Previously known as Sasha Banks in the WWE, Mercedes Mone shook things up in the AEW women’s division since joining the company earlier this year. Although she debuted in March before making an in-ring debut in late May, the signing between AEW and the top talent was reportedly done in either early 2024 or late 2023 before rumors broke out that she was heading back to WWE.
There was a point when reports claimed that Mercedes Mone was probably going to feature in the 2024 Women’s Royal Rumble match and probably win it to go back to the main event picture. However, that wasn’t the case, and going by some recent revelations, it appeared that WWE was not very keen on bringing her back either given the prior experiences.
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During a recent edition of the Behind The Turnbuckle podcast, former WWE employee Tommy Carlucci and ex-interim RAW General Manager Jonathan Coachman addressed Mercedes Mone’s not-so-good backstage reputation in the then Vince McMahon-owned promotion. Carlucci disclosed that he never thought the former WWE Star was a universally loved figure but rather she was “difficult to work with,”
“I don’t think she’s [Mercedes Mone] great at all. So, I never thought she was this whole bag of chips that everybody thought she was here [in WWE] as Sasha Banks. And she was difficult to work with, too.”
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Mercedes Mone wasn’t on the same level as Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair?
Coachman also remembered his last few days in the WWE while Mercedes Mone was still there, multiple years ago. He also claimed that the current top AEW female star has a backstage reputation. Given that belief, he was surprised that her asking contract price was so high as she was never on the same level as Becky Lynch or Charlotte Flair.
“There are certain superstars that, over the years, act a certain way backstage, and they get a certain reputation, and they can’t get rid of that. And Sasha [Mercedes Mone] had that,” Coachman disclosed.
“So, when you heard some of those numbers that she was asking for, you know, WWE or AEW, I was blown away that either side was even entertaining a deal the magnitude of what she reportedly got, because I agree with you, she’s never been the star that Becky [Lynch] is, that Charlotte [Flair] is, or that Rhea [Ripley] is.”
On one of the most notorious occasions in the WWE, Mercedes Mone walked out of the WWE in May 2022, alongside Naomi at a time when they were the reigning women’s tag team champions. Her departure during a live episode of Raw was reportedly due to creative frustrations and concerns about her position in the women’s division.
