Where in the world is Miro?
Technically, the answer to that is Bulgaria, but we might have to hire Carmen San Diego to actually locate him. The former WWE United States and AEW TNT champion hasn’t been seen since the Worlds End pay-per-view last year, defeating Andrade before the luchador departed the Khan-owned organization to return to the WWE.
Fightful Select recently reported that Miro, the former Rusev in WWE, requested his release from All Elite Wrestling. Sean Ross Sapp offered a slew of details around the current status of the Bulgaria star, explaining that he inked a four-year extension with the company in 2022, which would keep him under contract until at least mid-2026. Sapp claimed that Miro has a seven-figure contract, but has worked a total of just 11 matches in the past two years, with seven of those bouts in 2023. A hamstring injury kept him on the shelf for the first half of 2022.
Fightful Select claims that not only is Miro healthy, but he’s been cleared to compete for several months, and is simply being left off television because he can’t agree on a creative direction for a return to Dynamite. There are claims that he made a pitch to work with Jon Moxley at some point, but obviously, that wasn’t agreed upon, which is why he remains at home while still getting paid by Tony Khan.
Granted, this is just my two cents on the situation, and if Miro actually is making seven figures from AEW, he’s definitely smarter than me, but all things considered, is someone of his level of star power worth this type of hassle?
There’s no doubt that Miro had some legitimate gripes about how his career was booked over the years, both in AEW and WWE. By the end of his run in the WWE, he was mocked and made to look like a dork while his former wife was scripted to have an on-screen affair with Bobby Lashley in front of him. In retrospect, it was probably one of those Vince McMahon angles that didn’t entertaining anyone, but him and nobody got over in the process. Lashley’s success in the world title picture afterward certainly had nothing to do with the flat angle with Lana. Again, Rusev was originally presented as a foreign monster and it was well-done. In 2015, he was on an undefeated streak as the US champion and rode to the ring on a tank for a match with John Cena at Wrestlemania. However, his character was more or less completely buried after he was scripted to look like a fool so when he was released during the infamous “budget cuts” in mid-2020, it was probably the only realistic move that could’ve been made since his value to the organization was minimized.
That’s why it was probably the best thing that could’ve happened to his career, because it gave him a chance to reinvent himself or at the very least, put as much distance as possible between himself and the Lashley/Lana storyline. Similar to many others at the time, when he resurfaced as Miro in All Elite Wrestling in September of that year, many fans saw it as an opportunity for him to show that the WWE missed the boat on him. As mentioned, the guy rode a tank to have a match against John Cena at Wrestlemania, he has the ability to be a star and an asset to an organization. For whatever reason, probably because Tony doesn’t stay focused on a solid push for new stars long enough for them to truly become established, Miro was often booked for ironic attempts at comedy rather than a more simplistic approach as a powerful brute. The stuff with Kip Sabian, particularly with the goofy Mickey Mouse t-shirt, did more to hinder than to help Miro’s status in AEW.
Thankfully, in mid-2021 when Miro won the TNT championship under “The Redeemer” moniker, that simple formula was put to use, as it emphasized his strengths without anything to distract from his persona. No, it wasn’t flashy, but it was effective, as it was the best run of his tenure in AEW. Make no mistake about it, under the right circumstances, Miro can go bell-to-bell. Given the popularity that he had with the “Rusev Day” gimmick in the latter stages of his WWE career, at some point or another, he checked all the boxes of what you look for in a marketable star that can provide solid in-ring work. The problem is, none of those boxes were all checked at the same time at any point in his career so the results were sometimes a little underwhelming. For example, the argument could be made that maybe he wasn’t exactly experienced enough when he had that WM bout with Cena, but by the time his in-ring work evolved, he was being used as a secondary character in AEW.
After his last match for AEW at the pay-per-view at the end of last year, there were reports that he was going to take time off to heal from another injury, but according to Sapp, Miro was cleared to get back in the ring several months ago so he continues to get paid to stay home. After his divorce from his real-life wife, CJ Perry, it was reported that Miro legitimately moved back to Bulgaria so it’s difficult to imagine that he has any notion of wrestling full-time unless he plans to relocate again.
The biggest takeaway from all of this might say a lot more about Tony Khan than it does about Miro.
Credit where it’s due, Miro has talent, and it’s not his fault that he was misused as a character, but the bottom line is, the guy is supposedly being paid somewhere around a million dollars and he’s getting to tell his boss that he’d rather not follow the script. Truth be told, until it’s confirmed by a more tenured source, I find it hard to believe that Miro is making seven figures from AEW, but it’s not difficult to see him making a few hundred thousand dollars per year from the company. Even at that number, why is Miro being allowed to stay home to collect the check? Tony can’t make a decision as a boss and say “this is what you’re being paid to do, you’re booked to put over Darby Allin on Wednesday.” for some use of him on television? What message does this send to the rest of the roster if Tony is willing to take no for an answer and then still pay the guy? Don’t get me wrong, if Miro can get that type of cash just to stay home then good for him, but this is another example that Tony wants to be friends with the roster, not a boss.
It’s also an indication of how much money is no object and that All Elite is more of a vanity project than a serious business venture. As the standard disclaimer, yes, Tony is a nice guy that cares about his roster and that’s genuinely a good thing, but that doesn’t mean that he’s qualified to run a national wrestling promotion. What business sense is it to have a million dollar contract on the books for someone that is a healthy scratch from television? Most importantly, there’s literally a zero return on investment of the hefty contract if Miro is allowed to refuse scripts so he’s just kept at home.
At this point, what’s the upside of keeping him under contract? His sporadic appearances don’t provide any momentum, and since he’s rarely on television, he has a very minimal amount of star power. Is the potential use of Miro in the future worth the hassle of dealing with a performer that doesn’t agree to the script unless it’s specifically what he wants to do? Is Tony concerned with the perception of another AEW wrestling returning to WWE? Miro isn’t exactly the same of Cody Rhodes in terms of value to the company. It goes without saying that Tony should chalk this up to a lesson learned and release Miro from his deal because there’s literally no reason to continue to pay him for a contract when he’s not scheduled to wrestle for the organization.
So, where is Miro? He’s on his couch playing video games while Tony Khan sends him a check every week. In the grand scheme of things, Miro making some easy money is moot, but as mentioned, this is another example of Tony Khan not being an effective boss of a pro wrestling company.
What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.
Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
E mail [email protected] | You can follow me on Instagram, Facebook, & Threads @jimlamotta89
