Road Dogg admits he "dropped the ball" with former WWE couple
A former WWE writer has admitted to "dropping the ball" with a current AEW star's storyline. While missed opportunities in professional wrestling are parred for the course, this Hall of Famer says that if he could turn back time, he would redo this storyline.
Miro (fka Rusev) joined AEW in 2020 after a turbulent spell in the world's largest wrestling promotion. Although his "Rusev Day" act alongside Aiden English was extremely over with the fans, WWE was hesitant to pull the trigger and give these stars the push they warranted.
We really deserved a WWE title run during the Rusev Day era... https://t.co/l4OsY4Y7bk
The act eventually fizzled when Lana (CJ Perry) reunited with her husband, resulting in English turning Rusev. Road Dogg Brian James was the lead writer of SmackDown at the time. Speaking on his Oh...You Didn't Know podcast, he expressed how he wishes things would have turned out differently:
“It's one of the things that I don't want to say regret, but when the conversation comes up about Rusev and Lana, I feel like they slipped between my fingers," James said. [H/T: Wrestling Inc.]
He continued:
"I dropped that ball. I liked Aiden English with them, too. That's one of the things that, if I could go back and do it differently, I would try to."
Miro was released from his WWE contract in April 2020, while Lana would continue with the promotion until June 2021.
Miro's career after WWE
Although his time in the Stamford-based promotion left a lot to be desired, Rusev was at least being granted plenty of TV time. That's more than what can be said for his latest spell in AEW.
The Bulgarian Brute's tenure under Tony Khan's roof got off to a slow start as he was paired with Kip Sabian. However, he would eventually break away and go on a solo run which saw him capture the TNT Championship.
Exclusive: There’s been zero change in #Miro’s #AEW status.
He continues to be under contract with the company for at least a few more years, but right now, is simply just not being used on television in any capacity. https://t.co/ln0vkwZMIa
However, The Redeemer has since disappeared from TV. He last competed in a trios match in September last year and only performed four times throughout 2022. The latest reports indicate that The Redeemer is healthy and ready to go. So, hopefully, it is only a matter of time before Miro returns.