Mariah May Accuses AEW of Holding Her Back to Protect Mercedes Mone

Mariah May isn’t holding back when it comes to AEW’s handling of her promo time—or lack thereof. The reigning AEW Women’s World Champion is calling out the company for keeping her away from live crowds, and she thinks she knows exactly why: they’re afraid she’ll outshine Mercedes Mone.

Speaking on Casual Conversations with The Classic, May addressed her upcoming title defense against Toni Storm at AEW Grand Slam Australia, but her frustration quickly shifted toward AEW’s reluctance to give her in-ring mic time.

“All AEW does is disrespect me and keep me backstage when I’m the best person they have on the mic,” May said. “I’m stuck backstage. So fine, fly me on a 24-hour flight to Australia to gratify a mentally unwell woman. That’s fine. It’s just another win.”

May then doubled down on why she believes AEW won’t let her shine in front of a live audience.

“They don’t want me out there because I’m gonna outshine their golden girl, Mercedes,” she claimed, making it clear that she sees Mercedes Mone as the reason she’s being held back from cutting promos.

Despite her frustrations, May emphasized that she’s still a “company woman” and is doing all the media AEW asks of her. But that doesn’t mean she’s happy about it.

With her title reign nearing 150 days and another successful defense on the horizon, May isn’t planning on staying quiet. But will AEW finally give her the mic, or will they continue keeping her backstage? Only time will tell.