Bayley doesn’t appear to be going anywhere anytime soon, but Jim Ross made clear on his podcast exactly how he’d feel if she ever hit the open market.
Asked on Grilling JR about the reports surrounding Bayley’s WWE contract status and whether he’d want to see her in AEW, Ross didn’t hesitate. He genuinely would, believing she’d be a strong addition to AEW’s growing women’s division.
Oh, hell yeah. Yeah, really I do. She would add to the women’s, the ever-growing women’s division in AEW.
Ross argued Bayley’s value would extend beyond her in-ring work, framing her as the kind of veteran presence who could mentor and lead some of AEW’s younger women.
He also used her as an example of how much wrestling’s standards for female talent have shifted, recalling how Vince McMahon once instructed him to find “athletic tens” back when Trish Stratus became the company’s benchmark for that look.
Bayley could help. You know, a veteran. She could answer questions that some of these young ladies might not have the answers to. She could be a leader, which is very, what I’m trying to say, which is very important. And she’s still a hell of a hand. She’s still a hell of a hand.”
“I remember when McMahon said, ‘I want, J.R., I want you to go out and hire me some athletic tens.’ And if you look up the definition of athletic ten, then you see Trish Stratus, and I hired her, and that kind of set the bar.
Ross said Bayley’s career proves that in-ring ability and wrestling skill matter more than fitting an old-school physical mold, crediting Tony Khan with building a much deeper women’s division in AEW over time and predicting Khan would be genuinely interested if Bayley ever became available.
The catch is that nothing suggests Bayley is actually heading toward free agency. Her contract situation briefly caused confusion after some reports claimed she’d signed a new WWE deal following her September 7 Raw return, but PWInsider has since reported no new contract was actually signed and that she still has considerable time left on her existing one.
Bayley is also already back on WWE programming full-time, having resumed her feud with Lyra Valkyria immediately upon returning.
