Samoa Joe is ready to get back in the ring.
At ROH Supercard of Honor, Joe made his return to ROH, taking out Jay Lethal and Sonjay Dutt and standing tall alongside ROH Champion Jonathan Gresham.
During the post-show media scrum, Joe was asked about his health and the injuries that beset his run in WWE. He revealed that is feeling great and that he is more than ready to go. He added that there was a concussion in WWE that kept him out of action for a long time, but it was his decision to not rush back, noting that there is too much science about brain injuries to risk his future health.
"More than confident. You have to understand, coming into WWE, that is me coming off a 15-year-plus career of probably the worst medical care a guy can get and going into a very very arduous schedule. I did have a few injuries, one of them being the major concussion that took me out for a while. Honestly, I took extra time. When it comes to brain injuries and stuff like that, I wasn’t willing to risk going back quickly and potentially harming myself permanently. It’s just a dumb thing to do. We have too much science on our side and too much knowledge now that we can pull back and treat things properly and take time to heal. I took the time to do that and that was really my major issue, I was taking the right amount of time to make sure I was ready to come back to the ring. As for my last injury, obviously, it was more a circumstance of the world we all live in now and it pops up here and there. I’ve been healthy, I’m more than ready to go, and I’m excited," he said.
Tony Khan also revealed during the show that Joe has officially signed with AEW. As for his goals, Joe says he wants the World Title. He doesn't respect anyone and is coming to smack people around and take what's theirs.
"World Champion. That’s why I’m here. I tried my bid at bettering the world of professional wrestling, but at the end of the day, I’m here in AEW and ROH to be a Unified Champion. I’m here to win the AEW Championship and Ring of Honor Championship. I’m here to win anything they put in front of me. I’m more than willing to go into the Owen Hart (tournament) and win that. This ain’t a game anymore. AEW has a lot of feel-good moments, a lot of great wrestlers who respect each other. I don’t respect nobody. Until you’re in the ring with me. I’m coming out there to smack people in the mouth and take what they have. That’s pretty much my edict when I’m here. Broadcaster, mentor, good guy, I am all those things, but not here. Not here," Joe said.
On January 6, 2022, Samoa Joe was released by WWE for the second time in less than a year. He is the longest-reigning ROH Champion of all time and was part of the inaugural class for the ROH Hall of Fame.
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