Could Chris Jericho leave AEW?
It’s quite possible that the first AEW World Champion may be gone from the promotion very soon. Reports about Jericho possibly leaving started when it was discovered that Jericho liked a post about his contract length and that he’s open to returning to WWE.
It was further confirmed by Dave Meltzer that there's been a lot of talk about Jericho potentially jumping ship. The reports go on to state that WWE seems interested in bringing back the man that beat The Rock and Stone Cold on the same night. Citing that there’s some speculation about the 2026 Royal Rumble.
Chris Jericho entertaining the possibility of going back to WWE is hardly surprising. The former AEW World Champion ever stated during a video appearance at The Horror, Rock & Wrestle Fest in the United Kingdom that he would definitely consider returning to the promotion.
“I would have considered a return to WWE before things have changed. You’d be crazy not to consider it. Once again, there are two teams you can play on — which is amazing, and it’s one of the reasons why I wanted to take a chance and go to AEW in the first place. It was a real gamble. There was no guarantee AEW was gonna make it... but I thought if I can go there and we can make it into something where now there’s competition, there’s options not just for the fans, but for the guys and girls as well. So it worked, it’s the best time for wrestling since the Monday Night Wars, Attitude Era. Great for the fans, great for the talent, more money being made than ever before for everybody.
“So, yeah, of course I would consider going back there [WWE]. I would consider not going back there, too. It just depends on what the situation is, and what’s kind of going on with me. But we’ll see. Never say — it’s not even never say never, it’s consider all your options and choose wisely.”
But there’s been some conflicting reports since.
Fightful shot back and stated that Chris Jericho’s name has NOT been brought in the creative process. The report did say that if Chris Jericho had been discussed then it would’ve been internally.
“WWE sources spoken to said that Chris Jericho’s name hasn’t come up whatsoever around the creative process, so if conversations have happened regarding him internally, it wasn’t in that department.
There are certainly talent who have been speculating about his potential return, and higher ups say that Jericho remains on good terms with WWE.
One source in the company called the situation far too early to tell, because WWE doesn’t seem sure what Jericho’s status will be in the coming months.”
That doesn't mean Jericho won’t return, but the situation isn’t as clear cut as it seems. Interestingly enough, the WWE Vault just uploaded two matches involving Chris Jericho; his 2005 Summerslam WWE Championship match against John Cena and a match between him and Roman Reigns.
The past couple of years haven’t been particularly well received for Jericho. It’s been noticeable that he’s slowed down immensely and there was some serious criticism over his Learning Tree before he disappeared in February. There’s no word on when Chris Jericho could make his return to AEW television. Heck, there’s no word on IF he’ll make his return to AEW television. There were plans for him to feud with Big Bill, but there’s no guarantee that it will still happen. It should be interesting to see what happens in the next couple of months.