'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,/9j/2wBDAAYEBQYFBAYGBQYHBwYIChAKCgkJChQODwwQFxQYGBcUFhYaHSUfGhsjHBYWICwgIyYnKSopGR8tMC0oMCUoKSj/2wBDAQcHBwoIChMKChMoGhYaKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCgoKCj/wgARCAAGAAoDASIAAhEBAxEB/8QAFgABAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUH/8QAFQEBAQAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABAb/2gAMAwEAAhADEAAAAMZjlCH/xAAhEAACAQMDBQAAAAAAAAAAAAABBAMAAgUGEyI1UWGh0f/aAAgBAQABPwBfUmLWWMaKLCwug2JOYuEp89gaOVWJ6fB7+1//xAAYEQACAwAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAwIREv/aAAgBAgEBPwBrp7o//8QAFhEBAQEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAgAD/9oACAEDAQE/ADmb/9k='%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
The WWE SmackDown brand will kick 2024 off in a big way tonight with the New Year's Revolution special, and it's looking like a new faction will debut.
It was first reported in January 2023 that Triple H had an interest in bringing back The Authors of Pain and Paul Ellering, with some sources saying the interest began months before. Then, in August 2023, it was rumored they would be returning the following month, but that obviously did not happen. The talk then was that the company wanted to use Akam and Rezar to boost the NXT tag team division.
A change in plans was reported just last month, and it was said that Triple H wanted AOP and their WWE Hall of Fame manager on SmackDown. A new report from Fightful Select notes that the trio is set to return to SmackDown moving forward, potentially as soon as tonight's show. This coincides with Ellering being spotted in Vancouver earlier today.
Karrion Kross recently teased AOP's return during a SmackDown vignette. The update from Fightful indicated that Ellering and the 2016 Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic winners are scheduled to start a new faction with The Herald Of Doomsday and Scarlett.
The 30-year-old Akam and 29-year-old Rezar have not wrestled since March 9, 2020, when they teamed with Murphy (aka Buddy Matthews) and Seth Rollins for a win over The Street Profits and The Viking Raiders.
The former RAW & NXT Tag Team Champions were released from their WWE contracts on September 4, 2020, which came as Rezar was recovering from a torn biceps suffered in that March 9 match. The duo unsuccessfully and controversially tried to launch their own wrestling promotion in mid-2022.
What is your bold prediction for AOP's WWE future? Do you like the idea of the stable with Karrion Kross and Scarlett? Sound off in the comments below!
