Clarification On Ricky Starks' Recent AEW Comments

Having myself recently sat down for a fantastic chat with AEW's Ricky Starks, I feel it's only right to add extra context to some of Ricky's comments after seeing how certain parts of the online world have reacted to them.

The internet being, well, the internet, people have spun certain Starks quotes into something entirely different, or have simply seen a particular headline and drawn their own off-base conclusions.

While yes, Absolute had praise for CM Punk during this interview, he also had plenty of praise for Bryan Danielson, the Young Bucks, Sting, and several others. Likewise, there was no mention of wanting to leave AEW. In fact, Starks specifically mentioned how he is eager to work AEW TVs and PPVs, with Double or Nothing and All In two upcoming shows namedropped.

After seeing some of the narratives being spun online, I reached out to Ricky to see about doing something that usually wouldn't be done: divulge some off-the-record details from our chat once the interview had stopped recording.

During the interview itself, the Stroke Daddy mentioned how CM Punk played a significant role in helping Ricky during those early days of Collision. After the recording had stopped, Starks also noted how AEW President Tony Khan collaborated and teamed with Punk in working on Collision ideas for Ricky. Likewise, Starks had plenty of positive things to say about the Young Bucks after the recording stopped, which was essentially more of the praise that had been given to the Jacksons during the interview.

Another false narrative that has been put out there by certain sections of the online fanbase, is that Ricky lambasted the AEW creative process during this chat. Anybody who has watched or listened to the full interview will know that this was not the case, and, again after the interview had stopped, Starks noted how, while he obviously is keen to wrestle and be back on TV, the wrestling business often cycles talent on and off TV and that this is simply the nature of the industry. As is ever the case, Ricky Starks is very much ready whenever the call comes.

As alluded to, this isn't the sort of post that would usually be made, but I felt it only fair, as the interviewer in this situation, to clear up a few parts of this really enjoyable chat that had either been taken completely out of context or just used to spin some BS online tribalism.

Again, this isn't the usual process, and I did reach out to Ricky to check if it was okay to put these off-the-record snippets out there in the hope that it will stop some of the inaccurate comments being made across various social media platforms and beyond.

Rather than looking at headlines and questionable social media takes, you can find the interview in full below: