7 Wrestlers you'll never see in All Elite Wrestling
As the clock struck midnight in Tokyo Japan on January 1st, 2019, a group of close friends gathered in the frigid night air to make an unprecedented announcement.
The close friends are better known as the Elite -- Cody Rhodes, The Young Bucks, Adam Page, and sometimes Kenny Omega -- and the announcement they made rattled the pro wrestling industry from top to bottom; they were starting their own promotion in the United States.
The big announcement instantly sent ripples through the world of sports entertainment. At least two WWE wrestlers -- Scott Dawson and Dash Wilder -- requested their releases. Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling had to scramble to fill now empty slots on their G1 super show at Madison Square Garden.
And of course, the internet wrestling community erupted into massive bouts of speculation as to which wrestlers would be signed. As the AEW slowly builds up their roster, which includes the legendary Chris Jericho and 'best wrestler in the world' Kenny Omega, it's important to note who will NOT be signing with AEW just as much as who will.
Here are seven wrestlers who you probably won't see in an AEW ring.
#1 Jack Hager
Jack Swagger was identified as a blue chipper upon his arrival in WWE. He was quickly pushed to the main event spot on WWE's short-lived ECW revival, where he defeated Christian for the ECW World Championship.
Swagger quickly outgrew ECW and was brought up to the main roster. However, in spite of winning the WWE World title his career fizzled out and he slid down the card to become a mere gatekeeper for the main event.
Things picked up a bit for him when he was assigned Zeb Coulter as his manager and developed the "We the People" gimmick. Swagger became United States Champion but seemed destined to rise no further than the mid-card.
Swagger grew frustrated and requested his release because he wanted to pursue MMA. He also wrestled for Lucha Underground season three and became their world champion. Because of his successful MMA debut for Bellator and his obligations to Lucha Underground--if they are renewed for another season--it's unlikely Swagger will wind up wrestling for AEW.