Backstage Update On Why AEW Wrote Wardlow Off Television
An update on Wardlow, who has been away from AEW since losing to Samoa Joe.
Wardlow is currently dealing with an injury, hence why AEW recently made the decision to write him off of television.
Per Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, who reported the above, the former TNT Champion's injury isn't expected to sideline him for a long time. No return timetable was mentioned, however.
Meltzer states specifically that Wardlow's recent angle with Samoa Joe was designed to facilitate his break. Joe beat Wardlow down following his successful TNT Title defence on 28 December, attacking his leg and cutting off his topknot haircut. The injury is why Wardlow hasn't returned for revenge yet.
Joe could end up regaining the TNT Championship by the time Wardlow comes back. Though he dropped the gold to Darby Allin one week after attacking Wardlow, Joe set his targets on Allin on this week's Dynamite, having previously reigned for 46 days.
Wardlow has been with AEW since prior to Dynamite's official TNT launch in October 2019. Effectively a homegrown star, his popularity grew immensely through his long-burning 2022 rivalry with MJF. Though despite booming crowd reactions in most arenas, his creative post-MJF hadn't been universally praised, particularly during his TNT Title run.