Chris Jericho has clarified the rumors about a possible departure from AEW to WWE, ensuring that, despite his absence from television for almost a year, he was never actually out of the company. The Canadian explained in an interview with Beef Vegan that his contract ended at the end of 2025, but he transitioned directly from one agreement to another while staying away from the screens to "sort some things out," emphasizing that he has "skin in the game" with AEW because he helped create the company.
"I helped create AEW and I never left. I was just off TV for a while while we sorted some things out. Basically, I finished one contract and went straight into the next. I like Tony Khan as a boss, I like AEW as a company, and the growth we've had," Jericho pointed out, highlighting that he finds it more exciting to be in a company that didn't exist before his arrival than to return to WWE, a company that had a history before and will continue after he's gone.
In the same interview with Beef Vegan, Jericho talked about his most recent match against Tommaso Ciampa at AEW Redemption, held in Montreal. There, he brought back his "Painmaker" persona in a No Holds Barred match and emerged victorious, a bout that the veteran considers one of the best of the event due to the crowd's reaction and uses as an example that he can still perform at a "show-stealing" level even at 55 years old.
AEW will continue to exist after my time with it, but it didn't exist before I arrived. It's more exciting to be part of the company I helped create.
Jericho added that he doesn't have a set retirement date: "Did I think I'd be wrestling at 55? No, but I also don't think in numbers. As long as I continue to enjoy what I do and can do it at a show-stealing level, I'll keep going. It could be another week, two, or three years... I don't want to do it forever, but as long as I'm happy with my work and don't question it, I'll continue."
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