10 Wrestlers Who Could Debut (Or Return) On AEW Collision

Dave Meltzer, writing in the 28th April Wrestling Observer Newsletter, left an important assertion that may have sweeping ramifications for All Elite Wrestling's impending future:-

“The show, believed to be called AEW Collision, as noted last week, is expected to debut on 6/17 with a show from 8-10 pm. Eastern, from the United Center in Chicago, which would also be the return of CM Punk along with what is expected to be either another major name debut or return.”

AEW has seldom failed as it pertains to their bombshell debuts and comebacks. The most recent Dynamite proved as such when Roderick Strong, universally believed to be controlled under the limitations imposed by an NXT contract, orchestrated a genuinely and authentically surprising arrival in AEW. His exodus from WWE went unmentioned, as is WWE's disregard for acknowledging NXT talents' departures.

For this rumoured debut/return, a talent of a higher calibre is required. That's not a dig on Strong - your writer raved over his ROH and PWG work - but given the nature of who they'd be resurfacing alongside, and where and when they'd be doing so, any random WWE castoff won't suffice. CM Punk's resurgence will be the dominant talking point, so Tony Khan would receive astronomical humiliation for sending out a Bodhi Hayward or a Flash Morgan Webster.

He needs to be finicky and precise in his choice because with the right meeting, maybe, just maybe, he can coax another wrestler out of retirement...

AJ Mendez is a generational professional wrestler.

Before her unforeseen April 2015 retirement, the once longest-reigning Divas Champion was a needle-mover in the viewpoint of women's wrestling, competing as the archetypical anti-Diva by lambasting the so-called 'cast' of Total Divas, and putting weight and meaning back into the very title she famously held. The influence put on her career by similar empowering female figures - Lita, Trish Stratus, Molly Holly, et al - was palpable; AJ wrestled an antithetical style that didn't push itself through until after she'd retired, calling it a day at a period where she'd cultivated an imposing body of work without anything left to achieve. The Women's Tag Team titles weren't in existence yet. Neither were women's Royal Rumble, Money in the Bank, or Elimination Chamber matches, but AJ's crusade for greater treatment and opportunity led to such achievements being inaugurated.

Unfortunately, the nature of her retirement wasn't as straightforward as it may read - cervical spine damage unequivocally forced her to hang up her Converse.

An executive producer and colour commentary role in Women of Wrestling scans as a small-scale resurgence for AJ ahead of a major landing point; ruling out an in-ring comeback, this is a role she could slot into in AEW to strengthen a usually-fledging women's division.