Tully Blanchard Confirms Real Reason Behind AEW Firing

Tully Blanchard joined AEW in 2019, initially managing Shawn Spears during his rivalry with Cody Rhodes. He later remained aligned with Spears and became a key member of The Pinnacle faction. Although Blanchard is no longer with AEW, he continues to be questioned about his time in the company. Recently, Blanchard revealed the reason behind his firing.

Tully Blanchard’s time with FTR lasted until 2021 when, in a storyline twist, FTR “fired” him. Following this, Blanchard transitioned to Ring of Honor, where he established Tully Blanchard Enterprises. In a subsequent storyline, Blanchard “sold” the faction to Prince Nana, who then rebranded it as The Embassy, marking another shift in Blanchard’s wrestling journey.

In January 2022, Blanchard confirmed that he had departed from AEW, describing the situation as complex. While speaking on The Tully Vision, Tully Blanchard stated he had a difference in how he approached wrestling compared to the company’s methods.

Having come from an era where matches were often improvised based on crowd reactions, Blanchard found that this clashed with AEW’s more structured style. Despite the differences, he appreciated his time working with top talent and being featured on television. Ultimately, he revealed that missing a show led to his release from the company.

”I never had to lay anything out, Arn didn’t, Flair didn’t. It was all ”Okay we’re gonna play it by ear depending on what the audience does” and that’s the way that I always did stuff and it was like oil and water with the guys at AEW because that’s not the way they were trained and not the way they did stuff, but it all worked out good and I got on TV for a while. Was on with some very great talent and was thrilled to do that and then….you miss a show, you get fired.”

As for Tully Blanchard now, he recently made an appearance at the Bad Blood Premium Live Event with Arn Anderson and several other WWE legends. Blanchard will always be grateful for his time in AEW but it’s unlikely he will ever return to the company again.

Please credit Ringside News if you use the above transcript in your publication.