3-Time WWE World Heavyweight Champion Drops Major The Rock Reference Amid Extended AEW Absence

AEW has plenty of former WWE Superstars on its roster, with some of them having held a world title in the Stamford-based promotion. Among them, there is one star who is arguably the most decorated former WWE World Champion on the Jacksonville-based company's roster, and he is none other than Chris Jericho.

Jericho is a pro wrestling legend and is also a former AEW World Champion. The company's inaugural world champion has played a huge role in building the Tony Khan-led promotion from ground zero. However, Y2J hasn't been seen on AEW television since April of this year.

Amid the three-time WWE World Heavyweight Champion's absence from weekly programming, rumors of his potential return to the global juggernaut have started to catch fire, considering that The Demo God's AEW contract is reportedly set to expire this October. Amid these speculations, he recently dropped a major reference to The Rock on Instagram. Jericho shared a throwback picture with TKO Group Holdings' board member. The picture was from WWE's tour of Japan, Singapore, and Malaysia back in 2002.

"Great pic that I’ve never seen before from the classic #WWF tour of Japan, Singapore, & Malaysia in March of 2002! I worked with @therock for the World Title the whole tour, and we tore the house down every night, [and] then drove our mentor, #PatPatterson, crazy by doing 20 min[utes] of improv comedy for the fans after the matches. Such a wild & crazy tour in every way! Thx [sic] to #DeanMalenko for sending this to me!" he wrote.

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Jericho has had multiple stints in WWE, where he had a long and successful career. His time in the Jacksonville-based promotion has been extremely fruitful as well, with world championship reigns in both All Elite Wrestling and its sister promotion, Ring of Honor.

Former AEW World Champion Chris Jericho drops a major hint amid WWE return speculations

Y2J is heavily rumored to join WWE after the expiry of his current AEW contract.

Amid his absence from the Jacksonville-based promotion, it seems like he is open to working with his former employers, as The Learning Tree recently liked a post related to it on Instagram.

Chris Jericho is one of the most experienced wrestlers on the Jacksonville-based promotion's roster. He has helped ROH talents as well, putting over stars like Bandido. The 54-year-old is a one-time All Elite Wrestling World Champion and a two-time ROH World Champion, apart from being a one-time FTW Champion.

Will he return to WWE? Only time will tell!

About the author

Faiz is a WWE writer at Sportskeeda Wrestling. He is a BBA graduate who is passionate about sports and wants to make a career in that field. This passion led to a postgraduate degree in Journalism, which helped him pivot into becoming a sports writer. When writing, he puts the utmost importance on accuracy and thorough research.

Faiz has six years of work experience across four companies. He started his career with Zomato and then moved to Amazon. He shifted to becoming a football writer at TV9 Digital and is now with Sportskeeda. He covered the Wrestling Xtreme Mania event in Gurgaon in 2025, where he had the opportunity to interview Raj The Maharaja, fka Jinder Mahal. At the same event, he also got quick interviews with former WWE Superstar Dijak and Japanese Joshi legend Emi Sakura.

When it comes to his favourite wrestlers, Faiz has two names in mind. He loved to watch Triple H before the current WWE CCO retired, and he is a huge fan of Roman Reigns. Being a loyal fan since the Tribal Chief's SHIELD days, Faiz credits Roman's mic skills and unmatched in-ring storytelling for his mega success. When he was young, one in-ring story left a lasting impression on his mind and eventually got him hooked on WWE. That match was Shawn Michaels vs. Ric Flair at WrestleMania 24. Apart from that, he is also a fan of RAW.

When Faiz is not writing for Sportskeeda, he loves to keep up with other sports. He is an avid cricket and football fan, a huge gamer, and loves playing some RPGs on the PlayStation.

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Edited by Yash Mittal