Dream on 23 November, Starks was subsequently set to wrestle for GCW on 14 December - against Matt Cardona - 28 December, and 19 January. Following Effy's comments, Absolute was subsequently pulled from all such dates, and it was reported that any AEW contracted talents would no longer be able to work for GCW. While AEW names have the ability to work independent shows, all such bookings have to be approved by AEW. Thankfully for fans of Ricky Starks, the Stroke Daddy has since been confirmed to work a couple of House of Glory dates, first facing HOG World Champion Mike Santana in Chicago on 17 January, then in action at HOG Final Warning in Jamaica, Queens on 25 January.
In the case of Willie Mack, he was due to return to GCW action for the first time since April 2023, where he competed in a six-way scramble bout. In terms of AEW, the charismatic star last wrestled on the AEW Revolution pre-show back in March. Still very much under contract with Tony Khan's company, Willie has instead found himself more recently competing for Ring of Honor, losing to Komander back in October, and picking up a win over Exodus Prime in August.