AEW talent says WWE was "very interested" in him, claims he was offered a coaching role

An AEW talent has recently gone on to state that WWE was very interested in signing him back in 2016, with the company even willing to offer him a coaching role.

The talent in question is Rocky Romero, who has performed for All Elite Wrestling on many occasions since the working relationship between AEW and New Japan Pro Wrestling was firmly established in 2021.

But there was a time when Rocky Romero could have been a member of the WWE roster. Speaking on the "Under the Ring" podcast, Romero admitted that he was offered a spot in the 2016 Cruiserweight Classic tournament but turned it down.

"So they (WWE) really wanted me for the Cruiserweight Classic and I was in between or about to be in between contracts. I think I was in between contracts and we were renegotiating mine and WWE was very interested. They wanted to offer me the Cruiserweight Classic and then they wanted to offer me a coaching position so I think if they didn’t offer me the coaching position and they just offered me the Cruiserweight Classic then I probably, maybe would have waited a little bit longer to re-sign with New Japan and I would have done that." (H/T POST Wrestling)

However, Rocky's reasoning for turning down the chance to join WWE came from the coaching role the company offered, which gave Rocky the impression that he wouldn't be wrestling as much.

"Them offering me the coaching position made me feel like they didn’t want me to wrestle so that it wasn’t maybe gonna go very far in the Cruiserweight so I decided to not take it and re-sign with New Japan." (H/T POST Wrestling)

Rocky Romero feels rejecting WWE was the right decision looking back on it

Turning down an offer from WWE back in 2016 might have seemed like a very big risk, given how many people the company signed during that period. However, Rocky Romero went on to say that, now, when he looks back on it, he's glad he turned their offer down.

"I feel like the last two years have been some of my best years in the business so, I’m glad that I did not take the coaching deal; now, for sure." (H/T POST Wrestling)

The decision has certainly paid off for Rocky in recent years, with the 40-year-old winning two IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Championships alongside Trent Beretta less than a year after the Cruiserweight Classic took place.

His success has continued to this day, where Rocky is the current NWA World Historic Welterweight Champion, which he won from Volador Jr. earlier this year in January 2023 in a match that ended Volador Jr's reign at a staggering 1631 days.

Do you think Rocky Romero would have done well in the Cruiserweight Classic? Let us know in the comments section below!