Swerve Strickland has spoken out about his impending return to AEW TV.
Last seen getting knocked out by Adam Page in their brutal cage match at All Out in early September, the former World Champion has been advertised to appear at the upcoming WrestleDream pay-per-view on October 12th, which will air live from his hometown of Tacoma, Washington.
With Strickland no longer the World Champion, losing to Page, the nature of the attack and the recent interactions between Prince Nana and the recent arrival MVP on TV, there is a lot to discuss. While appearing on No Contest Wrestling with O’Shea Jackson Jr. and TJ Jefferson, Strickland admitted a lot has changed:
“There’s a lot in the past I can address. The last time ya’ll saw me, I was knocked completely out by Hangman Page in a cage match. Got a lot of people talking for a whole month. I wasn’t even on camera. There’s a lot I can address there. There’s a lot I can address with the current. There is a lot I can address with the future.
That’s the beauty about my presence on this show, especially my hometown and the city where I was born. There is a lot I can go into. Maybe the people are so enthralled and emotionally connected to me that I don’t even have to say much, I let the people say it. Maybe there’s that.
Maybe there are things I have to say to Nana because there are a lot of business things that went awry with my presence being gone. No championship. Lost the main event of All Out, back-to-back. There are positives out there, the contract. I’m going to be signed for a long time.
There are things to address there. My health condition. I haven’t been cleared for a month now. There are things to address there. There are a lot of things I have on my mind that I can express and go a bunch of different ways. This isn’t a talking segment. This is me really conveying new news with me personally, my businesses outside of this. The Mogul is not just a name I gave myself. It truly is what I am and who I am.”
Continuing, Strickland also noted that something will feel different when he makes his return and hinted at some changes:
“You can always expect the next evolution of me with the subtleties. Maybe my hair is different. Maybe my look is different. Something is different. You’ll feel something different in the air. That’s something I always love bringing to the table. You don’t know what to expect, and that’s the beauty of it and the beauty of who I am and what I offer.
Even Tony Khan doesn’t know what to expect. He just goes, ‘Show up to work and here is what you got.’ He trusts and he knows I can make it happen. That’s the imprint I have on the show right now. I love it and I worked really hard to gain that. I was patient, I took a long time, and I didn’t rush into it. Let’s see how the landscape takes course and I will find my way and adapt into that. Now, people are anticipating a return of who I am, what I have to bring and what’s different, what’s new, and what old things I’m going to address.”
At WrestleDream, Swerve Strickland addressed the offer from MVP as well as his current health status.
Swerve Strickland Talks WWE
Previously a part of the WWE roster before making the jump to AEW, Strickland has become one of the biggest success stories when looking at his rise to the main event scene. While some AEW stars have since made their way back to the company they previously departed, the former World Champion will be remaining All Elite until further notice. In a previous interview, Swerve Strickland explained why he had no interest in making the return to WWE.
H/t to Fightful.