The Monday Night Contract Tease
Yesterday's Raw threw a massive piece of bait into the water. A segment cryptically billed in early run sheets as "Contract Time" had the timeline buzzing before the broadcast even started. As PWInsider's live report noted, WWE leaving things intentionally vague is rarely a formatting accident.
Chief Content Officer Paul Levesque knows exactly how the internet wrestling community operates. He understands the mechanics of modern hype. You do not tease a mystery contract segment four days out from Backlash unless you are finalizing a major television angle or introducing a highly anticipated new piece to the board.
The prevailing rumour, picking up serious traction overnight and dominating wrestling forums, points to a major free agent acquisition finally putting pen to paper. The name refusing to go away is Ricky Starks.
If you have followed Starks' trajectory over the last three years, this feels less like a surprise and more like an absolute inevitability. He has been the most obvious flight risk in All Elite Wrestling since Cody Rhodes made the jump back in 2022. Now, with the May 2026 roster taking shape, the timing finally aligns for a change of scenery.
The AEW Trajectory and the Frustrations
Starks' time in AEW is a masterclass in start-and-stop booking. He had moments where he felt like the most important young star in the company. The strap match against Bryan Danielson at All Out 2023 remains a career highlight. He took Danielson to the absolute limit in Chicago, bleeding buckets and proving he could hang in a violent, main-event style brawl.
But for every Danielson match, there were months of aimless drifting. His early run with Team Taz established his charisma, but he often played second fiddle to Brian Cage or Powerhouse Hobbs. His face turn and subsequent feud with Hobbs had flashes of brilliance, yet the blow-off match was rushed and immediately forgotten.
Then came the summer of 2023. His feud with CM Punk on Collision was supposed to be his launching pad. He beat Punk clean in the finals of the Owen Hart Foundation tournament. He turned heel, aligned with Big Bill, and started cutting the best promos of his career.
That should have made him a permanent fixture at the top of the card. Instead, Punk's abrupt exit from the company following the Wembley incident left Starks holding the bag. He was forced to feud with an imaginary opponent for weeks before being hastily repackaged into a tag team.
The tag team run with Big Bill was fun, and winning the AEW World Tag Team Championship gave him some hardware. They eventually dropped the belts to Sting and Darby Allin, and Starks quietly faded into the background.
It is fair to be critical of Starks here, too. While AEW's front office did him no favours with inconsistent television time, Starks sometimes struggled to adapt when storylines broke down. His promos, usually his sharpest tool, occasionally devolved into aimless shouting when he lacked a clear, defined target. He is a wrestler who needs rigid structure. He needs a defined narrative to thrive, and when left to his own devices in a chaotic booking environment, he can lose the plot.
In 2021, Starks suffered a fractured neck taking a German suplex from Hangman Page. Many thought his career was over before it truly began. Instead, he returned to the ring months later without losing a step, proving a physical toughness that impressed veterans across the industry. That resilience is a currency that spends well in Levesque’s locker room.
The NXT Question and Why WWE Fits
That need for rigid formatting is exactly why WWE makes sense right now. The Levesque era of WWE is built on long-term, meticulously planned television. You know where you are going three months in advance. For a guy like Starks, who thrives when he has a clear character arc to sink his teeth into, that environment is highly beneficial.
Look at how WWE has handled recent acquisitions like Ethan Page or Lexis King. They do not just throw you on television and hope you figure it out. They mask your weaknesses and highlight your strengths. Page went straight to NXT and thrived. The question for Starks is whether he bypasses NXT entirely.
Given his age and his national television experience, sending Starks to NXT would be a mistake. He doesn't need his in-ring work refined in Orlando. He is already incredibly crisp between the ropes. He throws a beautiful, explosive spear and his Roshambo finisher is highly protected. What he needs is the main roster production machine behind his presentation.
There is also the undeniable influence of the WWE locker room. Cody Rhodes was Starks' first major feud in AEW. Starks answered the TNT Championship open challenge in 2020, and Rhodes personally pushed for him to get a contract. With Rhodes currently holding the WWE Championship and heading into another massive summer following WrestleMania 41, bringing in one of his original AEW projects makes perfect sense.
Furthermore, CM Punk is now a major backstage influence in WWE. Punk explicitly wanted to work with Starks on Collision. Having two top guys who believe in you is a massive political advantage.
Beyond the ring, Starks is a highly marketable asset. His merchandise consistently moved well in AEW, even during periods when he was barely featured on Dynamite. He has an undeniable aesthetic—the suits, the swagger, the unteachable coolness that translates directly to a casual television audience. WWE excels at monetizing that exact profile. They can put him on promotional posters, send him to morning talk shows, and rely on him to carry himself like a star outside the arena.
Creative Direction Potential on Raw or SmackDown
If Starks debuts, where does he slot in? The main event scene on SmackDown is currently tied up with Rhodes and the Bloodline remnants. Raw has a bit more breathing room, especially following the recent draft shake-ups.
You could easily slot Starks into the midcard title picture immediately. A program with Sami Zayn or Bron Breakker over the Intercontinental Championship would be a fantastic introduction. Breakker operates at an absurd speed. Starks is fantastic at bumping and selling for bigger, explosive guys—look at his matches with Wardlow or Powerhouse Hobbs for proof. Starks bumping wildly for Breakker's spears before trying to outsmart him is an easy, compelling television feud.
Alternatively, you pair him with someone established who can go blow-for-blow on the microphone. A feud with LA Knight would burn the house down. Both guys borrow heavily from the late-90s attitude era playbook. Both guys have immense natural charisma and a massive chip on their shoulder. Putting them in a ring with live microphones for ten minutes a week would be guaranteed television gold.
The biggest risk is that he simply gets lost in the shuffle. WWE's roster is incredibly deep right now. Getting consistent television time is not guaranteed, even for big-name signings. If he debuts and immediately loses a midcard feud, the narrative that he should have stayed in AEW or gone to Japan will write itself instantly.
Probability Assessment and Reality Check
How likely is this deal? The smoke has been billowing out of this fire for over a year. Starks has been absent from AEW television for incredibly long stretches. His contract status has been the subject of intense speculation, with most tier-one reporters indicating his original deal was coming up in early 2026.
When you factor in the "Contract Time" tease on Monday's Raw, the probability spikes significantly. WWE rarely does mystery contract signings for routine, internal roster moves anymore. They save those spots for debuts, massive returns, or highly anticipated call-ups.
I would put the probability of Ricky Starks showing up in WWE within the next month at an 85% certainty. The fit is simply too obvious, the backstage connections are too strong, and his AEW run has clearly reached its natural conclusion. It is a change of scenery that benefits both the performer and the promotion.
Expected Timeline
If he is indeed the subject of the Raw tease, a debut could happen as early as next Monday. WWE Backlash is this Saturday, May 9, 2026. Backlash is traditionally a show heavily focused on in-ring action and the direct fallout from WrestleMania 41, rather than a stage for surprise debuts.
However, the Raw immediately following Backlash is a prime television spot. It kicks off the build to the King of the Ring and the summer premium live events. Debuting Starks on May 11, setting him up for a program heading into Money in the Bank, is textbook WWE pacing.
Fans should keep their expectations somewhat measured. He is not walking in to face Cody Rhodes on day one. But as a high-upside signing who can immediately inject life and attitude into the upper midcard, this is exactly the kind of move WWE should be making right now. The Monday night "Contract Time" segment might just be the opening bell of the Starks era.
