Carlos Silva Explains Why TNA Pulled Talent From Matches Involving AEW Stars

Carlos Silva is finally addressing the controversy surrounding TNA pulling talent from matches involving MJF and other AEW stars, and he’s not dodging the criticism.

The situation blew up earlier this month after MJF’s planned indie match with Nic Nemeth was scrapped, along with other crossover bouts like Ricochet vs. Leon Slater. MJF publicly blasted Silva and TNA, accusing them of hurting talent financially by blocking those appearances. Now, Silva has responded.

While speaking on Busted Open Radio, Silva admitted these calls are not easy and said he understands the criticism that comes with the job. But he made it clear that, as TNA’s decision-maker, he sometimes has to take the hit publicly if he believes the move protects the company.

“It was super tough. All these business decisions are tough—I don’t like being called a little bitch on social media any more than anyone does, and it’s never… but it’s okay, you take the good with the bad. You’ve got to make some hard decisions. My job sometimes is to make hard decisions, and for the fans, for all of you, and for—you know, Mike—our locker room, we’re going to make decisions that are good for TNA.”

Silva then explained that TNA isn’t operating in a vacuum. He pointed to other companies making moves against them, including scheduling conflicts and venue issues, and said TNA has to defend itself instead of letting those situations slide.

“And we’ve got to protect TNA. As you know, Kevin Plank at Under Armour used to say, ‘You’ve got to protect this house.’ And it’s a real slogan. We’ve had some other folks come at us—they’ve moved into our nights, they’ve made some decisions, they’ve tried to block us in arenas and venues. That stuff’s real, and it’s out there. And it’s okay, because everyone’s got to make decisions for their business.”

When it came to the specific pulled matches involving Nic Nemeth, Leon Slater, and others, Silva said TNA tried to handle the fallout as best it could. Still, he didn’t pass the blame around, he said the final decision was his.

“But we’re also not just going to lie down and not make decisions that are good for our business. And unfortunately, sometimes those decisions are tough. We’re very thoughtful about them, and we try to do the best we can when we have to make those decisions. In the case of Nic, Leon, and a few of the matches that had to get shut down, we tried to make good and make calls and take care of the business as best we could. Yes, it was my decision—yeah, I take full ownership. Look, I’ve got a great team and we talk about these things together, but sometimes I’m the guy that has to make that decision. Then you move on, you go to work the next day, work hard again, and get stuff done.”

Silva may not have calmed everyone down with that answer, but he did make one thing clear: TNA is choosing protection over goodwill right now. MJF turned the issue into a public fight, Silva owned the decision, and now the bigger question is whether this becomes a one-off business dispute or the start of a much colder stretch between TNA and AEW-linked talent.

Do you think Carlos Silva made the right call by protecting TNA’s business, or should wrestlers have been allowed to work those crossover matches? Sound off in the comments.

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