Lio Rush talks about the chances of a return to All Elite Wrestling and his relationship with Tony Khan.
Lio Rush is currently enjoying a big run on the independent scene after dealing with a number of injury concerns in recent years. Rush, who currently competes in big level independent promotions like GCW and BEYOND Wrestling, has been in and out of the wrestling scene since he last appeared in AEW back in December 2021.
Although the split between Rush and AEW was seemingly rough, 'The Man Of The Hour' reiterated the fact that he won't rule out a return to the company, citing that anything is possible if you have the right intentions in a recent interview with Chris Van Vliet.
“Uhm, I think so. I think anything is possible if you have the right intentions, if you’re coming from the right place.”
Rush went on to note that he does like Tony Khan quite a bit and that the two connected pretty quickly when he first came into AEW.
“Uhm, probably. I mean how could there not be. But I think Tony… I like Tony a lot. I really like Tony. I think that’s the first time I’m saying that out loud [laughs]. Yeah, I do like Tony. One thing that made me so willing to give AEW a chance [is the fact that] I feel like I was scarred from my WWE run. I feel like I was, you know, traumatized a little bit. Tony liked me a lot, I feel like we connected pretty quickly and I feel like that’s why there was a lot of emotion involved. I probably shouldn’t have brought the emotion out, but again, I’m glad I did… you know. I’m glad I showed people that I stand for something [and that] I care about myself and I care about others. It’s not always about a paycheck to me. Yeah. I’m sorry, I’m kind of.. this is huge for me. This is the first time that I’m really speaking on it. I’ve talked about, but I haven’t really, really talked about it in that sense about my relationship with Tony and stuff like that.”
Rush also went on to reveal that he is still in contact with the head honcho of All Elite Wrestling.
“Yeah, I’ve talked to him a few times." Rush said when asked if he's talked to Tony Khan since leaving the company. "We’ve talked a number of times. It’s always great, it’s always, you know, ‘How [have] you’ve been? Good to hear from you.’ If the show is in the area, I try to pop out and see it and stuff like that. The love is still there, the support is still there, there’s just other factors into me actually being there. I’m doing so much right now, I’m happy with what I’m doing. It’s not like I’m really trying to force something to happen. If it happens, it happens. I love the direction that I’m going in right now, I love what I’m doing. I’m glad that I feel like I don’t really have any true bad blood within wrestling. I feel like with me being so active right now and being in front of people… it’s a lot different when you’re in front of somebody. You can see them, you can feel their energy and kinda get a feel for why they’re doing what they’re doing.”
Back in late 2022, Rush said that AEW didn't know what to do with him as a character, citing that Tony Khan only saw him in a manager type role. To learn more, click here.
Rush is once again set to challenge Hiromu Takahashi for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion on March 21. Click here to learn more about the championship match.
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit the original source with a h/t and link back to Fightful for the transcription.
