AEW Signs Lio Rush After Surprise Dynamite Appearance
Former WWE NXT Cruiserweight Champion Lio Rush is #AllElite!
All Elite Wrestling have signed Lio Rush.
The company confirmed as much with the standard Twitter post on Wednesday evening (29 September), doing so after the former WWE NXT Cruiserweight Champion had made a surprise appearance on Dynamite.
Rush cut a quick pretaped promo saying that AEW owner Tony Khan had been on the phone to him constantly. He put himself over as a money-spinning businessman in a clip interspersed with flashy cars and other luxury items, hinting at a new kind of gimmick as he formally comes into the promotion.
Lio's first AEW appearance came at Double Or Nothing 2021, where he was the Joker in that pay-per-view's Casino Battle Royale. An unfortunate shoulder injury suffered while competing in that bout led to Rush declaring he would retire after completing his New Japan Pro Wrestling obligations, however, casting doubt on his wrestling future.
This did nothing to hinder Khan's interest in the 26-year-old. The AEW chief tweeted on 9 September that he still wanted to bring Rush into AEW - and that something may happen in the future. This would be that something, with Lio seemingly no longer focused on retirement.