AEW recorded the June 23 episode of “AEW Rampage” right after last night’s live broadcast of AEW Dynamite at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois.
According to various reports, a former WWE returned to the AEW program while taping and joined QT Marshall’s group QTV.
The returning WWE star was none other than Johnny Elite, also known as John Hennigan or John Morrison. According to spoilers, The Acclaimed and “Daddy Ass” Billy Gunn defeated a trio of talent in the recording of “Rampage” and then went into a showdown with QT Marshall and the rest of QTV.
Then Hennigan appeared out of nowhere and ambushed The Acclaimed, seemingly allying with Marshsall’s squad.
Johnny (Elite?) is here! #AEWRampage #AEWDynamite pic.twitter.com/NO1vnuXrzb
— That’s Freakin’ Wrestling Podcast (@ThatsFNW) June 22, 2023
It is unknown if Hennigan returned to AEW full-time or if his cameo was another one-off appearance. Since his release from WWE in November 2021, Hennigan has appeared in three matches for AEW, with all three matches occurring in 2022.
In addition to suffering losses to Samoa Joe and Miro on AEW Dynamite last year, Hennigan also defeated Marg Queen on AEW Dark. While his appearances on AEW have been sporadic, Hennigan has remained an active competitor for promotions such as AAA, MLW and PROGRESS over the past year.