- Sasha Banks held ten different titles in ten years with the WWE
- Banks spent time in NJPW and World Wonder Ring Stardom before joining AEW
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WWE legend Sasha Banks made her move to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) official under her new in-ring name Mercedes Moné.
After much speculation, Moné made her first appearance for the promotion on Wednesday at the Big Business edition of AEW Dynamite in her hometown of Boston.
Moné arrived at TD Garden in a Mercedes-Maybach to tease her arrival before opening the show to huge applause from the audience. The show started with her new walkout music as the jumbotron showed “CEO” and changed to “Mercedes Moné” before she went for a walk.
“Boston, I’m home,” Moné said in the ring. “If you can feel my heart right now, it’s beating out of my chest.
‘Thank you for having my back these past two years. Thank you for giving me the courage and strength to be here. Thank you for sticking with me through all my lows, all my highs, all my milestones, all my titles, all my moments – the moments that make history – thank you.”
Ex-WWE star Sasha Banks made her AEW debut as Mercedes Moné on Wednesday night
Before joining AEW, Moné became a ten-time champion in ten years under the WWE banner
During her breaks, Moné received “CEO” and “welcome home” chants. Additionally, she got her first taste of action in the AEW ring later in the program.
After Willow Nightengale defeated Riho to end the night, TBS titleholder Julia Hart and Skye Blue attacked her in the ring. Moné then came to her rescue by knocking out Blue in the aisle before taking Hart out.
Moné and Nightengale looked at each other before the latter raised her savior’s hand in victory.
Before joining AEW, Moné had a legendary stint with the WWE under her Sasha Banks ring name from 2012 to 2022. During her tenure with Vince McMahon’s company, she held the NXT Women’s Title, the Raw Women’s Title five times, the Smackdown Women’s Title, and the Women’s Tag Title three times.
Moné made her promotional debut in front of a home audience at TD Garden in Boston
Moné left the WWE on rough terms after a creative dispute with McMahon. In a statement from the WWE, they claimed that Moné and Naomi “walked into the office of WWE Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis with their briefcases in hand, placed their tag team championship belts on his desk and walked out.”
It was later reported that failed compensation negotiations led to Moné leaving the WWE for good.
She later debuted her name Mercedes Moné in January 2023 during an appearance on New Japan Pro Wrestling. Moné also appeared for NJPW’s sister promotion, World Wonder Ring Stardom, before making her highly anticipated AEW debut.
