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Adam Cole made his legitimately surprising return to AEW Dynamite last week. Tony Khan recently said that fans have no idea what Cole went through.
It’s tough to pull off surprises in modern wrestling, but Adam Cole shocked the All Elite Wrestling audience with his return on the January 11 episode of Dynamite. Nearly everyone on the roster, including the announce team, had been in the dark about this segment. It was listed as “TBD” on the pre-show rundowns, and when Excalibur exclaimed that it was a surprise even to them, that was the truth. Adam Cole played the crowd for a few minutes, feigning a retirement speech before putting the entire AEW locker room on notice. It was the biggest (and most pleasant) surprise of the show, and fans went ballistic when his music hit.
To hear Tony Khan tell it, the road between Forbidden Door and that pop was long and arduous. Cole suffered a concussion at that pay-per-view on June 26 and wasn’t seen on AEW television until last week. AEW’s owner and co-founder appeared on the In The Kliq podcast and shared the following about Adam Cole’s recovery. “It’s a really inspirational story, and people don’t even know the half of it yet. I’m excited for people to find out more about what Adam Cole has been through.” Khan also shared that it’s a “dream come true” having Adam Cole on the roster and also stressed that the wrestler dealt with a “very challenging recovery.” (h/t to Fightful.com for the transcription)
Adam Cole’s Comeback Is A Big Boost For AEW
When Adam Cole was injured at Forbidden Door, he was mired in a somewhat confusing feud with The Young Bucks alongside Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish. Since then, The Young Bucks have won, been stripped of, and again won the World Trios Championships alongside Kenny Omega. Meanwhile, Fish has left AEW, burning bridges on the way out. O’Reilly recently underwent neck fusion surgery, and it’s unclear when he’ll be able to wrestle again. CM Punk’s future with All Elite Wrestling is also very much up in the air, and it looks as if FTR will rest and recover throughout the remainder of their AEW contracts.
That’s a lot of shuffling at or near the top of the card. As such, Adam Cole’s return is coming at a fantastic time for the company. While AEW is home to some of the best professional wrestlers on the planet, the federation is somewhat short on bankable draws and household names. Cole never made an impact on WWE’s main roster, but he’s still a well-traveled veteran who fans have been following since his CZW and ROH days.
Cole had been positioned as a heel before his injury, but that seemed like more of a way for The Young Bucks to turn face and avoid wrestling FTR again. If Tony Khan is correct, and Adam Cole’s recovery was as grueling as it sounds, then AEW would be wise to turn this into a babyface comeback angle for the 33-year-old. Fans were delighted to see him on Dynamite last week, and All Elite Wrestling needs to find a way to capture that lightning in the bottle as they move forward with Cole’s push.
Sources: In The Kliq, Fightful.com
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