"People listen to lies" - Current world champion on his talks with AEW falling through

AEW President Tony Khan has brought in plenty of veteran stars from the likes of WWE, IMPACT Wrestling, NJPW, and NWA. However, there have been a few names fans expected to see in the Jacksonville-based promotion who never turned up. One of these is former WWE Superstar and current NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion Ethan Carter III (aka EC3).

EC3 was released from WWE in April 2020 due to the company's COVID-19 budget cuts. He founded the short-lived Control Your Narrative promotion while competing on the independent scene. The 40-year-old signed with Ring of Honor in 2021 but moved on after the company announced its revamp later that year.

ROH was bought by Tony Khan in 2022, and its roster was overhauled, with several former stars returning alongside some of AEW's talent. However, EC3 wasn't among them.

Speaking on a recent edition of The Kurt Angle Show, the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion revealed that he had talked to AEW but thinks that Tony Khan passed on him because he believed the "lies" spread about him on the internet.

"I talked with them a little bit before, but I was signed with Ring of Honor. By that time, the internet tried to cancel me for a bunch of bullsh*t that wasn’t true. I think Tony Khan legitimately thought I was whatever the internet said I was at the time, which is pretty unfortunate considering people listen to lies, and therefore their finances or personal lives are dependent on the opinions of a mob that doesn’t know what they’re talking about," EC3 said. [H/T Fightful]

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EC3 is open to a match against AEW star Bryan Danielson

Despite not being signed by AEW, NWA Worlds Heavyweight Champion EC3 is open to wrestling a match against Bryan Danielson.

Carter and Danielson have a history in WWE. The former made his NXT debut in 2010 with The American Dragon as his mentor. The two squared off only once in a match that Bryan won.

During the aforementioned appearance on The Kurt Angle Show, EC3 was asked if he would like to have a rematch against his former mentor. The 40-year-old responded positively but noted that the small package pin would have to be outlawed.

"I would 100%, as long as the small package is outlawed, because I know a finish. But I worked with Daniel Bryan once, because we did one match against each other on the NXT season 4, and you wrestle good guys, but then you lock up with a guy like that, and you’re just, 'oh, this is how it’s supposed to be' and that just…..just that moment takes you up from this plateau to the next level," he said.

It remains to be seen if EC3 gets signed to AEW in the future.

Would you like to see EC3 and Bryan Danielson wrestle each other once more? Let us know in the comments section below!