Popular WWE star finally teases return 274 days after last match
Several WWE Superstars are currently on the injured list and for some, fans are patiently awaiting their returns. A ring veteran has been away for some time but has now finally provided an update on his actual return, and it comes right after his longtime associate was pulled from the road.
The Viking Raiders have been dominating the sport since 2014 after Ivar defeated Erik in the finals of ROH's 2014 Top Prospect Tournament. After finding international success, the tag team formerly known as War Machine signed with World Wrestling Entertainment in January 2018. They came to RAW just over one year later.
Erik has been out of action since October 2023, and he underwent neck fusion surgery the following month. WWE pushed Ivar as a singles competitor while Erik was gone, but he was recently pulled for a "very serious" injury and then underwent spinal surgery in mid-May. He is out indefinitely.
Ivar recently provided an update on his tag team partner, but now Valhalla's husband has checked in himself. The 39-year-old took to X today with a photo that shows him in a ring at the Performance Center. He tagged the company and captioned the post with three motivating words that look to be inspired by the second album released by metal pioneers Meshuggah, a popular band from Sweden that The Viking Raiders are seemingly fond of.
"Destroy. Erase. Improve. @wwe," Erik wrote with the photo below.
Officials have not offered a timeframe for Erik's return, and it remains to be seen if he will receive a singles push as Ivar did. The Vikings are one-time NXT Tag Team Champions and one-time RAW Tag Team Champions, while Erik briefly held the 24/7 Championship.
The Viking Raiders share messages of support while away from WWE
The Viking Raiders are both out of action. Erik is working his way back from neck fusion surgery in November, and Ivar just had spinal surgery. He also is already training for his return.
After Ivar confirmed his injury last month, Erik responded with a message of support to his fellow Viking Raider.
"Love you @Ivar_WWE Neither of us were ever supposed to make it this far. You’ll beat this one too. And the Raid will return with a brand new bad. Viking Strong!!" Erik wrote.
Ivar then responded with a heartfelt message for his longtime friend and tag team partner.
"Love you too @Erik_WWE I will race you back," Ivar wrote.
The Viking Raiders' last match together came on September 11, 2023. They defeated Cedric Alexander and Shelton Benjamin at the pre-RAW Main Event tapings that night, which came one week after their Tornado Tag win over Drew McIntyre and Matt Riddle on RAW.