Kemo
10-08-2021, 02:58 PM
All Elite Wrestling talent Lio Rush is opening up about what led to him announce his retirement from pro wrestling earlier this year.
Rush appeared on Excuse Me: The Vickie Guerrero Show to discuss his road from WWE‘s NXT brand to AEW. During their discussion, Rush shared that AEW President Tony Khan offered him a contract after his debut at AEW Double or Nothing on May 9th. Unfortunately, he sustained separated AC joint that night. The injury, coupled with personal and financial issues, led him to consider leaving pro wrestling entirely.
“… I was doing a lot of stuff with New Japan. I just finished up with MLW and Triple-A. It was a lot,” Rush admitted. “I was also going through a lot of personal things during that time too. Part of that was financial because of the huge hit that me and my family took with being released from WWE and trying to find consistent work without being under contract.”
The WWE released Rush in April of 2020. After being released by WWE, Rush also contemplated retiring from pro wrestling. However, he wrestled for independent promotions and focused on his music career for the remainder of 2020. Rush caught the attention of MLW this year and made his debut on January 6th.
Rush defeated Myron Reed for the MLW Middleweight Championship in his MLW debut. The following month, he defeated Laredo Kid to win the AAA Cruiserweight Championship. He also made appearances for New Japan Pro Wrestling during this time. His work in MLW and NJPW helped Rush gain the attention of wrestling fans and AEW
Rush made his debut as the Joker in the Casino Battle Royal at Double or Nothing. His performance at Double or Nothing earned Rush a contract offer. However, he abruptly announced his retirement after thinking about how his career was affecting his family life.
The time-off from wrestling helped Rush focus on his music career to help with his family finances. It also helped Rush spend more time with his family.
“…For me, I never really got that opportunity to be the dad that I’ve always wanted to be because I kind of got pushed in the wrestling world, like pretty quickly,” said Rush. He continued, “That was around the time I had my first son, and then when I had my second son, I was with the WWE. So I definitely wasn’t at home as I wanted to be. Again, with being released from WWE and having to work during the pandemic, now I have to work twice as hard, twice as much to try to make up for the money that I need to make for me and my family.” He planned to retire after finishing the remaining dates with NJPW once he recovered from his injury.
Rush was able to avoid surgery with stem cell treatment. On August 2nd, Rush announced that he could compete again. He made his return to NJPW at NJPW Resurgence on August 15th. Since NJPW Resurgence, Rush has made appearances on several NJPW events.
On September 29th, Rush made his return to AEW on AEW Dynamite. The following week, he appeared on AEW Dynamite, offering advice to Dante Martin. It’s unclear when Rush signed a contract with AEW. However, Rush seems to be giving his pro wrestling career another chance.
Rush appeared on Excuse Me: The Vickie Guerrero Show to discuss his road from WWE‘s NXT brand to AEW. During their discussion, Rush shared that AEW President Tony Khan offered him a contract after his debut at AEW Double or Nothing on May 9th. Unfortunately, he sustained separated AC joint that night. The injury, coupled with personal and financial issues, led him to consider leaving pro wrestling entirely.
“… I was doing a lot of stuff with New Japan. I just finished up with MLW and Triple-A. It was a lot,” Rush admitted. “I was also going through a lot of personal things during that time too. Part of that was financial because of the huge hit that me and my family took with being released from WWE and trying to find consistent work without being under contract.”
The WWE released Rush in April of 2020. After being released by WWE, Rush also contemplated retiring from pro wrestling. However, he wrestled for independent promotions and focused on his music career for the remainder of 2020. Rush caught the attention of MLW this year and made his debut on January 6th.
Rush defeated Myron Reed for the MLW Middleweight Championship in his MLW debut. The following month, he defeated Laredo Kid to win the AAA Cruiserweight Championship. He also made appearances for New Japan Pro Wrestling during this time. His work in MLW and NJPW helped Rush gain the attention of wrestling fans and AEW
Rush made his debut as the Joker in the Casino Battle Royal at Double or Nothing. His performance at Double or Nothing earned Rush a contract offer. However, he abruptly announced his retirement after thinking about how his career was affecting his family life.
The time-off from wrestling helped Rush focus on his music career to help with his family finances. It also helped Rush spend more time with his family.
“…For me, I never really got that opportunity to be the dad that I’ve always wanted to be because I kind of got pushed in the wrestling world, like pretty quickly,” said Rush. He continued, “That was around the time I had my first son, and then when I had my second son, I was with the WWE. So I definitely wasn’t at home as I wanted to be. Again, with being released from WWE and having to work during the pandemic, now I have to work twice as hard, twice as much to try to make up for the money that I need to make for me and my family.” He planned to retire after finishing the remaining dates with NJPW once he recovered from his injury.
Rush was able to avoid surgery with stem cell treatment. On August 2nd, Rush announced that he could compete again. He made his return to NJPW at NJPW Resurgence on August 15th. Since NJPW Resurgence, Rush has made appearances on several NJPW events.
On September 29th, Rush made his return to AEW on AEW Dynamite. The following week, he appeared on AEW Dynamite, offering advice to Dante Martin. It’s unclear when Rush signed a contract with AEW. However, Rush seems to be giving his pro wrestling career another chance.