AEW Wanted To Bring In This Ex-WWE Star For A "One-Time Shot"
Tony Khan was interested in giving Japanese wrestling royalty a one-off gig in AEW.
AEW chief Tony Khan was interested in booking Ultimo Dragon for a "one-time shot".
Former WCW man and current agent Sonny Onoo told the 'Perched On The Top Rope' podcast that Khan contacted him about potentially using Dragon at All Elite's Fyter Fest event in 2019 (Onoo couldn't actually remember the show's name, but said it tied in with a gaming convention and that the prospective booking was discussed "before AEW started on the Turner network").
Ultimo was keen, but he had a scheduling conflict with Dragon Gate in his homeland and wasn't about to let anybody down. So, admirably, he stepped away from the gig with AEW and decided to put all his efforts into Dragon Gate's appearances.
Khan respected that.
There's no word from Sonny on exactly who Ultimo would've been working with on the Fyter Fest card though, which is a shame. Fellow Japanese star Cima did wrestle Christopher Daniels in a 10-minute midcard bout, so it's possible Tony could've put Dragon in there as a replacement for the SCU man.
Alternatively, maybe Ultimo would've worked with a major star like Jon Moxley or replaced Laredo Kid in the show's six-man tag (with Lucha Bros) vs. The Elite.