Did THIS Legend Just Retire On AEW Collision?

This legend of the game seemed to call time on their career on AEW Collision.

by Andrew Pollard
Billy Gunn AEW
AEW

With another episode of AEW Collision now in the bag, it appears that Billy Gunn has decided to hang up his boots and call time on a career which dates back to 1989.

On Collision, Gunn and the Acclaimed were unsuccessful in their attempt to dethrone House of Black for the AEW Trios Titles. It was Daddy Ass himself who took the pinfall here, with Malakai Black putting the former Mr. Ass away after hitting the Black Mass.

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Post-match, Black and Buddy Murphy were seen sharing a few words with Billy, and the one-time Intercontinental Champion then took off his boots and left them in the ring before heading up the ramp. Of course, a wrestler leaving their boots in the squared circle has historically been seen as them formally announcing their in-ring retirement.

If this is indeed the end of the line for Billy Gunn, it's been a heck of a ride for the 59-year-old. Across a career which has spanned five decades, Gunn has had major success in WWE, in the then-TNA, and more recently in AEW, where he's served as a wrestler and as a coach.

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It remains to be seen whether this really is it for Billy's days of stepping between the ropes, but his sons Austin and Colten - who kayfabe have been at odds with their father - have already taken to Twitter to throw praise in the WWE Hall of Famer's direction.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.