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In AEW, wrestlers are expected to put on hard-hitting shows on a regular basis. Unlike WWE, which has a large focus on sports entertainment, Tony Khan made it clear that AEW will focus on professional wrestling as a whole.
Many of the wrestlers they employ are extremely talented inside the ring. Furthermore, superstars are often seen as being talented on the mic and in developing characters as well. While AEW wrestlers have moved past their issues in being charismatic and having separately identifiable gimmicks, their in-ring work has continued to improve.
Several wrestlers in the company follow a more hard-hitting form of wrestling. Unfortunately, a common consequence of a more hard-hitting wrestling style is that the number of injuries increase. Most recently, Hangman Page was busted open once again during his match with Powerhouse Hobbs. Several key AEW stars are currently sidelined from in-ring action due to injuries.
In this article, we will take a look at five wrestlers who are currently sidelined with injuries. It should be noted that other than those mentioned in the following points, The Butcher is out with a thumb injury and Anna Jay is out with a dislocated shoulder.
#5 Kip Sabian has been absent since Miro's attack on AEW Dynamite
Kip Sabian’s injury could not have come at a worse time. The AEW wrestler recently went through surgery in May. His injury was common knowledge for some time, but the specific nature of the injury was not known.
PW Insider reported that Sabian went through shoulder surgery.
Unfortunately for him, his surgery came just when it looked like he would get one of his first proper singles feuds in AEW against Miro. His injury stopped the rivalry from ever taking off, but it was time for Miro to go his own way. He broke away from Sabian after the Arcade Anarchy match. Following that, Miro wrote Sabian off television by slamming a door on his arm.
There is no timeline for when Sabian will return, but it’s expected when he does, he could pick up his feud against Miro for the TNT Championship.
#4 Trent has been absent since his last loss on AEW Dynamite
AEW wrestler Trent Beretta has recently gone through neck fusion surgery. On June 26, he went through with the surgery and let the fans know that he was well and the surgery was a success.
Unfortunately for Trent, despite his success in AEW over 2021, he has been dealing with multiple injuries. He returned to AEW on March 31 to interfere in the Arcade Anarchy match against Miro and Kip Sabian. Prior to that, he had been out with a torn pectoral muscle.
He went on to wrestle again on April 21 on AEW Dynamite against Penta El Zero Miedo, but lost the match. His bad luck continued as he had to go out of action once again, this time for a neck fusion surgery.
Currently, there is no timeline for when he will be back, but given the serious nature of the surgery, it may be some time before he returns to the ring again. When he does return, it will be interesting to see what he does next. The Best Friends have been part of two of the best tag team matches since the start of AEW, so another such match could be in the offing.
#3 Darius Martin has been absent from AEW following his ACL injury
Darius Martin, a member of the AEW tag team Top Flight, went through ACL surgery recently after injuring his anterior cruciate ligament.
Top Flight appeared to be the best up-and-coming tag team in AEW. Things went wrong when fans started to notice that the team had not been in action for a long time. By the time they were not part of the Tag Team Battle Royale, fans were very aware of their absence from combat.
It was reported that Darius Martin had suffered a leg injury, but the nature of the injury was not made public. Martin finally shared his status on Twitter, where he commented on his ACL surgery:
“Had ACL surgery this morning.... First time having surgery and this anesthesia has been hitting my body like a MFer all day. Nonetheless, the road to recovery begins. It’ll be long but when I’m back, expect me to be performing at a level you’ve NEVER seen before”
Usually, superstars who suffer ACL injuries miss in-ring action for a long time. Thankfully, AEW has continued to book Dante Martin in singles matches in his brother’s absence. He has impressed in his recent matches against Miro and Matt Sydal on Dynamite, and he has also been active on AEW Dark.
#2 John Silver's shoulder injury has kept him away from the AEW ring
Possibly the most entertaining member of the AEW faction Dark Order, John Silver has all the potential in the world. What he lacks in height he makes up for in his personality.
Silver managed to get over with the AEW audience through his appearances on Being The Elite, but since then, he has managed to stay over with fans. His matches have shown that, thanks to his immense strength, he is capable of anything.
While it is doubtful whether he will be able to challenge at the main event level, John Silver might be the perfect candidate to bring the AEW TNT title back to the Dark Order in the future.
Unfortunately, that will have to wait sometime. While he is backstage in segments almost regularly, John Silver is not yet ring-ready. He last wrestled against Darby Allin on March 24, but his injury has kept him out of action since then.
Back in March, Silver said the injury would keep him out of action for four to six weeks. He suffered a shoulder injury and Allin praised him for continuing with the match. The projected recovery time has come and gone, but Silver is yet to enter a ring. AEW is perhaps being cautious about his return, but when he does return, it will likely make for quite the raucous welcome from the fans.
#1 Ricky Starks has been present on AEW Dynamite despite injury
Ricky Starks is another AEW wrestler currently out with injury. The Team Taz member suffered an injury in late April to his neck. During the closing moments of a match between himself and Hangman Page, he took a bad bump to the back of his neck. He landed on his neck after a German Suplex, but he still finished the match after that.
It was originally reported that Ricky Starks had suffered a fractured neck and would be out of action for three months.
Since then, however, he has appeared on television regularly, albeit in a non-wrestling role. Further reports clarified that Starks’ injury was a “slight fracture” and that he would be showing up on Dynamite, but would not be in matches. He will also not need surgery to fix the issue.
AEW didn’t pause with their booking for Starks as, despite his injury, they have been building a future feud between Brian Cage and Ricky Starks. The two members of Team Taz have fallen out with one another, and have only refrained from getting too physical.
When Starks finally recovers enough to wrestle again, he will possibly face Brian Cage in a match.
