"Impressive" AEW Star Earning Backstage Praise (AEW News)
Heads have been turned behind the AEW curtain! People are seriously impressed by this breakout star.
Ace Austin has people talking behind the curtain at AEW.
Dave Meltzer reports, via Wrestling Observer Radio, that the 29 year old worker has a genuine shot at becoming a breakout star in the making. Meltzer says that Austin did himself "a world of favours" by entering such a slick performance opposite workhorse Claudio Castagnoli on this past Saturday's episode of Collision.
There, Ace dropped to a 12-minute defeat in the first round of the Continental Challenge Cup, but the bout could end up doing a lot for him in the long run. Backstage, people were "very impressed" by what they were seeing. If Claudio goes to bat for Austin too, then it'll be interesting to see what Tony Khan has in mind for him next.
On paper, Ace doesn't exactly have a win-loss record to shout about. He's gone 1-9 in singles matches since joining the company in August 2025. That single victory? A scrap few probably remember vs. Bryan Keith on the 25 October edition of Collision.
Most of Austin's wins to date have come in tag-team fare as part of the Bang Bang Gang. In doubles or trios action, he currently holds a 4-3 record, so things are a tad more respectable on that front. However, if the Castagnoli match did indeed turn the heads Meltzer claims it did, then his 1-9 singles record could change sooner rather than later.
Dave reckons the next logical step for Ace is to start working with AEW's bigger names more frequently on TV.