Chris Jericho's faction take out major star in a backstage attack; officials look concerned

Chris Jericho's faction laid out a renowned veteran in a backstage assault on Collision, forcing concerned officials to intervene. The star in question is Tomohiro Ishii.

The September 6, 2024, episode of Collision aired from Chicago, Illinois, and featured an appearance from Chris Jericho and members of his faction, The Learning Tree. The former and inaugural AEW World Champion has seemingly renewed his past rivalry with Orange Cassidy, involving the latter's new team-mates from The Conglomeration in the rivalry in the process.

Chris Jericho spoke about the cohesion displayed by members of The Conglomeration in a backstage interview on Collision. He singled out NJPW veteran Tomohiro Ishii, alluding to their past encounter in 2022 and praising his grit as an opponent. However, he dismissed the idea of facing him again in AEW.

"As we've seen recently, The Conglomeration is such a well-oiled machine, each member of that team an important cog in the wheel that makes them roll. From Orange Cassidy to Mark Briscoe, to Kyle O'Reilly, to Tomohiro Ishii. One of my favorite opponents ever in AEW, one of the toughest men I have ever faced. But it's time for him to go back to Japan, and even though I'd love to wrestle with him again here in AEW, now is just not the right time."

Afterwards, Big Bill and Bryan Keith reminded fans that time runs out for everyone, following which the camera panned down to reveal an incapacitated Ishii sprawled on the ground under The Lionheart's boot with a chair wrapped around his neck. AEW officials rushed in immediately to check on The Stone Pitbull as Jericho waved a mocking farewell to fans before leaving with his stable-mates.

It remains to be seen where Chris Jericho's rekindled feud with Orange Cassidy leads to in AEW.