AEW Rumor Roundup: Legend leaves Tony Khan's promotion after no-showing major event, Jon Moxley to return to WWE under Stephanie McMahon and Triple H's leadership? (July 29, 2022)
Welcome to another edition of the AEW Rumor Roundup, where we bring you the top rumors from All Elite Wrestling.
A WWE Hall of Famer recently left the Jacksonville-based promotion after the conclusion of a major event, according to reports. Meanwhile, speculation has been rampant about Jon Moxley possibly returning to the global juggernaut after his contract expires, and we have a potential update on that.
We round off today's edition with a report that the wrestling war between WWE and AEW is set to intensify in the coming weeks. So without further ado, let's begin:
#3. WWE legend Tully Blanchard reportedly leaves AEW and ROH
BREAKING NEWS here at #ROH! #TheEmbassy and @PrinceKingNana have acquired Tully Blanchard Enterprises; @BrianCageGMSI and the #GatesOfAgony (@ToaLiona/@TheKaun) are now part of #TheEmbassy!
Watch #ROHZeroHour right now: youtu.be/O0-SUKTEYo0 https://t.co/522uzi9NJo
WWE Hall of Famer Tully Blanchard signed a deal with All Elite Wrestling back in July 2019. Blanchard was moved to Ring of Honor (ROH) after getting fired by FTR as their manager earlier this year. He managed The Gates of Agony and Brian Cage, with the faction named Tully Blanchard Enterprises.
However, Tully Blanchard wasn't seen with the stable at the recently concluded Death Before Dishonor pay-per-view. It was later revealed that Prince Nana had acquired the stable and renamed it The Embassy.
According to reports from Fightful Select, Blanchard has reportedly left AEW and ROH. Sportskeeda Wrestling's Max Everett wrote:
"Reports have since come out that the switch was due to Tully Blanchard's failure to reach the event. It's not clear whether the industry legend deliberately missed travel or if there was some form of confusion surrounding it, but Blanchard's prison ministry group has been given as the reason he wasn't there."
The report further added that the talent and staff in ROH were informed that the 68-year-old was "effectively gone from the company."
#2. Is AEW star Jon Moxley potentially returning to WWE?
youtu.be/RfiVGIuPiTY
.@JonMoxley Retains the #AEW Interim World Championship over @rushtoroblanco | #AEWDynamite #FightForTheFallen
▶️ youtu.be/RfiVGIuPiTY https://t.co/aPt3bLkGSx
Interim AEW World Champion Jon Moxley had a successful eight-year stint with WWE. He left the company after his contract expired in April 2019 and, shortly after, joined Tony Khan's promotion.
Following Vince McMahon's shocking retirement, Stephanie McMahon has been named the co-CEO, and Triple H has been given control over the creative in the global juggernaut. Fightful Select recently reported that multiple former NXT stars claimed they would have re-signed with WWE if The Game was in power before they left.
This has led to speculation that Moxley might be one of the names open to a return to the company in the future. However, Dave Meltzer of WOR seemingly squashed those hopes and said that The Purveyor of Violence leaving the Jacksonville-based promotion for WWE is highly unlikely:
"I saw Moxley’s name, people going like ‘Oh now with Vince [McMahon] gone Moxley will whatever.’ All I will say is, don’t bet on that one. I mean you never say never but that is one,” said Meltzer.
Bryan Alvarez also gave his opinion on the topic:
“He should play the game but he’s told me, on more than one occasion, that he will never read a script unless it’s in a movie or a television show. But if it’s pro wrestling, he’ll never read a script again. He will never recite from a script again," Alvarez said.
With recent reports hinting that Jon Moxley might have signed a new deal with All Elite Wrestling, the chances of his WWE return look slim.
#1. Is the rivalry between WWE and AEW heating up?
Triple H, reportedly, told the talents that he wants an open line of communication and wants work to be fun for everyone.
#WWE #WWERaw #TripleH https://t.co/76nE5fesHo
WWE has reportedly scheduled an NXT premium live event on Peacock on September 4, 2022, according to reports. It just so happens to be on the same day as AEW's own pay-per-view, All Out.
While speaking on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer spoke about WWE's "aggressive" move against All Elite Wrestling:
“With this being his first move, what’s interesting is that, that is a very aggressive move against AEW. I think that the AEW vs. WWE is going to heat up. If it was up to AEW they would both mind their own business and all of that, but that never worked with Vince. Although Vince had kind of stayed away from that. I guess this time with Paul Levesque and Stephanie [McMahon] there and Nick Khan running the show, people thought that they were only going to be interested in running their own stuff, but the bottom line, you were wrong," said Meltzer.
With both shows seemingly taking place on the same day, it will be interesting to see how the two biggest pro wrestling promotions book their events to one-up the other.