Some new details have emerged on why Chris Jericho was rumored to be returning to WWE and why he returned to AEW on Wednesday night.
For months, rumors and reports have been swirling that the wrestling legend’s tenure in AEW was coming to an end, and that he would likely be heading back to the company that made him a household name, WWE. However, this past week, things changed as he remained on AEW’s roster page and filed a trademark for the term “Cornerstone”. A potential moniker that would seem to be a better fit in All Elite Wrestling.
This led to speculation that he would indeed remain at the company he signed with in 2019. The rumors became reality when Jericho made his grand return to AEW Dynamite on Wednesday in the city where he grew up, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
On Thursday morning, fans of both companies got some new information as to why the 55-year-old may have opted to go back to AEW instead of returning to WWE.
Is Chris Jericho still close to retirement?

“I know I was told so [WWE] “They wanted to take him on a retirement tour,” reported Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer. “And maybe he didn’t want to, but I don’t know… With AEW, maybe he was going to have more longevity.” There are a lot of benefits for AEW and there is always money.
“AEW is a little riskier in that sense… He’ll probably have more input than he does in WWE about what he’s going to do in AEW, but I think he’ll have a better audience in WWE. Better audience, that’s definitely part of the deal, but money is part of the deal.”
Meltzer said that after recent speculation that Jericho could return at WrestleMania 42, a source informed him that he will be in Winnipeg this week for Dynamite. When he then reached out to a WWE source, he revealed that initially it seemed like he would return, but as of this week, it is no longer in the cards.
If WWE had been firm about doing a retirement tour, possibly for a year, it could have been a deal breaker as he just feels like he’s not ready to hang up his boots yet. And AEW is probably more willing to let him wrestle because he’s close to 60 years old.
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