Ricochet AEW Locker Room: Star Defends Backstage Culture

Former Champion Busts Myths About Toxicity Behind The Scenes

AEW star Ricochet defended the AEW locker room atmosphere, shutting down ongoing online rumors of widespread backstage friction and toxic egos.

Speaking in an interview with Zach Heydorn on The Takedown on Sports Illustrated, the former International Champion opened up about his actual experience in the company since arriving in August 2024, comparing the current locker room environment to the camaraderie of his early independent wrestling days.

Independent Wrestling Spirit Drives Current Roster

Addressing perceptions of backstage drama, Ricochet emphasized that the vast majority of talent remains focused on collective success rather than individual politics:

“Honestly, I think it’s kind of bittersweet, but at the same time, like, we have such a good locker room right now. And honestly, since I’ve gotten there in 2024, I think it was like August 2024 when I got there, it’s been awesome. It just reminds me of, like, back in the day on the indies when we would all travel, and everyone was just there to help the show be great.”

While acknowledging that any wrestling roster naturally contains diverse personalities and egos, he estimated that roughly 97% of the roster shares the exact same goal:

“You know, obviously everyone has their egos, everyone has their personalities, everyone has their attitudes, whatever you want to say, but at the end of the day, I think 97% of who we got in our locker room, I think everyone wants to make AEW the best, the biggest that it can be.”

Putting Egos Aside For Narrative And Locker Room Tributes

Ricochet also pushed back against media reports that paint a chaotic picture of the backstage culture, noting that wrestlers regularly sacrifice personal spotlight for the benefit of creative storylines:

“And I think for the most part, most people, and despite what you may hear on the dirt sheets or whatever, for the most part, people put away their egos for the better of the story.”

He highlighted that this unified mindset became especially crucial over the past few months, as the locker room came together during emotionally challenging times to honor individuals who helped build the company’s foundation:

“And I think now, especially these past three months, sometimes we’ve had to put the story aside to kind of show tribute to, you know, those who helped make the locker room so good. But for the most part, yeah, it’s been great, and everyone kind of knows what their job is, and they know, you know, today’s not about me, today is about you. But today is not about you, today is about me. Today’s about the group, or today’s about whatever.”