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Ex-AEW Star Makes Shock Appearance In WWE

By Lyle Kilbane • Published 28th February 2024
The Pinnacle AEW

A member of the AEW roster not seen in several months now has a new home as they mark their return to WWE with a brutal attack.

NXT’s Ridge Holland has been having serious issues in recent weeks with a character upset at being blamed for injuries in the ring. Big E suffered a broken neck after being suplexed by Holland in early 2022 which has kept the former WWE Champion out of action ever since.

Holland was in the ring on the 27th of February edition of NXT protesting his innocence over more recent storyline injuries attributed to him when the lights went out. The vignettes that have aired in recent weeks saw their latest play on the video screen and when they stopped a spotlight illuminated the ring and the mystery man who cracked Holland with a steel chair.

Shawn Spears Moves On From AEW

That man was AEW original Shawn Spears who is now back in WWE after five years away. Spears was known as The Chairman in AEW after he cracked Cody Rhodes with a brutal unprotected chair shot that busted The American Nightmare wide open.

Spears was previously known as Gavin Spears during his brief time on ECW in his first WWE run that came to an end in 2009. He returned to the company in 2013 where he was known as Tye Dillinger and found popularity as ‘The Perfect 10.’

During his AEW run, Spears was part of The Pinnacle alongside his manager Tully Blanchard, FTR, Wardlow, and MJF. His role in the company was diminished when that group came to an end and his last match in AEW came on the Zero Hour pre-show for 2023’s All Out when he was part of the Over Budget Charity Battle Royal won by Adam Page.