"When I told Vince I was leaving, the one thing I can vividly recall is sitting in his office and he wouldn't look at me. He was looking away, he was talking away. That’s when I realized he was really nervous.
He gave me one offer and I said 'Eh’. He gave me another one and it wasn’t much better than the first. I told him I felt like I deserved better. He gave me a third offer and, honestly, it was better but that’s when I told him NJPW was offering me a match with Kenny Omega in the Tokyo Dome. Two guys from Winnipeg. It was a one in a lifetime thing I couldn’t pass up. He said ‘If you want to do that, go do it.’ I shook his hand and said I’d have to think about it.
I called Vince a few days later. He didn’t answer, his assistant did. That really hurt. He wouldn’t even take my call. Vince, through his intermediaries, said, 'Take the other deal.' I was like, 'Alright, that's all I needed to hear. Thank you.’ So, I took the deal.
The next week he calls me back, we're talking, and he goes, 'Did you the other deal?' I'm like 'Yeah.' He goes, 'What? Can you get out of it?' I'm like, 'No, you already said to take it.' I don't like when people don't call me back, I'm not the god of wrestling but give me a fucking call back. You were my boss for 20 fucking years. I've made you a shit ton of money for you, and I was getting the 'He'll call you back’ treatment?
I am a super chill person, but when it comes to something that I perceive to be disrespectful, I will lock the door behind me. I was like, “I'm done, Vince. I’m gonna take the deal and whatever happens, happens.’ We hung up and I decided I was 100% in."
- Chris Jericho (via AEW Unrestricted)
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