TNA Fires Max Caster 24 Hours After Debut Following Unapproved Riyadh Rap (TNA News)
Grand opening. Grand closing.
Having made his TNA debut at Bound for Glory this weekend, it appears that Max Caster's time with the Anthem outfit is already done.
At Bound for Glory, Caster answered an open challenge from Moose, fresh off reports that Platinum Max's previous AEW deal had expired at the start of this month. While that match resulted in a loss for Caster, it was his pre-match rap that caught the most attention, with the former Acclaimed man referencing "bombs" and "Riyadh" during a weekend when Riyadh's King Khalid International Airport suffered through two days of missile attacks
Per Fightful Select, TNA sources say that this part of Max's rap was not scripted or approved, and that several company executives were unhappy with that line. All mentions of Riyadh have been deleted from TNA's social media platforms.
While there was hope that Max Caster would work TNA's upcoming Dothan, Alabama TV tapings, False Finish reports that the company will no longer be working with the 37-year-old New Yorker.
Subsequently, TNA has put out the following statement condemning Caster's comments and confirming that he'll "no longer be wrestling" for the promotion.
pic.twitter.com/iKFNurSrcw— TNA Wrestling (@ThisIsTNA) October 12, 2026
Previously, Max Caster debuted for AEW in the summer of 2020, initially working enhancement matches on AEW Dark before being paired up with Anthony Bowens that October. As the Acclaimed, the duo would become one of the most popular acts in the industry at one point, winning the AEW Tag Team Championships and teaming with Billy Gunn to win the AEW Trios Championships.
However, while Anthony Bowens has been a semi-regular presence on AEW TV this year, including becoming a member of the Opps, Max Caster hadn't wrestled for Tony Khan's company since December 2025. With reports that both Bowens and Caster's deals were up at the start of October, Max was quietly removed from the AEW roster page earlier this month, though Bowens is still listed there, amidst rumblings that he may ultimately end up re-signing with the promotion.