Dominik Mysterio faces shoulder injury recovery ahead of Royal Rumble

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Lee South Jon Moxley vs Josh Alexander Omaha, NE AEW Dynamite New Years Smash December 31, 2025 | Lee South for All Elite Wrestling Welcome to the weekly Rumor Look Back, where we look at the rumors from six months ago and see which played out as originally stated. Let’s jump right to it. December 29, 2025 In The Daily Update, Dave Meltzer noted it’s accurate that Chris Jericho’s contract with AEW is up on Wednesday and it’s been the expectation for months that he would be going back to WWE. However, he still can’t say that with 100-percent certainty. He did not go back to WWE. (0/1) Meltzer also said on Wrestling Observer Radio that Jon Moxley’s babyface turn at Worlds End is tied to AEW trying to reverse negativity attached to them from late 2023 and throughout much of 2024. Is it a babyface turn? That’s one of Moxley’s biggest problems – he is heel sometimes and babyface sometimes but it’s not consistent and it hinders the narrative. And now Will Ospreay is tied to that as he goes to main event All In. It could be the creative trying to do something layered or with shades of grey, but it comes off as more inconsistent and confusing than anything. According to the Observer, Undertaker — alongside Jeremy Borash — booked the AAA Guerra de Titanes event. He’s been more involved with creative there. Taker is very involved in AAA. Fightful Select notes that Tony Khan really likes Mick Foley and there’s at least a possibility he could go there after his departure from WWE. Mick is indeed All Elite. (1/1) Clark Connors is part of the review of talent contracts in New Japan Pro Wrestling, and his is coming up at the end of January, says Fightful. His status is in question. He’s in AEW. December 30, 2025 WWE said Dominik Mysterio is “out indefinitely” with a shoulder injury. Bodyslam.net notes he is in good spirits, however, and the company is simply being cautious with him. He missed 3 months. They also say Jacob Fatu is penciled in to return to WWE in early 2026 and the company wants him to have a breakthrough year. I’d say this is accurate. (1/1) The Observer notes most of the WWE content will leave Peacock on Thursday, with just SmackDown, Saturday Night’s Main Event, and major NXT shows remaining. That’s correct, with NXT also leaving later in 2026. (1/1) Regarding WWE running brand specific PLE’s, Fightful Select notes that ESPN paid for five or six match events and there is no incentive to go back to doing them, so it’s not expected at all. Was brand specific PPVs something people were talking about? Feels like this rumor is disputing something that wasn’t a thing. Per Bryan Alvarez, Kyle Fletcher is fine after the bad bump he took on his head at Worlds End. That’s good. December 31, 2025 In an update on Dominik Mysterio’s injury status, Dave Meltzer said on Wrestling Observer Radio that he’s only expected to be out for three to four weeks, meaning he’ll be back for the Royal Rumble event. He was out until March. (0/1) PW Insider says Sheamus underwent shoulder surgery just yesterday in Alabama. We haven’t seen Sheamus in awhile. According to Fightful Select, Chad Gable could be making his return to television soon. It’s unclear exactly when but it’s soon and he’s been training at the Performance Center to get ready for it. It was at the Rumble. (1/1) Per Self Made Pro, the breakup of the Death Riders may not be a conventional stable breakup. They say there are “voices within the promotion” who think it’s not going to play out how fans expect. They haven’t broken up at all. They also say AEW has plans to do a major program between MJF and Kenny Omega in 2026. They had a title match at Dynasty and fight for the title next Wednesday. (1/1) BodySlam.net claims WWE now views Oba Femi as being on par with Bron Breakker with his main roster call up right around the corner. He may be above right now Breakker, but he did get called up soon after. (1/1) January 1, 2026 Post Wrestling’s report on the WWE shareholder lawsuit included a Feb. 2023 text from Vince McMahon to Bruce Prichard asking if “Roman and Cody know the new creative re WM and next year?”, seemingly indicating that McMahon wasn’t solely focusing on the sale of the company as it was said he would be when he returned a month earlier. I’m sure he had his fingers all over creative. Discussing that on Wrestling Observer Radio, Dave Meltzer said that while it was Vince’s call ultimately, it was Roman Reigns who pitched the idea that he beat Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 39 and then lose to him the following year. With Paul Heyman’s help, Reigns made a “very persuasive” argument that ultimately proved correct. “But,” Meltzer said, “Vince made the call and [Paul ”Triple H”] Levesque was on board with the call but Vince was the one who made the call.“ It worked out in the end. During his lengthy interview with with Case Lowe, Tony Khan praised AEW’s partners CMLL and talked wanting to run more shows in Mexico. He also promised “Grand Slam Mexico will be back in 2026”. He was not lying. Elsewhere in the same interview, Khan dismissed rumors he blocked WWE’s Shinsuke Nakamura from being Hiroshi Tanahashi’s final opponent this weekend: “A lot of that never happened and a lot of it was like, how would you know what that guy was thinking… I thought that was an interesting story, I’ll put it that way.” That was likely never going to happen given all the politics. Michin posted on Instagram that she was leaving the WWE Holiday Tour early, and Fightful Select says that’s due to a shoulder injury she suffered on the tour. No word on the severity, or Michin’s status for her scheduled match with Jade Cargill on Friday’s SmackDown. That match did not happen. Fightful also reported that Luchasaurus has a legit shoulder injury. The beatdown on last night’s Dynamite was a storyline write-off while he addresses the injury. He missed about a month at this time. January 2, 2026 Oddschecker and BetOnline currently list Bianca Belair as the favorite to win the women’s Royal Rumble match later this month in Saudi Arabia, with Liv Morgan as the next most likely wrestler to win. Bianca was not in the Rumble given her pregnancy. Liv won it. (0/1) BodySlam.net heard that LA Knight is expected back on WWE programming “very soon,” and it’s possible that will happen on next week’s loaded Stranger Things Night episode of Raw on Netflix. It was in the Rumble. (1/2) Fightful Select was told that AEW always had a plan in place for Mercedes Mone’s TBS championship loss. After she dropped that belt to Willow Nightingale at New Year’s Smash, Wrestling Observer Radio’s Dave Meltzer said he thinks it’s part of AEW’s plan for Mone to eventually win the women’s world championship. We’ll see if that happens at All In, but she was a last minute addition to the tournament (given Willow’s injury) so who knows what the original plan could hav been. Fightful also mentioned that even though WWE canceled Tony Hinchcliffe’s comedy show during SummerSlam weekend, their relationship with him is fine, and it’s expected to continue going forward. Cool. Steve Maclin told The PWI Podcast there was a plan in place for him to be CM Punk’s first opponent in TNA in late 2023, if then-President Scott D’Amore was able to sign Punk after he was terminated by AEW. Maclin has since requested and was granted his release from TNA. EC3 isn’t the only wrestler who is gone from NWA. Colby Corino is also no longer under contract with Billy Corgan’s promotion, per Fightful. EC3 went back to TNA, but he’s not often used. The outlet also heard that people in NJPW believe Yota Tsuji’s recent anti-AEW remarks were a shoot, as he’s been very vocal for years about his dislike of the promotion. Tsuji is scheduled to fight AEW star Konosuke Takeshita this weekend at Wrestle Kingdom 20 in the Tokyo Dome. Interesting. January 3, 2026 The Rock is not working a match this year at WrestleMania 42, per Andrew Baydala. However, there are discussions underway about a “big offer” for him to get in the ring at WrestleMania 43 in Saudi Arabia. There seems to be some “hesitation about proceeding,” because The Rock knows “it would most likely be his last match.” He did not work 42. We’ll see about 43. (1/1) Jonathan Coachman heard that Chris Jericho has “lost between 50 and 60 pounds” and is “in tremendous shape.” This could be a sign that he has been preparing for a move away from AEW. Or back to AEW. (0/1) WrestleVotes Radio mentioned that Brock Lesnar, Jacob Fatu, LA Knight, Tiffany Stratton, and Chad Gable are all expected to be back in WWE in time for the Royal Rumble in Saudi Arabia. Everyone here was in their Rumble. (5/5) Even though Gable played the El Grande Americano character before he got injured, Votes says WWE is not planning to move Ludwig Kaiser out of that role. F4WOnline’s Dave Meltzer thinks it would be surprising if WWE takes the gimmick away from Kaiser, because he’s “one of their top stars in Mexico right now” doing that act. They did a mask vs. mask match and Kaiser is still running with the gimmick. (1/1) Votes also claims there is a lot of talk within WWE about showcasing Liv Morgan as a “centerpiece” of the women’s division at WrestleMania 42. She won the women’s title after winning the Rumble. I could argue it’s still always Rhea Ripley, but I think this is accurate enough. (1/1) Meanwhile, BodySlam.net heard that WWE has discussed booking a program between Morgan and Stephanie Vaquer, but it’s something that will happen “down the road” instead of in the immediate short-term. Vaquer has been out for awhile. WWE also sees “tremendous value” in booking Vaquer against Becky Lynch and Rhea Ripley “when the time is right.” I’m sure at least one of those matches will happen. This week: 15/2o – 75% December 2025: 57/90 – 63% 2025: 667/1,028 – 65% Overall: 6,345/10,793 Have a great holiday weekend everyone!