AEW officials reportedly spoke with Athena and Canadian indie star Jody Threat following their match taped in Toronto last week, which aired on this week’s “Dark: Elevation” episode.
Threat was brought to the AEW TV tapings as a student of the legendary Jacques Rougeau. She received a huge ovation from the crowd, and then she and Athena were a hot topic on social media this week for how their match came off when it aired. Athena worked as the heel for the match as Threat had the local support, but now Fightful Select notes that things got too aggressive in the ring for AEW management.
It was noted how there was a spot where Threat slipped on what her comeback was supposed to be. She was said to be a little lost, so she asked Athena what was next in the match so that they could get back on track. The bout then devolved into more physicality.
Several people were reportedly quick to note that while they’re confident Threat has no problem handling that physicality, that it should not have happened anyway, and the communication should have been clearer.
People close to Athena indicated that each woman was approached by AEW management after the match, to make sure everything was OK. One source close to the situation believed that should have been an opportunity for Athena to lead by example instead of letting the match devolve. Those close to Athena believed that this was the way the match was going to go because of her having to switch to the heel role due to Threat’s babyface reaction.
Word is that Threat herself did not complain about how the match went, and she hasn’t publicly spoke on the match as of this writing, or indicated anything out of the normal. The only thing coming from Threat’s side is that she’s not big on all the attention that emanates from situations like these, and she generally tries to keep her head down to avoid the political side of pro wrestling.
There was no talk of any confrontation or anything like that between the two women after the match. It was reiterated by sources that not everything that is being micro-analyzed on social media was a result of the situation.
Threat previously worked a WWE tryout during SummerSlam Week in 2019, and helped WWE Hall of Famer Trish Stratus prepare for her in-ring return against Charlotte Flair that weekend.
Athena vs. Threat can be seen in the video below, at around the 11:00 mark:
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