On the debut episode of AEW: Collision, Luchasaurus, with Christian Cage, defeated Wardlow for the AEW TNT Championship. It was the end of Wardlow’s third reign with the title, and in the weeks since, he has been noticeably absent from AEW TV. Eerily, the same thing happened after the end of his first title reign at the hands of Samoa Joe. At the time, it was reported that Wardlow was dealing with an injury, but the same cannot be said for his current absence.
As it stands, there does not seem to be a clear reason why Wardlow has been off AEW TV, whether it be due to injury, lack of creative, or otherwise. At a comic-con panel last month, he noted that he has been depressed after being off TV for months. Things may be changing, however, as Wardlow took to social media earlier today to tease his return.
“Looks like I’m gonna have to play dad when I return, and teach this entire place about respect,” he wrote.
There are many ways to interpret what Wardlow means by “play dad” when he returns. Wardlow is sometimes referred to as WarDaddy, so it could just be a general tease regarding his return. There’s also a chance he is slyly addressing some of the backstage turmoil that has taken place in his time away from television. Of course, CM Punk was just terminated from the company after a backstage altercation with Jack Perry at AEW: All In London that seems to be rooted in their lack of respect for each other.
Another big man recently took to social media with an offer to keep order in the AEW locker room, former UFC Heavyweight Champion Josh Barnett.
“Just a thought: Seems like the AEW locker room is in need of someone to establish some order and reign in the chaos,” he wrote on X. “If Tony needs someone to keep discipline and sort out conflict, I’d be willing to take the job. I can promise you there won’t be random fights and anyone asking me if I’d like to, ‘Take it outside.'”