5 replacements for Bobby Lashley if he can't compete at AEW Full Gear

Bobby Lashley stunned AEW fans when he debuted on Fright Night Dynamite last month. The former WWE Superstar joined his former Hurt Business stablemates MVP and Shelton Benjamin to assault Swerve Strickland shortly after the latter defeated The Standard of Excellence in a match.

Strickland did not take kindly to the group's attack on him and Prince Nana, and soon afterward challenged Lashley to a bout at Full Gear 2024. While Dynamite this week continued to build up the blockbuster matchup, The Franchise Playa recently revealed that Lashley was "not 100% yet" and was still suffering from pain in his triceps. This has given rise to speculations regarding the former WWE Champion being unable to compete on November 23.

Lashley is most likely going to recover and be ready for action ahead of Full Gear. However, in case he needs to be put on the shelf for a while longer, there are a few AEW stars who could replace him for his match against Swerve Strickland.

Let us consider five such names.

#1: MVP himself faces Swerve Strickland at AEW Full Gear

During their in-ring conversation at WrestleDream 2024, Swerve Strickland referenced his history with MVP. The latter was defeated by The New Flavor in singles competition at a DEFY event in June 2018, and the two men have seemingly not shared the ring since then.

MVP has been open about wanting to lace up his boots again in the Tony Khan-led company and is set to return to action for the first time since 2022 later this month at Bloodsport XII. As such, if Bobby Lashley cannot face Strickland at Full Gear, the former US Champion could come in for his stablemate instead, leading to a first-time-ever match in AEW.

#2: Shelton Benjamin vs Swerve Strickland: the re-match

Last month on Fright Night Dynamite, Swerve Strickland took on Shelton Benjamin in a hotly-anticipated match which ended with the former AEW World Champion picking up the win over the 49-year-old veteran.

Prior to their All Elite meeting, Benjamin and Strickland squared off seven years ago in an IPW show in Iowa, where the former Moghul Embassy leader won via countout. Should Bobby Lashley be unable to perform at Full Gear, Benjamin could call out Swerve to a re-match at the pay-per-view, and try to capture his first victory over the latter.

#3: Swerve Strickland takes on Powerhouse Hobbs

Swerve Strickland stood out in AEW's tag team division during his early run in the company. He even held the World Tag Team Title briefly alongside Keith Lee. The two men, for several months, feuded with Team Taz in 2022 and wrestled against Ricky Starks and Powerhouse Hobbs multiple times. However, The Realest has yet to take on The Embodiment of Willpower in singles competition.

The recently returned Will Hobbs seems to be part of a babyface alliance at the moment. However, fans want to see him get included in The Hurt Syndicate. Such an angle could come to pass if Bobby Lashley has to sit out Full Gear 2024, potentially leading to Hobbs joining The Destroyer's stable and taking on Swerve at the pay-per-view in his place.

#4: Adam Cole reclaims his Full Gear spot but against Swerve Strickland

Adam Cole suffered an upset loss this week on Dynamite, as he was pinned by AEW International Champion Konosuke Takeshita. The defeat prevented The Panama City Playboy from securing a match against his nemesis MJF at Full Gear. However, Cole could potentially regain his spot at the event by calling out Swerve Strickland for a match instead.

Cole has a history with Swerve in All Elite Wrestling, as the two men exchanged barbs earlier this year, back when Samoa Joe was still AEW World Champion. Furthermore, it has been five years since Strickland has wrestled the Undisputed Kingdom member one-on-one.

If Bobby Lashley is pulled out of his match against the Washington native, he could be substituted by Cole, who could use the opportunity to try and build up some momentum once again.

Adam Cole and Swerve Strickland had a tense confrontation on Dynamite in March [Source: AEW's YouTube channel]

#5: Wardlow returns to face Swerve Strickland

In the AEW Dynamite segment mentioned above from March, featuring Swerve Strickland, Samoa Joe, and Adam Cole, the latter proclaimed that his stablemate Wardlow would beat The Samoan Submission Machine to bring the World Title to him. Unfortunately, Mr. Mayhem failed in his quest, as he was defeated by Joe on Dynamite: Big Business.

Wardlow has been absent from All Elite programming since then, and according to one of his teammates, the former TNT Champion has been dealing with a knee injury. However, a recent report claimed that The War Dog was present backstage at Fright Night Dynamite, the same show where Bobby Lashley made his AEW debut.

While the odds are unlikely, if Lashley cannot work his Full Gear match against Swerve Strickland, the spot could be filled by a returning Wardlow. The two stars have never faced off so far in AEW, and a first-time-ever comeback match against a former World Champion like Swerve on a major pay-per-view could work wonders for the 36-year-old's career moving forward.