"Jokes on you" - former champion dismisses grave warning he received at time of AEW departure

AEW had several high-profile departures in the last few years, some of which were more controversial than others. A veteran star left the company following a personal issue with a longtime partner and has begun a new era of his career. The star recently revealed a troubling message he received on his way out of All Elite Wrestling.

Mike Santana and Angel Ortiz began teaming up as Proud and Powerful in 2012. They went on to hold tag team gold in many promotions, including TNA Wrestling, CZW, and HOG. All Elite Wrestling signed Santana and Ortiz in 2019, but reports of real-life tension surfaced during the former's year-plus injury hiatus. He returned in August 2023, but the longtime partners split up that month. Then, Santana won a No DQ match on Rampage before leaving the company in March 2024.

The Nasty Assassin returned to TNA Wrestling shortly after leaving Tony Khan's company and has been pushed ever since. He defeated Josh Alexander in an "I Quit" match at the Genesis pay-per-view this past Sunday night. Santana took to X/Twitter today to reveal a troubling warning he was given during his AEW departure and dismissed the idea with photos of Saturday's crowd inside Curtis Culwell Center in Garland, TX.

"True story. When I got my release, someone told me to 'Say goodbye to wrestling in packed arenas…' I legit laughed it off and said WATCH ME! Jokes on you papi. [face with hand over mouth emoji] [winking face emoji] #TNA," Mike Santana wrote with the photos below.

Santana's last All Elite match was on October 25, 2023, at the Rampage tapings. That night, he defeated longtime partner Ortiz in a 10-minute No DQ match, one month after beating Bronson on the Grand Slam Rampage.

Updated lineup for AEW Dynamite

This Wednesday's AEW Dynamite will air live from Knoxville Coliseum in Knoxville, TN, with fallout from Maximum Carnage. Below is the updated lineup:

• Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega will face-off
• Cope vs. PAC
• Julia Hart vs. Jamie Hayter
• World Tag Team Championship Match: Private Party (c) vs. The Hurt Syndicate
• Samoa Joe vs. Nick Wayne

Dynamite will feature the first-ever Joe vs. Wayne and Cope vs. PAC singles bouts. Julia Hart vs. Jamie Hayter is a rematch of Hart's recent comeback win.