WWE Hall Of Famer Reveals True Reason Behind AEW In-Ring Absence

A WWE Hall of Famer has been absent from AEW for a while.

Jeff Jarrett has been a part of the AEW roster ever since the company’s inception. During the promotion’s early days, he was a regular feature on TV. He formed a heel stable along with Sonjay Dutt, Jay Lethal, and Satnam Singh.

He even indicated that he was going to go after the AEW World Title. However, nothing came of that. Instead, Jeff Jarrett has not been used on TV as much as he used to be. He wrestled his last match for the Jacksonville-based promotion in January 2025. However, he has taken on the role of an analyst for PPVs, where he makes regular appearances. He has also been wrestling occasionally on the independent scene. This has left fans wondering why the WWE Hall of Famer has not competed in AEW in a long time.

During an interview with Ariel Helwani, Jeff Jarrett said that he’s very comfortable doing the Zero Hour shows. He also said when Tony Khan calls on him to wrestle, he will wrestle.

“Well, I do Zero Hour. I’m very comfortable. I’m not in the creative department, I’m not in talent relations, I’m a talent. When I’m called to do Zero Hour and be an analyst, I do it. When I’m called to wrestle, I’ll be a wrestler.” [H/T Fightful]

Jeff Jarrett explained why he didn’t return to WWE in 2009

After leaving WWE, Jeff Jarrett helped launch TNA Wrestling in the early 2000s. As a result, he was a regular feature on TV. Over the years, TNA Wrestling would grow to become the second biggest wrestling company after WWE. The promotion consisted of several rising stars like AJ Styles and Samoa Joe, as well as former WWE stars like Kurt Angle, Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, and more. TNA Wrestling tried its best to compete with WWE. Unfortunately, Jeff Jarrett had to distance himself from the company in 2008 due to backstage tensions involving Kurt Angle and Dixie Carter. During this time, he didn’t return to WWE. Instead, he went back to TNA in 2009.

Speaking on his My World podcast, Conrad Thompson asked Jeff Jarrett if he ever considered returning to WWE in 2009. The WWE Hall of Famer said that because of his age, he didn’t think Vince McMahon would be interested in hiring him as a talent.

“Think about it. [I was] 42 years old in 2009. Vince doesn’t hire 42-year-olds and goes with them as a talent, he just doesn’t,” Jarrett explained. “In my mind, Vince has no use for a guy over 40 because that’s just where his head was at. I don’t think it’s a rationalisation, but that’s a part of it.”

It would’ve been interesting to see Jeff Jarrett have a WWE run in 2009.

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