Rita Chatterton Claims She Was Under AEW Contract for a Year and 'Did Absolutely Nothing'

In the summer of 2022, allegations of sexual assault made by former WWE referee Rita Chatterton against WWE/WWF owner Vince McMahon resurfaced in a New York Magazine article. Early in 2023, WSJ.com reported that Vince McMahon had reached a settlement with Chatterton in relation to the claims.

During an appearance on the Power & Glory podcast, Chatterton shared the unexpected turn of events that brought her into contact with AEW President Tony Khan. After receiving the prestigious Trailblazer award from the International Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame, Chatterton explained how the encounter unfolded.

“My dreams ended a long time ago. I once dreamt of being in the WWF Hall of Fame. That never happened. Okay. I’m in this (International Pro Wrestling) Hall of Fame now but anyway, I turn around and I do this event for him (Seth Turner), I get the Trailblazer award and then, you know, it’s kind of like riding a Harley because it’s in your blood and it started creeping back into my blood and I’m like, ehh. So, a few weeks after that, Seth calls me and says, ‘Rita, there’s this guy — he’s trying to get a hold of you. He wants your phone number,’ and I said, ‘Really? Who’s that?’ He says, ‘Well, his name is Tony Khan.’ ‘Who the hell is Tony Khan? That doesn’t even sound right.’ He says, ‘No, Rita.’ He says, ‘You should probably take his call’ and I said, ‘Why do I wanna take his call?’ He says, ‘Well, he owns the Jacksonville Jaguars.’ ‘Well, why the hell would anyone who owns the Jacksonville Jaguars want my phone number?’ He says, ‘Well, he also owns AEW Wrestling.’ Okay. Okay. I said, ‘Give him my phone number.’ So he gives him my number and I don’t hear anything and a couple of weeks later, I get this phone call and I look and I don’t know the number. Then I’m thinking about, I said, ‘Let me call that number back.’ So I call it back, it’s Tony Khan. So Tony Khan and I had a nice, long talk and I was under contract with him for a year. Very nice man. Gentleman. Very, very nice man, and that’s how I ended up getting back involved in wrestling. So, it was just a crazy story.

You know what? I was under contract with him for a year and I did absolutely nothing. I did absolutely nothing (she laughed), and he wanted me under contract so I was under contract with him…”

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— Ben Kerin Feb 12, 2025 01:30PM