Over the course of its five-year history, All Elite Wrestling (AEW) hasn’t fired many employees.
But it appears that the pro wrestling promotion has severed ties with one of its announcers, with Pro Wrestling Torch reporting that AEW has fired Kevin Kelly.
Kelly’s firing appears to come as the result of a series of social media posts he made last weekend questioning why he isn’t used more prominently on AEW programming. Additionally, the former WWE and New Japan Pro Wrestling commentator accused colleague Ian Riccaboni of sabotaging his career and committing libel against him by criticizing his promotion of the film Sound of Freedom.
After a user on X (formerly Twitter) wrote to Kelly that he enjoyed his commentary style with New Japan Pro Wrestling, the 56-year-old replied, “I do the same thing in AEW because it’s critical to explain the why,” before adding: “But the idea of what I bring to the table is lost there because Ian libeled me. So I sit on the bench, valued by my peers, waiting to get my number called… I keep asking why but get pushed aside. It’s ok because there is no one better than me. Ask the ones that know and they’ll tell you.”
Asked by another user to elaborate on his belief that Riccaboni libeled him, Kelly responded: “When you go out of your way to intentionally mischaracterize my raising awareness of the global horrors of child trafficking to a fringe conspiracy theory that everyone knows is bullshit in order to hurt my career and standing in the industry, that at the very least is libelous.”
But the idea of what I bring to the table is lost there because Ian libeled me. So I sit on the bench, valued by my peers, waiting to get my number called.
— Kevin Kelly (@realkevinkelly) March 2, 2024
When you go out of your way to intentionally mischaracterize my raising awareness of the global horrors of child trafficking to a fringe conspiracy theory that everyone knows is bullshit in order to hurt my career and standing in the industry, that at the very least is libelous
— Kevin Kelly (@realkevinkelly) March 2, 2024
AEW initially hired Kelly to be its lead commentator on AEW Collision, the weekly Saturday TV show that launched last summer. In October, Tony Schiavone took over as the show’s lead announcer, joining Kelly and Nigel McGuinness to form a three-man booth.
Kelly reportedly wasn’t present during the taping of Collision on Thursday. He has also been removed from AEW’s online roster page.
AEW didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter from Awful Announcing.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.