Tony Khan Denies Reports That He And AEW Had Wrestler Pulled From AAW Homecoming 2026

There appears to be some confusion regarding Mance Warner’s status for an independent wrestling event this weekend.

On Friday, AAW Wrestling announced that Warner had been pulled from their “Homecoming” event scheduled for Friday night in Merrionette Park, Illinois, claiming the decision came at AEW’s request.

“Mance Warner will unfortunately NOT be appearing at AAW Homecoming per AEW’s request,” the promotion wrote via X. “We are immediately restructuring the show accordingly and will announce updates as soon as possible.”

The announcement quickly sparked discussion online, especially given Warner’s recent appearances in AEW and ROH programming.

Not long after AAW’s statement was released, AEW President Tony Khan publicly disputed the claim and stated that nobody in AEW had requested Warner be removed from the show.

“That’s the first that I’ve heard of this, and it’s the first time anyone in AEW’s office has heard of it. He is welcome to do your show,” Khan wrote.

As of now, AAW has not issued any additional clarification regarding the situation or whether Warner could still end up appearing at the event.

That’s the first that I’ve heard of this, and it’s the first time anyone in AEW’s office has heard of it.
He is welcome to do your show.

— Tony Khan (@TonyKhan) May 22, 2026