AEW: Shawn Spears on Reason for AEW Absence, Stu Grayson AEW Return Update, More News

Shawn Spears Comments on Reason for His Recent Lengthy Absence from AEW

This past Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite show in Toronto, Canada featured a tag team match between The Factory and WarJoe, which was won by WarJoe. Following the match, The Embassy interrupted WarJoe’s celebrations and confronted the duo only to be stopped by FTR and a surprise return by Shawn Spears. Prior to his return, Spears had been away from AEW since this past May.

Following the segment, Spears gave a non-televised speech to the crowd revealing that the reason for his lengthy absence was due to family-related issues over the passing of his mother.

“Oh, goddamn, I missed you. To Dax’s point, no better place in the world to be [than Toronto]. But Dax’s point last night, the reception you guys gave FTR, it brought a tear to my eye as well, but for different reasons. I had to follow it. But like they said, well deserved. So I’ve been gone for a long time, and there’s been some speculation as to why. Injuries, different plans, none of that’s true. I don’t know if it’s because I’m in Toronto. I don’t know if it’s because I’m home. I’m a pretty private person, but I feel like I owe you all an explanation. Two months ago, I Iost my mom. She would have been front and center like she has been at every other show if she was here tonight. But that woman is a perfect 10 in every way, shape, and form. Two blessings came out of that. Number one, we had time to say everything we ever wanted to say, to make her feel as loved as she possibly could. Most people don’t have that luxury. The second blessing was that on this Mother’s Day, she was the very first person to know that I was gonna be a father. So the way I see it, there’s a guardian Angel looking over my soon-to-be beautiful baby boy. So I’ve been pulled in a bunch of different directions mentally, emotionally.”

Spears also gave his thoughts on his return to AEW.

“I knew that coming home, each and every one of you would show up. Goddamn, did you ever. From the bottom of my heart, I will never, ever forget this day, and I have you all to thank for that. In this ring stands four men that I greatly admire. I admire them all as talents, I admire them all as men. Hey, Dax, if I could be half the father that you are to Finley, then I’m gonna be okay. I love you, Canada. Thank you for having us. We will be back.”

Transcript h/t: Fightful.com

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Stu Grayson Makes AEW Return at Friday’s AEW Rampage Show & Status Update

As noted before, Stu Grayson left AEW this past May due to the expiration of his contract and the two sides not being able to agree to terms for a new deal.

Friday’s AEW Rampage show (taped this past Thursday) in Toronto featured a backstage segment involving the Dark Order and Jose The Assistant. At the end of the segment, Grayson made a surprise appearance reuniting with his old Dark Order friends.

The Wrestling Observer’s Josh Nelson reported that it is currently not known if Grayson has recently signed a new deal with AEW nor if this was just a one-night only type deal due to Grayson being a native of Canada.

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AEW News & Notes

During a recent episode of the To Be A Man podcast, co-host Ric Flair revealed that his stepdaughter Sofia was recently hired by AEW to work in their social media department.

Former WWF wrestler “The Mountie” Jacques Rougeau reportedly was seen in attendance backstage during this past Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite show in Toronto, Canada, according to PWInsider.

Dustin Rhodes reportedly is currently dealing with a knee injury, according to PWInsider. Rhodes himself recently hinted on Twitter that he is currently considering the idea of retiring from active wrestling. Rhodes stated “Man, old age has caught up to me guys. As much as I push myself beyond my limits, I can honestly say, I am doing some heavy thinking about the next step. We all think we can go forever with new batteries, but TIME comes for all of us. Kinda scared tbh. #KeepSteppin.”

In response to a fan question on Twitter, Saraya recently stated that the reason why she was absent from this past Wednesday’s AEW Dynamite show in Toronto was due to her traveling to the United Kingdom for family-related reasons over the passing of her uncle earlier this month.