During an appearance on a past episode of the Power and Glory podcast, former WWE female referee Rita Chatterton, who alleged that she had been raped in 1986 by Vince McMahon, said that she was under contract with AEW for one year.
She did say exactly when she signed the deal with AEW.
Chatterton said that back in 2021, she agreed to receive the International Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame’s Trailblazer Award. She said that due to her receiving the award led to AEW CEO, President and General Manager Tony Khan contacting her. She added that Khan is a very nice man, and a gentleman.
Chatterton also said that her role per the contract was listed as a talent scout for AEW, but that she never did anything while she was under the one-year deal. She then added that she did attend a couple of Jacksonville Jaguars games and one this past NFL season.
“I turn around and I do this event for [International Pro Wrestling Hall of Fame President Seth Turner]. I get the Trailblazer Award. And, you know, it’s kind of like riding a Harley. It’s in your blood. And it started creeping back into my blood…Well, a few weeks after that, Seth calls me and says, ‘Umm, Rita, there’s this guy that’s trying to get ahold of you. He wants your phone number.’ And I said, ‘Who’s that?’ And he says, ‘Well, his name is Tony Khan.’ [Chatterton responds] ‘Who the hell is Tony Khan? That doesn’t even sound right.’ He says, ‘No, Rita, you should probably take his call.’ And I say, ‘Why do I want to take his call?’ He says, ‘Well, he owns the Jacksonville Jaguars.’ [Chatterton responds] ‘Why the hell would anyone who owns the Jacksonville Jaguars want my phone number?’ He says, ‘Well, he also owns AEW Wrestling.’ [Chatterton responds] ‘Okay, so 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 get thinking about it, I say, ‘Let me call that number back.’ So I call it back, it’s Tony Khan. So Tony 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…“You know what, I was under contract with [Khan] for a year and I did absolutely nothing. I did absolutely nothing [laughs],” Chatterton said. “But he wanted me under contract, so I was under contract with him.”
Chatterton was WWE’s first female referee in the history of the company. She went public in 1992 with rape allegations against Vince McMahon. She and McMahon reached a settlement agreement in December 2022. She didn’t receive the $11.75 million in damages that she had initially sought. The exact amount that was agreed upon for Chatterton to receive has never been made public. McMahon denied the allegation and said he only agreed to the settlement to avoid costly litigation.
The full interview can be watched/listened to below:
Source: F4WOnline