Darby Allin DESTROYS Ex-AEW Stars: "The Cancer Got Cut Out" (AEW News)

Darby Allin shoots on "egotistical wrestlers who don't want to lose".

by Andrew Pollard
Darby Allin
AEW

Ahead of this weekend's WrestleDream, AEW favourite Darby Allin has been talking about the positive environment in the company here in 2025.

Darby was speaking during an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, where he discussed, amongst other things, how everyone is on the same page in AEW now that some of the "cancer" has been cut out.

As Allin explained:

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"The cancer got cut out. Just egotistical wrestlers who don't want to lose. Groups of people. That's what I was saying earlier. With climbing Mount Everest, it kept me so grounded and level-headed, and at the end of the day, this is all staged. It's the greatest thing in the world, but it's staged, so if you're going to have an ego about that, get out of the f**king sport. Go be in the UFC. Don't be bringing that shit here. This is about having fun, this is about putting on a good energy. That's the biggest thing with me. Once all that got cleared up, I really felt, 'Okay, cool, let's rock.' I just don't like egos, I can't stand them."

When Ariel pushed Darby Allin on who specifically he was referring to as the "cancer", the two-time former AEW TNT Champion responded:

"It's pretty obvious. Who has the egos? Who, literally, has the ego? Who doesn't want to do what's best for this company? It's about doing what's best for the company. It's pretty obvious."

As Helwani suggested CM Punk as one of those names, Darby was quick to shoot down that idea:

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"The whole Punk thing was just his own thing. It wasn't about wanting to win or lose. I feel like, at the end of the day, some people work better in WWE, some people work better in AEW, some people work better in TNA, some people work better in MLW, New Japan. That's the beauty of it. I'm not one of these guys where, 'There's one game in town, blah, blah, blah.' I don't care, I do not care, I just care about what's best for AEW as a whole, and right now the energy that we have is what's best for this place."

While Darby Allin didn't go into detail on specific individuals, fans were quick to suggest Miro/Rusev and Malakai/Aleister Black as possibly being some of the names Darby was referring to. During their respective times with AEW, there were rumblings that both talents pushed back on certain creative decisions or outright refused particular pitches. Of course, that's purely speculation, though.

Up next for Darby, he's got an I Quit match with Jon Moxley at AEW WrestleDream this Saturday, with the brutality and bloodshed sure to be brought by both men as these heated rivals look to up the ante from their violent coffin match last month.

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If you use any of the above quotes, please link to The Ariel Helwani Show with a h/t to WhatCulture Wrestling.

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Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks/Saints, Jamie Hayter, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.