Swerve Strickland's former WWE teammate appears to take a shot amid Booker T drama

A former WWE colleague and stablemate of Swerve Strickland seems to have taken aim at the AEW star on social media. The former All Elite World Champion is currently embroiled in controversy regarding his comments about how the sports entertainment juggernaut has treated its black talent, including veteran Booker T.

The New Flavour has been signed with AEW since 2022 and is currently one of the most beloved names in the Tony Khan-led promotion. Strickland, who is poised for a World Title opportunity scheduled for Dynasty 2025, recently appeared in an interview with VladTV, where he spoke about his experiences in WWE, having competed in the promotion from 2019 to 2021 as Isaiah "Swerve" Scott.

During the interview, Strickland addressed the debates on WWE's usage and presentation of black wrestlers, and in particular criticized ex-chairman Vince McMahon for using a racial slur in a 2005 segment featuring John Cena and Booker T. The former AEW World Champion's comments have since provoked a heated response from Booker T himself, who seemingly confronted the 34-year-old about the issue at a recent event.

Now, Swerve's former Hit Row teammate AJ Francis has chimed in on the subject. Taking to X/Twitter, the former Top Dolla posted a photograph of himself shaking hands with the NXT commentator, writing:

"This seems like a good a time as any to post this completely random picture of myself and @BookerT5x [crowned person emoji][bag of money emoji]," posted Francis.

Check out AJ Francis' tweet below:

Francis has recently spoken up against rumors of Hit Row being released in 2021 due to him being a "heat magnet" backstage - rumors that Strickland alluded to in the same interview on VladTV.

---

How did WWE's Booker T respond to AEW's Swerve Strickland?

On a recent episode of his Hall of Fame podcast, WWE veteran Booker T addressed Swerve Strickland's statement on Vince McMahon's controversial use of a racial slur during a television segment involving him. The NXT announcer said:

"You speak on Vince McMahon and him saying the N- word, you want me to be angry black man in the company. You want me to not open doors and make spaces for people like you, that’s what you want me to do. Swerve Strickland, I hope you’re never gonna be in the movies, I hope you’re never gonna be on a movie set because you might hear somebody say the n word and if you’ve got a problem with it, they’re gonna tell your a** tto get the hell out of here, this is a movie, alright? I’m upset because more importantly I’m disappointed in Swerve Strickland because what I told him — I’ll repeat it just like I repeated it to him, you got played," he said. [H/T - Fightful]

Swerve, a former WWE NXT North American Champion, will be looking to regain the AEW World Title this Sunday at AEW Dynasty 2025.