Former AEW Champion Returning VERY Soon… (AEW News)

MJF is expected to make his AEW return soon.

by Andrew Pollard
MJF
AEW

Having been absent from AEW programming for the past two-and-a-half months, MJF could be on the cusp of returning to our screens.

Speaking on the latest edition of Fightful's The Hump, Sean Ross Sapp said MJF is expected to make his AEW return soon, and there's a belief that the Salt of the Earth will be immediately put into a "top program." As for that "soon", SRS speculated that Max could be back as soon as this weekend's Full Gear show.

MJF was last in action at All In back in August, where he was part of a Casino Gauntlet ultimately won by Andrade El Idolo, with El Idolo earning himself a future shot at the AEW World Championship.

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While he's been absent from AEW, MJF has been busy laying down the challenge for NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 21 at the turn of the year, throwing down the gauntlet to face Ryohei Oiwa on January 4th in what's quickly become a stacked NJPW vs. AEW-esque card.

It's been a busy 2026 so far for Maxwell Jacob Friedman, feuding with the likes of Brody King, Adam Page, Darby Allin, Kenny Omega, and Andrade El Idolo, winning the AEW World Title at Worlds End at the close of last year, dropping that belt to Darby in April, winning it back at Double or Nothing the following month, and then losing it to Omega at Beach Break in July.

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Away from the ring, MJF has Violent Night 2 releasing worldwide on December 4th.

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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 and Presenter, 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 day job, his role as 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 and Eli Roth to Kevin Smith and the Russo Brothers, to Kevin Conroy and Frank Miller, to Bret Hart and Sting, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, and Brian Flynn, to many, many more. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.