35-Year-Old Ex-AEW Champion Is WWE’s Masked Man? Exploring The Possibility

WWE is plagued by a problem that includes a masked man. Could this man be a major former AEW star?

The masked man first appeared during the men’s WarGames match at Survivor Series.

While both the babyfaces and heels inside the cage seemed stumped by his presence, the man went on to superkick CM Punk and then hit him with a stomp identical to the finisher used by Seth Rollins.

There’s no way Rollins is limber enough to climb a cage—twice—due to the injury he suffered at the Crown Jewel PLE and his subsequent time off.

Speaking of ‘theories,’ the masked man has been widely speculated to be the former WWE tag team champion Austin Theory, which was also confirmed by Fightful Select.

The masked individual again appeared on the December 8 episode of RAW, this time attacking LA Knight in the main event and Rey Mysterio earlier in the night.

According to a latest report by Wrestling Observer Live, this masked individual is none other than Montez Ford.

How Does Ricky Saints Factor In As The Masked Attacker?

Ricky Saints has been a regular on WWE’s NXT, where he most recently served as the brand’s champion before dropping the title to Oba Femi at Deadline.

A trend in NXT goes that when a highly successful superstar drops their title, it is an indication that their main roster debut might be around the corner.

Furthermore, Saints hinted at turning heel during his locker room conversation with Je’Von Evans before the Iron Survivor Match at Deadline.

On the December 9 episode of NXT, The Absolute One screwed the Young OG during the latter’s title match against Femi in the main event.

Masked Man Gets Unmasked At Saturday Night’s Main Event

A day before Deadline, it was confirmed that the winner of Ricky Saints vs. Oba Femi would face Cody Rhodes in a singles match at Saturday Night’s Main Event XLII.

With The Ruler now guaranteed that spot, Saints finds himself in no man’s land, or naturally, sets up a feud with Je’Von Evans, whom he was eyeballing by the time NXT ended.

So, how could he have attacked CM Punk, Rey Mysterio, or LA Knight?

Well, this assumption takes us back to around June 2025, when it was reported that WWE was considering adding two new members to Seth Rollins’ then-unnamed faction.

The two men were Ricky Saints and Ethan Page. Page is holding his own as the Men’s North American Champion on NXT and the AAA World Mixed Tag Team Champion.

That leaves Saints to be experimented with, if WWE considers revisiting its initial plan of him joining The Vision.

At Saturday Night’s Main Event, Saints interferes in Oba Femi’s match against Cody Rhodes, getting unmasked and setting up a feud with The American Nightmare, who is supposedly one of his close friends, on the main roster.

Another theory that I present involves Ricky Saints getting unmasked, joining The Vision, but at a later date, Austin Theory is revealed as the masked man, which, seemingly, is WWE’s current plan, keeping them both in the faction.

Elsewhere, Oba Femi finds a challenger in Myles Borne, who will compete in next week’s #1 Contender’s match, also featuring Joe Hendry, Dion Lennox, and Leon Slater.