Folks, Speedball Mike Bailey’s AEW arrival has been confirmed, but it turns out his journey to getting #AllElite wasn’t just a matter of signing a contract and showing up—it was a full-blown paperwork nightmare.
According to Fightful Select, Bailey wrapped up with TNA all the way back in October, which sparked a bidding war between AEW and WWE. But instead of immediately jumping ship, he got stuck in everyone’s favorite pro wrestling obstacle: visa issues. That’s right—while fans were wondering why Bailey hadn’t popped up yet, he was probably stuck refreshing government websites and yelling at his internet connection like the rest of us.
Bailey’s AEW signing was handled through an agent, because nothing says “big free agent” like having a middleman do the talking. His contract officially expired at the end of 2024, but due to the visa holdup, AEW has been forced to play the waiting game. This explains why Collision aired a hype video without an actual debut date—because legally, Bailey is in “Coming Soon (Pending Paperwork)” mode.
While Bailey waits for his green light, he’s not the only former TNA star making moves. Jordynne Grace has already landed in WWE, jumping from a Royal Rumble surprise to NXT regular. Unlike Bailey, her visa went through in record time, because apparently some wrestlers have better luck with bureaucracy than others.
For now, fans can only speculate when Bailey will finally appear in AEW. But rest assured—when he does, expect high-speed kicks, high-flying chaos, and hopefully, a long rant about government processing delays.