Colt Cabana says his current role in AEW has allowed him to remain involved in professional wrestling while shifting more of his focus to working behind the scenes. The longtime veteran has been with AEW since 2020 and was initially featured regularly on television during the early days of the company alongside The Dark Order. In recent years, however, Cabana’s presence has shifted away from weekly television appearances as he has taken on additional responsibilities backstage. The Latest Update on Cabana’s role has become part of ongoing AEW News discussions about how veteran wrestlers transition into coaching and production roles.
Speaking during an appearance on the “What Happened When?” podcast, Cabana explained that his career has gradually moved toward mentoring and producing segments rather than performing in the ring on a full-time basis. “It’s a wild experience, but I love it.” Cabana pointed out that his time in AEW has largely centered around supporting the roster from behind the curtain since joining the company shortly before the pandemic era began. “I started in ’99, and I signed with AEW in 2020, at the start of it, right before the Pandemic, and since then, you know, I’ve been more of a producer, a coach, backstage.”
Cabana also acknowledged that while he has moved deeper into coaching duties, he has no plans to formally step away from wrestling. The veteran indicated that his in-ring appearances may simply become less frequent over time. “I don’t think I’ll ever retire.” He added that the realities of getting older have influenced how he approaches the physical side of the profession. “Slowly and surely I’m just becoming older and bigger… If I could just lose these 20 pounds, I’d be back, baby.”
Looking back on his earlier career, Cabana compared his current experience with the short run he had in WWE during the late 2000s. “I did a couple of years with WWE, and so it’s just like, now is what I would’ve wanted that experience to be in 2008 or 2009 when I was on SmackDown.” From an industry perspective, Cabana’s role reflects a broader pattern across AEW and WWE News where veteran performers transition into backstage positions while continuing to appear occasionally on screen. That structure allows promotions to retain experienced talent who can contribute to creative development, mentoring, and production while maintaining a connection to the in-ring side of the business.
