Ricky Starks. Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Popular AEW talent questions lack of TV time

By Adam Taylor | Last updated 5/15/24

Ricky Starks is supposed to be one of AEW's future stars. The charismatic heel was last seen on AEW TV when he faced Darius Martin on Collision. Starks didn't kick out of a pinfall that he was supposed to kick out of, sparking rumors of a potential injury.

Starks has refuted that rumor. He addressed his lack of television time while speaking with "WhatCulture Wrestling" on Wednesday.

“I don’t know," Starks said of his absence from TV. "I would hope so. But I really don’t know… every time I always predict something to go some way, it doesn’t go that way, and it kind of just leaves me being like — well, we’ll just figure out and see...I wish that I was on Dynamite, or I wish I was on Dynasty. I wish I was on these things. But I think at a certain point, just for my own sanity, I can’t go too crazy about it because the proof is in my work and my effort that I’ve constantly given.”

Starks isn't far removed from being an AEW Tag Team champion alongside 'Big Bill.' He has been a core part of Tony Khan's booking over the past 18 months. As such, his absence, if not injury-induced, is perplexing. Nevertheless, the absence isn't anything new or surprising for AEW.

Khan has constructed a bloated roster. There are too many talented wrestlers under contract and there isn't enough TV time to give everybody their shot at cracking the main card for Dynamite or Collision. Starks absence may be due to there not being a storyline for him at present, or because of the recent free-agent additions and he's simply being forced to wait for a spot to open up.

AEW should find a way to get Starks back on their primary programming. He's impressed when given the opportunity and is one of the better roster members on the microphone when cutting promos.

With the "Double Or Nothing" pay-per-view event right around the corner, Starks might need to wait a little longer. Hopefully, he can come back in from the cold and slot into a new storyline while rebuilding some of the momentum he had behind him last year.

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