AEW star gives an unfortunate update on Wardlow amid absence
An AEW star has provided an important update on former TNT Champion Wardlow. The star in question is Matt Taven.
Wardlow's AEW run has been filled with a lot of disappointment, as he was believed to be the next big star of Tony Khan's promotion. Mr. Mayhem broke out as a singles star after turning on MJF and managed to capture the TNT Title three times.
After facing some questionable booking decisions following his TNT Championship run, Wardlow joined the Undisputed Kingdom (Adam Cole, Matt Taven, Mike Bennett, and Roderick Strong). However, he has been absent from television since Dynamite: Big Business in March 2024.
In a recent appearance on the Stick to Wrestling podcast, Matt Taven revealed that Wardlow has been out of action due to a knee injury. However, Taven did not reveal the timeline of his stablemate's return, adding that Mr. Mayhem was currently looking for ''the best kind of treatment plan.''
"Wardlow’s out with a knee injury, and as a guy with plenty of knee injuries in the past, they can be tricky. You start to think they’re one thing, and then you think they’re another, and then you think, 'Oh, I can get away with doing this or that,' and it seems to be more serious so, I think he’s just trying to figure out exactly what the best kind of treatment plan is to get him back on track with that knee," he said. [H/T: PostWrestling]
Ryback wants to see AEW star Wardlow join WWE
Wardlow has been one of the most underutilized stars in All Elite Wrestling. Mr. Mayhem's creative direction has been disappointing.
Meanwhile, in an edition of his Ryback TV podcast, The Big Guy expressed his desire to see Wardlow perform in WWE, adding that the Jacksonville-based promotion squandered the former TNT Champion's momentum.
"I hope he [Wardlow] gets an opportunity to go to WWE and have a good run because I think it can really really be good for him if he does. If he's not going to be used properly in AEW. I don't know what happened with that, and I will forever say that might be the biggest mess up there so far for whatever reason. However, it happened with how over he was. He had momentum, and they literally threw it away," he added. (From 01:01:40 to 01:02:19)
We will have to wait and see if Tony Khan decides to pull the trigger on Wardlow if the latter returns to AEW television later this year.