Backstage Update On Ace Steel's AEW Status

Ace Steel has reportedly been released from his AEW contract according to a report from Dave Meltzer in the latest "Wrestling Observer Radio," with his time coming to an end at the start of this week. 

Steel was involved in the backstage altercation that took place following CM Punk's post-AEW All Out media scrum on September 5, which saw Punk, The Young Bucks, and Kenny Omega getting into a physical situation that led to all of them being taken off television as they were also stripped of their respective championships. According to reports, Steel bit Omega during this, with the former AEW World Champion having been seen in public with a bite mark on his arm following this.

Since that point, Tony Khan has refused to make a public comment on the situation due to the fact there is an ongoing investigation into the incident to determine exactly what happened. 

Steel had initially joined the company in 2022, and was working behind the scenes as a producer. During the build to Punk's All Out match against Jon Moxley, he did appear on-screen as AEW tapped into his legitimate friendship with the former AEW World Champion. He encouraged Punk to take up Moxley's open challenge and ended up being a big part of the build for that match.

This is the first big piece of information that has come out about those involved in the altercation, and there is still no word on what the future holds for the four wrestlers. Punk is currently injured, but he and The Elite were referenced for the first time on television since All Out during "AEW Dynamite" this week. Punk was shown in a clip featuring former ROH World Champions, while The Elite were mentioned during the AEW World Trios Championship match.