Tommaso Ciampa Debuts On AEW Dynamite DAYS After WWE Release (WWE News)

Tommaso Ciampa is #AllElite.

by Andrew Pollard
Tommaso Ciampa
AEW

With his time with WWE having recently come to an end, Tommaso Ciampa has wasted no time in becoming #AllElite, making his AEW debut on last night's Dynamite.

The Psycho Killer made a surprise appearance on Dynamite after Mark Briscoe had successfully retained the TNT Title against El Clon. Post-match, Briscoe issued an open challenge for this Saturday's AEW Collision, asking the question of "Who want it?" From there, the lights cut out, a beating heart appeared on the video screen, and Tommaso Ciampa appeared on the stage to a fantastic reaction from the Cedar Park, Texas crowd.

Ciampa made his way to the ring, went face-to-face with Briscoe, but didn't speak. Instead, the former two-time NXT Champion and two-time WWE Tag Team Champion kissed Mark on the cheek before exiting the ring. The match was then made official for Saturday, where it'll be Briscoe vs. Ciampa for Chicken's AEW TNT Title.

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Tony Khan was quick to confirm that this was more than a one-off for Tommaso Ciampa, and that the 40-year-old had formally become #AllElite.

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AEW later posted a digital exclusive on X, where Tommaso cut a brief promo on his arrival in All Elite Wrestling.

For Tommaso Ciampa, last week saw him confirm his WWE exit, with the now-former #DIY man opting against re-signing with the market leader, bringing an end to a ten-year run with the promotion.

Ciampa debuted in NXT in 2015, teaming up with Johnny Gargano as part of the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic. While the pair weren't officially signed at that point, that would change in early 2016, and #DIY - whether as a tag team or as singles acts, as friends or as foes - would become a staple of the famed Black & Gold days of NXT.

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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, 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 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/Saints, Jamie Hayter, 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. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is co-host of the Fearless in Devotion podcast, which won the Club Podcast of the Year gong at the 2024 FSA Awards.