Dan Lambert has opened up about why he disappeared from AEW television and what it would take for him to return.
The founder of American Top Team arrived in AEW in July 2021 and wasted little time in venting his frustrations about the on-screen product. Lambert took aim at Cody and Brandi Rhodes among others, aligning with Ethan Page, Scorpio Sky and paved the way for Paige VanZant to enter the promotion.
The group remained together until Scorpio Sky lost the TNT Championship to Wardlow on the July 6th 2022 edition of Dynamite. Following the defeat, Ethan Page has been repackaged and Sky has taken a break to heal from a nagging injury.
Speaking in a new interview with Chris Van Vliet, Dan Lambert explained that it was his decision to step away from wrestling, revealing he thought he was getting stale.
“Not now,” Dan responded when asked if he was still with AEW. “Maybe 2 months ago, we finished up our feud with The Men of the Year and Scorpio Sky against Wardlow and Sky dropped the belt to Wardlow. Sky was going to take a couple of months off because he had a knee injury that needed to heal and [Ethan] Page was getting repackaged to do what he’s doing now with The Firm and working with MJF.
So I just thought that was a good time that — it seemed like it was winding down. I felt like I was getting stale, even though the reactions were still good, it was still fun, but I grabbed Tony Khan after that show and said, ‘Yeah, I think it’s run its course. I don’t want to go backward or overstay my welcome. So that’s going to do it for me.’ He was like, ‘Oh, man. Sure. Whatever you want. Maybe we’ve got to come up with a good idea and you can come back in the future.'”
Lambert added that he would be open to returning if he was presented with good enough creative.
“I was like, ‘Yeah, sure, whatever. Call me.’ I mean if Tony called me up tomorrow and said, ‘Hey I’ve got a good idea. Do you wanna do it?,’ and it was a good idea, I’d say, ‘Sure, why not?'”
Dan Lambert founded American Top Team in 2001, and the famed MMA gym has been home to a number of UFC Champions.
H/t to Fightful for the transcription.