Ranking All 15 WWE Debuts & Returns From 2025

11. Aleister Black

Aleister Black Damian Priest
WWE.com

Contrary to the many public reports denying it would ever happen, Aleister Black actually did leave AEW and return to WWE in 2025 after four-plus years.

A wrestler who reportedly went to great lengths to avoid taking the pinfall in matches while he was All Elite, Black seems comparatively to be all too happy to look up at the lights in WWE. Black has lost more televised bouts than he’s won, though two of those losses came in multi-man matches and two others were disqualifications.

Disregarding his in-ring record, Aleister has spent his return year feuding with Damian Priest and losing two United States Championship matches while cutting his typical meandering promos that really don’t mean anything, but fans can’t resist the challenge of trying to find some deep understanding.

At least Black is alongside his wife, Zelina Vega, as an act. If he’s happy, great for him. And let’s face it: Aleister always has had that breakout potential in WWE, so who’s to say that he doesn’t catch fire a bit in 2026?

Advertisement
Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.