Examining WWE-to-AEW Jumps: Part 1

Wrestling Twitter was once again abuzz after speculation ran rampant that WWE SUPERSTAR Johnny Gargano had removed mention of WWE from his Twitter bio, potentially hinting at his exit from the company. According to False Finish HQ, however, Gargano did not have WWE in his Twitter bio and remains listed on their internal roster; nonetheless, AEW Sickos debated the merits of Gargano potentially joining All Elite Wrestling (a debate that has been occurring on and off throughout the past several years). 

The discourse turned to AEW president Tony Khan and his alleged affinity for the "Black & Gold" era of NXT - or for his desire to further "WWE-ify" a product that's supposed to serve as an alternative. It reminded me of an old thread I started on the F4W Board, where I tracked all of the ex-WWE talent who became #AllElite. It's a thread that hasn't been updated in quite some time, but it kept coming back to me throughout the day. 

So, I've decided to revive the spirit of that thread and bring it to my blog, baby. We're going to examine every single WWE-to-AEW signee in the company's 7-year history; specifically:

• How were they booked in WWE before they left for AEW?
• The merits of their signing/what was their initial appeal to Khan?
• Their contributions to AEW
• Their status following their AEW exits, if applicable 

This is just part one of the series, and I'm sure I'll tweak the above criteria after reading your feedback. Let's start from the very beginning:

Before the Beginning

"Guys that've been with you since the beginning. Before the beginning." - Silvio Manfred Dante to Tony Soprano 

Note: I will not go in depth on Cody Rhodes, one of the founding fathers of AEW; instead, we will take a deep dive into his eventual jump back to WWE following the conclusion of this series.

PAC

• Departed WWE: August 2018
• Debuted in AEW: January 2019
• Current Status: Still contracted to AEW

Status before joining AEW - "The Man Who Gravity Forgot" was in the depths of hell. He debuted in NXT all the way back in 2012 under a new ring name: Adrian Neville. I believe today's youth would consider this a massive aura downgrade in nomenclature. Still, Neville had a strong run with the NXT Championship and was a legitimate treat to watch during the infancy of the "Black & Gold" era of NXT. 

Neville debuted on the WWE main roster in 2015, but not without controversy. McMahon, often credited as an occasional creative genius, took one look at Neville and thought, "Mighty Mouse." Neville would be one of the smallest competitors on the main roster but still incredibly well built with proven strength...and the man rocked some big lobes, something McMahon was never going to overlook. Neville reportedly nearly walked out of the company after being shown the concept art and overall gimmick pitch, so they scrapped the plans. He's downplayed the connection to the literal cartoon character, but check out this fucking concept:

He looks like Chris O'Donnell Robin

Credit: Reddit Thread

Yeesh.

Creative ultimately kept one aspect of the proposed "Mighty Mouse" persona: he infamously came out with a fucking superhero cape wrapped around his insanely brolic neck. Oh, and they added 'Adrian' to their bizarrely long list of Abandoned First Names. I cannot imagine ever caring about someone's already generic-ass ring name, man; but then again, I'm not considered a creative genius. 

Neville predictably had an underwhelming stint on the main roster. He captured the Cruiserweight Championship, and it was a reign with solid yet soulless bouts. It certainly wasn't Neville's fault or his opponents', but rather the glacial, overly safe WWE in-ring style. 

He entered a contract dispute after walking out before an October 2017 Monday Night RAW, after learning he was booked to face and lose to Enzo Amore. I could not imagine a wrestler of Neville's caliber being told, "You're losing on our flagship show to your polar opposite." 

WWE denied Neville had left the company, but he was clearly being kept off television for a reason. In November of that year, WWE claimed to have had positive conversations with Neville about a return, but ultimately froze his contract in January of 2018. Neville would not secure his release until 8 months later. 

Neville was as dead as his first name. 

PAC would return to Dragongate for a nice little run before surprisingly appearing at AEW's inaugural press conference, declaring himself as All Elite. 

AEW Run: It's hard to think of anyone who fit the WWE style less than PAC -- and who belonged in AEW as much. AEW had an immediate opportunity to show the wrestling world it could book someone of PAC's caliber far better than WWE, and it ultimately did. 

There are stretches where PAC is off television. He's endured numerous visa issues, retreated home to England for a much-deserved respite, or has unfortunately suffered a serious injury. It's hard to overstate how awesome PAC is whenever he's on AEW television, though. He has a bad-ass look, is still jacked as fuck, and still a delight to watch wrestle. He's currently with the Death Riders and just competed in Arena Mexico, one of the greatest moments of his entire career according to AEW colleague Tony Schiavone.

Should Khan have signed him? Absolutely, because PAC was ultimately a casualty of a wrestling landscape where AEW did not exist. His options in the United States were limited. His AEW tenure ultimately showcased his truly awesome in-ring work, and he's genuinely missed whenever he's off television. 

This was not a "Fed rehabilitation project" but rather the restoration of "The Man Who Gravity Forgot." 

Verdict: a no-brainer of a signing then and now. 

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Chris Jericho

• Departed WWE: Spring of 2017
• Debuted in AEW: January 2019
• Current Status: Still contracted to AEW
• 
  

Status before joining AEW - Jericho had it with Vince McMahon. 

The former "Y2J" had yet again won over the WWE audience by incorporating "The List of Jericho" into his reinvented persona. You remember the "You just made The List!" schtick, right? What a time to be alive. Jericho would eventually find himself aligned with beloved WWE Superstar Kevin Owens, who'd go on to capture the WWE Universal Championship. 

Jericho and Owens' alliance would come to an end during the memorable "Festival of Friendship" segment on Monday Night RAW. Owens would present Jericho with the List of KO, and it contained only one name: Jericho. CINEMA AND STORYTELLING. This should have been the start of a vicious, personal blood feud with the Universal Championship as the ultimate prize during the main event of WrestleMania 33 and, according to Jericho, that was exactly what was planned. 

McMahon, however, had other ideas.

Brock Lesnar (mentioned over 40 times in the Janel Grant lawsuit) wanted to have a re-match with Goldberg following his shockingly quick defeat at Survivor Series, only this time with one of WWE's World titles on the line. Goldberg would defeat Owens for the Universal Championship at Fastlane. 

Worse, the epic confrontation between Owens and Jericho wouldn't just be removed from the Mania 33 main event - they'd be placed second on the card. They followed AJ Styles vs. Shane McMahon and were preceded by a women's fatal four-way featuring Nia Jax, a real-life couples mixed tag between John Cena & Nikki Bella vs. The Miz & Maryse, and a women's six-pack challenge won by Naomi and featured Carmella and James Ellsworth as two other combatants. 

McMahon inexplicitly told Owens their Mania 33 bout was the very worst WrestleMania match of all time immediately following the match. I mean, we all know that's an entirely ridiculous statement to make, but that's McMahon for you. An asshole through and through.  

All of this led to Jericho's departure. 

He would make his decades-long return to New Japan Pro Wrestling by challenging its top gaijin, Kenny Omega, to a match for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship at the upcoming Wrestle Kingdom 12. This was billed as "The Alpha vs. The Omega" and marked Jericho's first match outside a WWE ring in nearly 20 years. Jericho would be awarded his first 5-star match from Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter in a losing effort to Omega. 

Jericho would go on to capture the IWGP Intercontinental Championship after defeating Tetsuya Naito, and would go on to have memorable contests against the top New Japan stars such as Kazuchika Okada and Hiroshi Tanahashi. He'd also develop his "Painmaker" persona during this time. 

AEW run - Jericho made a surprise appearance during the inaugural All In event, the first independently produced pro wrestling pay-per-view that ultimately catalyzed AEW's birth; in fact, he appeared at the inaugural AEW press conference just four months later, revealing he had signed exclusively with the company. 

It's almost impossible to discount Jericho's initial contributions during AEW's infancy. He was the inaugural AEW World Heavyweight Champion, led the Inner Circle faction, and participated in the first Stadium Stampede and Anarchy in the Arena matches, amongst others. We can certainly argue against Khan bringing him back earlier this year, but that's another topic. Remember, the man was the certified Demo God. 

It was one of the first examples of Khan taking an established main event player, one who left WWE with a massive chip on his shoulder, and pushing him very strongly from the start. It was taking and using a legendary veteran who still had plenty left in the tank, while McMahon failed to see the importance of a Jericho/Owens feud ending in a main event for one of their world titles. 

The more vicious Sickos argued for Jericho's sacking after he stopped proving to be a Demo God, and it's an argument with merit. Jericho is now in his 50s and was clearly struggling to reinvent himself after the end of The Jericho Appreciation Society, another important faction in AEW's relatively short history. He is often accused of leeching onto talent who have managed to get over on their own, an accusation I've found to be overblown. 

Verdict: a no-brainer of a signing. You lived with some of Jericho's worst instincts, but it's impossible to argue his importance to the beginning days of AEW. They needed him, and he usually delivered, much to the chagrin of some of my AEW brethren. 

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Dustin Rhodes

• Departed WWE: March 2019
• Debuted in AEW: April 2019
• Current Status: Still contracted to AEW

Status before joining AEW - Rhodes was nearing the end of his third WWE stint - and, ultimately, the end of the Goldust persona. Rhodes had portrayed the Bizare One on and off for decades, and it had devolved into a stale, "comedic" lower-card act. Goldust teamed with his brother Cody, who would develop an alter ego of his own in Stardust. What the fuck am I typing, man? A key point of contention was WWE's refusal to let the Rhodes Brothers clash after the team broke up. 

Goldust would then team with R-Truth, forming The Golden Truth tag team. Listen, go and take a look at some of the tag teams on the roster during this time. It's unbelievably bleak. The team eventually fizzled out, and Rhodes was found doing a whole lot of nothing, plus the Codester had asked for and secured his release. 

AEW Run - Dustin would follow suit. He asked and was granted his WWE release on March 28, 2019. It was then revealed via AEW's Road to Double or Nothing that AEW EVP Cody Rhodes would finally face his brother: "The Natural" Dustin Rhodes. Needless to say, their match at Double or Nothing is considered one of the greatest matches in AEW history and one of the better matches in modern American wrestling history.

This would ultimately be Dustin's peak in AEW, particularly following his brother's exit from the company. He has sworn off a WWE return and considers the Goldust persona dead and buried, something any sane-minded person is grateful for. His role is that of the experienced veteran on Ring of Honor television, one who's a bit long in the tooth but can still work a damn good match. He teamed with Sammy Guevara and the Von Erichs as The Sons of Texas, capturing the ROH Six-Man and World Tag Team Championships. 

Rhodes would win the AEW TNT Championship at All In 2025 in his home state of Texas, a decision that made some Sickos, well, sick to their stomachs. Rhodes would ultimately drop the title to Kyle Fletcher and is currently recovering from double knee surgery that has kept him out of action for well over a year.

 

Verdict: It's tough to argue against the brutality of his match vs. Cody. It was a story both were desperate to tell during their time in WWE, yet its climax occurred inside an AEW ring. Rhodes was brought in to fulfill a specific role: the veteran who can still work a good match, someone who could pass on his knowledge to the next generation of talent. I know his TNT Championship win rubbed some Sickos the wrong way, but I had a difficult time getting worked up over it. Harmless run.

At the end of the day, it allowed Rhodes to kill the Goldust persona and revive "The Natural" once again, something that's pretty awesome in my book. 

Part II will be coming soon. We'll focus on those who jumped from WWE to AEW during the beginning years of Dynamite. Get ready to talk Jake Hager, buddies.