Highlights

  • Samoa Joe is the new AEW World Champion after defeating MJF at AEW's 2023 PPV, marking a fresh start for the promotion in 2024.
  • There are rumors that MJF may be taking time off from AEW, as his name has been removed from the roster page, suggesting he is no longer under contract.
  • It's possible that MJF's absence from the roster is all a publicity stunt, as promotions have done in the past, and he may have already signed a new deal with AEW.

AEW's 2023 closed with World's End over the weekend. A PPV that felt like a hard refresh in a lot of ways, most notably due to its ending. Samoa Joe, with the help of the now-revealed Devil, defeated MJF for the AEW Title. That means the Samoan Submission Machine kicks off AEW's 2024 as its World Champion, and we may well have seen the last of the former champion in the promotion, at least for the time being.

MJF Removed From The Roster

It was speculated right after MJF's loss that Friedman will likely be taking some time off. The man himself detailed how much pain he's in via a lengthy and heartfelt article published in The Player's Tribune. However, those reports have escalated now the new year has hit. Fans quickly noticed MJF's name has been removed from the AEW roster page, suggesting that the former champ is no longer under contract with the company.

AEW Worlds End Feature
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MJF has been saying for a very long time that his deal expires in 2024. What I didn't realize until today was he meant it expired on January 1, 2024. In hindsight, that makes a lot of sense. Today is the fifth anniversary of AEW, and MJF has been with the promotion since day one. He likely signed a five-year contract and now those five years are up, he may well be taking some time off to weigh up his options.

MJF and Adam Cole

Is It A Work?

There's also the very strong possibility this is all for show, of course. That MJF has already signed a new deal and has committed his future to AEW, but his name has been removed from the roster to get people talking. It certainly wouldn't be the first time a promotion has done that to generate hype. Kevin Owens has "left" WWE in the past and had his name moved to the company's alumni section only to return a month or two later.

It's also been reported before today that WWE would have been interested in signing MJF, but he had already signed a new deal so that wasn't possible. I do think MJF will be a WWE Superstar one day, but I don't think today is that day. Nor do I think that day will be anytime soon. My assumption is he signed a new deal with AEW a while ago, and this has all been done to get fans talking.