Malakai Black Addresses AEW Departure Rumors

Malakai Black and Adam Cole faced each other on the November 6, 2024, episode of AEW Dynamite with a post-match moment that raised eyebrows.

Highlights from the match can be seen below this news story, with Cole and Black sharing an embrace after the Cole’s victory.

This, and Cole’s post-match promo in which he put over Black led to some people wondering if this was a ‘sendoff’ for the House of Black leader, with rumors abound regarding him exiting AEW and returning to WWE.

In an update shortly after Dynamite it was reported that there had been no official confirmation that Black was WWE bound, with his AEW contract running until either late 2024 or early 2025, albeit with potential extension clauses that could add additional time.

There was also speculation from fans that Black could be injured or potentially even retiring following the match.

In response to all the noise Black has issued a statement via his Instagram story (see below), saying:

“Here we are once more, one match down and again everybody is ‘Oh he’s retiring’. ‘He’s retiring because of his injuries’. This and that.

“I’m not injured, neither am I retiring, or am I leaving. I feel this happens every match I have and I don’t understand how many times you’re gonna say these things, then them not happen and people will still fall for that.

“I haven’t been injured in more than three years, and I’m referring to my back injury of course and I only posted about that after it had already been done, and if you would have read the post you would have seen that and not what other people have written about it.

“I’m fine. I’ve been fine for the longest time. I would really appreciate it if that stuff stops man. If I’m retiring you’re going to hear it from me, and not after Adam just cuts a promo just as a thank you for the match, because that’s all that it was, so thank you.”

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Black made his AEW debut in July 2021 with it later being stated by Tony Khan that he had signed for “almost five years”.

Per the previous report, it was noted that the five years included optional years with it not known, at the time of writing, whether AEW had activated that option.

Black has previously stated that he requested his release from AEW but that wasn’t granted back in 2022.

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