Former UFC Champion Junior Dos Santos Set For AEW In-Ring Debut

Written by Lyle Kilbane • Published 7th October 2021
Junior Dos Santos

Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior Dos Santos is set to make his in-ring wrestling debut for AEW after a challenge was laid down to Chris Jericho on AEW Dynamite.

AEW Dynamite from Philadelphia was a packed show with President Tony Khan coming through on his promise of a huge announcement on the show with a new title being introduced to the company.

Also on Dynamite Sammy Guevara defended his newly won TNT Championship against AEW newcomer and former NXT Tag Team Champion, Bobby Fish. Guevara retained the title he had only won one week prior in Rochester, NY when he was attacked by American Top Team led by Dan Lambert and The Men Of The Year.

The Inner Circle were quick to help their teammate Guevara with bad blood still stemming from Chris Jericho and Jake Hager’s loss to Scorpio Sky and Ethan Page at AEW Rampage Grand Slam.

After the melee, Lambert laid down a challenge for the 13th of October episode of AEW Dynamite that will emanate from Miami, Fl. The team of Sammy Guevara, Jake Hager, and Jericho were challenged to face Sky, Page, and former UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior Dos Santos in a six-man tag team match that will see UFC ‘BMF’ Champion Jorge Masvidal in American Top Team’s corner. Jericho duly accepted the match for Inner Circle.

Junior Dos Santos began fighting for UFC in 2008, winning his first nine fights in the promotion. The 7th of those fights was where Dos Santos defeated the vanquisher of Brock Lesnar and former WWE Superstar Cain Velasquez to become UFC Heavyweight Champion.

Dos Santos’ pro-MMA career record stands at an impressive 21 wins and 9 losses with his last victory coming in March 2019 against Derrick Lewis in what was the Fight Of The Night.