Steve Maclin is finally explaining why he walked away from TNA, and yeah, it sounds like money and creative frustration both played a part.
While speaking on his Boots to Boots podcast, Maclin confirmed that he asked for his TNA release before the company granted it. He said the decision had been building for a while, but he tried to stay professional and give things a chance creatively. Eventually, he felt nothing was changing.
“I did. It was granted. I asked for a week prior before our show and it was something I had been wanting for a while and you know that, but it was just trying to keep calm about it and being professional about it and trying to make things work creatively to see if things can happen and just it wasn’t happening.”
Maclin then got to the real pain point. He said once TNA started cutting dates and affecting his pay, it hit his family directly. That was a major problem for him, especially because he felt he was making TNA his priority while others were getting paid and still working elsewhere.
“Once you hit my pocket and our family, like that’s when when you’re cutting dates on pay that’s where it hurts and it’s just like I can’t do that when other people are getting paid to go work elsewhere while still getting paid by the company whether it’s full payment or not. They’re still doing that and I’m making this company a priority. Why is that not — that’s a problem to me.”
Maclin said being on a per-date deal instead of a salary made the situation even harder to accept. From his side, he was giving everything he had to the company, but the setup did not feel worth it anymore.
“For me as somebody who was on a per-date contract and not on salary was very a tough was a hard pill to swallow for me just because I’m like here I am committing to you and giving you every bit of me going out there and just delivering the best that I can and I felt we did that in the end with me and Mike.”
Even though he clearly had frustrations, Maclin made it clear that Carlos Silva handled the release respectfully. He said Silva tried to make changes, but by that point Maclin had already made up his mind.
“Carlos was nice enough to graciously grant me my release when I asked for it. Tried to make some changes, but just like no, there’s no going back now. It’s like I’ve made this decision and you know how I am.”
Maclin said once he closes the door on something, he moves on. Still, he gave Carlos Silva credit for being straight with him through the process.
“I’m very once I put my foot down and I close a door to something, it’s gone. Like it’s we’re done. Just we’re moving on to the next thing. And I tried to fight for so long. Again, to Carlos, he was so good through the process. We ended on good terms. He was a man of his word too. So it’s like you respect a person for that more than anything.”
Steve Maclin had already confirmed after TNA announced his release that he requested to leave, saying he put his blood, sweat, and tears into the company for five years and was ready to move forward.
“Last week I requested my release from TNA. I put my blood, sweat, and tears into everything I’ve done over the last 5 years and I’ll always be thankful for my time there. But now, it’s time to STACK BODIES. See you soon.”
At the end of the day, Maclin’s exit was not just some random roster cut. He wanted out; he felt creatively stuck, and once his dates and pay were affected, that was the breaking point. Now the former TNA World Champion is moving on, and it sounds like there is no turning back.
What do you think about Steve Maclin’s reason for leaving TNA? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comments below.
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