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Chris Jericho's AEW run has been pivotal in helping establish All Elite Wrestling as a major player in the wrestling business. Not only did he legitimize the company simply by being there, but he elevated their world title and has spent his time since losing it building up new stars for the company.
His leadership of the Inner Circle, and eventual spawning of The Pinnacle has led AEW to use a plethora of talent in a months-long feud that has allowed everyone involved to shine in some way.
However, Jericho's current storyline, where he completes a series of challenges set by MJF to finally get a one-on-one match with the young upstart, certainly feels like the closing of a chapter in Jericho's career.
With that in mind, here are five wrestlers who could be the one to retire Chris Jericho from AEW. It's worth noting that some of these are very likely, and some of them are not, but they're just fun hypotheticals!
#5. MJF beats Chris Jericho after months of build-up forcing him to retire from wrestling
Chris Jericho and MJF's feud has been an ongoing storyline in AEW since the company's beginning, with the pair initially working together as part of the Inner Circle before MJF turned on Jericho and formed The Pinnacle.
A clash between the two has been several months in the making and we're reaching towards a crescendo at the moment with Jericho being forced to undertake several 'trials' to earn the right to face MJF in singles action.
It would make sense, then, for this entire storyline to end with Jericho going out on his back to put over the younger heel in MJF, who has been earmarked for stardom in professional wrestling.
#4. Chris Jericho puts over one of his proteges in Sammy Guevara
Sammy Guevara was placed with Chris Jericho quite early on into AEW's life and the young star has benefitted significantly from getting to work alongside someone as experienced as Jericho.
If MJF is Jericho's biggest success story in terms of building up new stars for AEW, then Guevara is certainly a close second. With that in mind if MJF isn't the one to retire Chris Jericho, then it really should be Sammy Guevara.
#3. Juventud Guerrera spoils the party and ends the trials of Chris Jericho
It seems extremely unlikely given the storyline builds and payoffs, but let's say that AEW want to be the biggest party pooper there has ever been and not give fans what they want.
They could achieve that by simply having Chris Jericho lose his next announced 'trial' against Juventud Guerrera, or at the very least not win the match with a top rope move. Jericho, having fallen short of getting revenge against MJF, would surely retire from wrestling out of shame.
It would probably earn the legendary luchador nuclear heat, and it would arguably be the biggest mistake AEW could possibly make. But there's an outside chance it could happen.
#2. Daniel Bryan returns to put Chris Jericho out of his misery
It could be as a 'Trial of Jericho', it could be for an entirely different reason. But Daniel Bryan debuting for All Elite Wrestling and having a feud with Chris Jericho would be best for business.
Jericho and Bryan first met in a singles match all the way back on NXT season one in 2010. This was Bryan's first-ever match for the company and it's one that he lost via submission to the then WWE World Champion Jericho.
It would be somewhat full-circle if Bryan were to win his first match in AEW against Chris Jericho finally getting revenge over that loss all those years ago.
#1. Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho meet in a rubber match
Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho have had a great, albeit brief rivalry since both men found themselves in New Japan Pro Wrestling not too many years ago in January 2018.
However, the two men have only faced each other in singles matches twice and each of them as a win over the other. Kenny Omega defeated Jericho to retain the IWGP Heavyweight Title at Wrestle Kingdom, and then Chris Jericho got the win back by beating Omega at AEW Double or Nothing.
That means the two men arguably need to have one more match to determine which of them is better than the other and what a story it would be if it was Jericho's last match as well.
