Marko Stunt Says Former WWE Free Agents Changed Dynamic In 'Special' AEW Locker Room

It's been some time now since Marko Stunt was last seen in AEW, having departed the promotion back in 2022, though he returned briefly in 2024 to challenge old Jurassic Express stablemate Jack Perry for the TNT Championship. But despite retiring from wrestling due to injury, Stunt found himself in the news again recently, revealing he had become a cars salesman, airing commercials that played off his past life in wrestling.

As such, Stunt has been making the wrestling media rounds, including taking part in a recent interview with "Busted Open Radio." A big topic was the dynamic of the AEW locker room, with Stunt agreeing with Dave LaGreca's assertion that the comradery was special for the first few years after AEW's launch.

"When AEW first started, I mean, everybody...99% of the locker room were buddies," Stunt said. "I mean, we were all hanging out after the shows, we were all hanging out backstage...there was no discourse in the beginning at all, that I can remember. I mean, you had your little bouts that are normal in life, but I mean...just the atmosphere was so cool to be a part of. Even Tony was just, he was great man. 

"He treated me amazingly...we did that first pandemic taping at the Nightmare Factory, and my grandma had actually just passed away, like the day before I went out there. And Tony helped me out with a bunch of stuff while I was there. I won't go into too much detail or anything, but he was very caring, took care of me. He got me in and out, so I could go back and be with my family for the funeral and everything."

The discussion then turned to the change in the AEW locker room that occurred in the later years, a turn that many believe was for the worst as the promotion continued to add to its roster. Stunt himself agreed with the assessment that AEW lost the bond in the locker room it had in the early years, though he also noted that he couldn't blame AEW owner Tony Khan for making the efforts he did to acquire more talent.

"I do, I do believe that [things changed]," Stunt said " I couldn't pinpoint when it started shifting. But it definitely did change a lot. I mean, we started bringing in more and more people that were leaving WWE, or just big name signings off the independents or from NJPW, which I thought was great. I think it's always good to get the best talent you can. I mean, they claim to be the company where the best wrestle, and I think...I don't think they're lying about that at all. I mean, you can argue the same for WWE though. They've got some incredible talent there....

"But the way that AEW started shifting and bringing in more people, it definitely...it kind of has to change things. You've got to rewrite certain stories, or you've got to rewrite how you're going to go about using certain people and trying to keep your core people involved with the new people coming in. It just changes things. And the headspace kind of drifts off with that, cause there's just a lot more going on."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription