'WWE World Champion' Mercedes Mone To Present At Award Show Ahead Of Reported AEW Debut

Last year, the worlds of pro wrestling and anime collided at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards, when WWE star Zelina Vega served as a guest presenter. Now, the worlds are set to collide again, with one of the biggest free agents in pro wrestling set to follow in Vega's footsteps.

In a press release unveiled earlier today, Crunchyroll announced the list of celebrity appearances for the Anime Awards, including wrestling star Mercedes Mone. Described as both a "wrestling legend" and "WWE World Champion," despite no longer being associated with WWE, Mone, under her real name Mercedes Varnado, joins Dallas Cowboys star, actress Liza Soberano, film directors Phil Lord & Chris Miller, and countless others who will be present at the awards on March 2 in Tokyo, Japan.

Mone's appearance at the awards confirms previous reports that she was expected to be in Japan over the next month, before her return to wrestling in March. It is unknown if Mone will be making any wrestling-related appearances in Japan, where she worked dates last year for both New Japan Pro Wrestling and Stardom.

The Crunchyroll Anime Awards should kick off an important month for Mone, as rumors swirl that the former Sasha Banks is set to join AEW. Mone reportedly signed a deal with the promotion back in January, after talks between her and WWE stalled in late December, and it's believed she will debut for the promotion at "AEW Dynamite: Big Business" on March 13, taking place in Mone's hometown of Boston, Massachusetts. Thus far, neither AEW nor Mone have commented on her joining the promotion.