Matt Menard just signed a new five-year deal with AEW that keeps him there until 2030. His old contract was about to run out around All In time in July, but they worked things out before it became a problem. Wrestling reporters started talking about this deal after hearing from people inside the company who knew what was happening.
Matt Menard, who goes by “Daddy Magic,” joined AEW back in 2021, and he’s 41 years old now. Sources inside the company said he was thrilled when they offered him this extension. His fellow wrestlers respect him because he’s professional and works hard every time he’s booked. He doesn’t get pushed as a main event star or headline big shows, but fans still enjoy his matches and segments. People backstage consistently say good things about his attitude and appreciate what he brings to their weekly programming.
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Menard came to AEW with his partner, Angelo Parker, after WWE fired both of them in 2021. They teamed up with Daniel Garcia pretty quickly and then joined Chris Jericho’s group the next year. When that faction broke up, Menard stuck around Garcia and became like an older brother to him. Garcia has said many times that Menard helped him become a better wrestler and taught him how to handle the business side of things.
Menard does different things for AEW now than he used to. He wrestles sometimes, but spends most of his time at the announce table during matches. Garcia’s matches usually have Menard on commentary explaining what happens. This keeps him busy without taking bumps in the ring every week.
AEW has been giving longer contracts to more people recently. Kyle Fletcher and Dustin Rhodes both got new deals, too, which shows Tony Khan wants to keep his roster together. When wrestlers know they have job security, they don’t worry about jumping to other companies for more money.
Menard’s career appeared to be over when WWE let him go. Nobody expected him to become this popular again, but AEW gave him a chance to be himself. The “Daddy Magic” character is way more fun than anything he did in WWE because he can show his personality now.
This deal works out great for everyone involved. AEW gets someone who can wrestle, do commentary, and help train younger guys. Menard gets steady work in a business where jobs disappear fast. He seems happy to stay with AEW instead of job hunting.
