Top TNA Star In AEW vs. WWE Signing "Arms Race" (WWE News)

AEW looking to rival WWE for Leon Slater's signature.

by Andrew Pollard
Leon Slater
TNA

With plentiful rumblings that TNA's Leon Slater could be WWE-bound as and when his existing contract is up, it looks like that WWE move isn't as set in stone as some may have thought.

Per Self Made Pro, there are plenty of people in AEW who are pushing for Tony Khan's promotion to sign Leon once he becomes available, even if it was previously thought to be a "formality" that he'd be heading to WWE. As for WWE, there is no deal in place as of yet between the Youngest in Charge and the market leader, with there a chance that this becomes an "arms race" of sorts as WWE and AEW battle to get Slater's signature.

Of course, Leon Slater has plenty of previous with WWE already, having made numerous NXT appearances as part of the working relationship with TNA, not to mention he was hand-selected to be a part of the John Cena retirement edition of Saturday Night's Main Event last December, where he teamed with Je'Von Evans in a losing effort against AJ Styles and Dragon Lee.

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More recently, the 21-year-old Slater lost the TNA X Division Title to Cedric Alexander in a fantastic two-out-of-three falls match on last week's iMPACT. Not only is Leon the youngest X Division Champion in company history, but that run saw him equal Austin Aries' record as the longest-reigning X Division Champion, clocking in at an impressive 298 days. For Aries, it was his record-setting run from 2011 into 2012 that saw him memorably introduce 'Option C', where the X Division Champion could cash in his belt for a shot at the TNA World Title.

For Leon Slater, wherever he lands at the end of this current TNA deal - be that WWE, AEW, or even possibly re-signing with TNA - the future is incredibly bright for the hugely talented Brit.

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And if you consider yourself a big TNA fan, why not try our near-impossible TNA quiz below...

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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 a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.