AEW News Roundup: Popular star's return inspired by Sting, Unfortunate concerns about Rey Fenix, Surprising reunion teased & more

Welcome to another edition of Sportskeeda Wrestling's AEW News and Rumor roundup. Today, we will look at stories involving Danhausen, Rey Fenix, Bandido, and more.

A potential Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale reunion has also been teased as well as Mariah May hinting at future modeling or acting projects. So, let's not wait any further and dive into these stories:

#5. Danhausen confirmed that AEW icon Sting inspired his return

Danhausen made a shock return on ROH Final Battle after ten months of being absent from TV. He suddenly appeared in the opening match between Mansoor and Atlantic Jr. and helped the latter even the odds by attacking Mason Madden.

Danhausen would emerge wearing a mask with his face paint design before taking it off and revealing himself. He has now confirmed over on X (fka Twitter) that this part of his return was inspired by his friend and AEW legend, Sting.

#4. Eric Bischoff has expressed his concerns over the Rey Fenix and AEW situation

Eric Bischoff recently raised concerns over Rey Fenix's current complications with All Elite Wrestling.

Fenix has been seemingly airing out his frustrations and the inhumane treatment he received from AEW in the form of cryptic tweets on social media. He has been rumored to leave the promotion with his brother Penta El Zero for a while now; however, there has been time added to his contract.

Eric Bischoff spoke on the situation over on the 83 Weeks podcast, stating that Rey Fenix is currently in prison and this might require legal action to solve:

"He's in prison. Can't go anywhere. Every time he tries, he's gonna get his hand slapped. The fact that he had to take down his tweets tells me everything that I need to know. He's got exposure. This is gonna be a legal situation. It clearly is already, which means it's only gonna get uglier," he said.

#3. AEW has teased a massive reunion between two major stars

A massive reunion may be on the cards for two former friends now turned into rivals, Kris Statlander and Willow Nightingale. The two stars crossed paths with one another once again on the Holiday Bash edition of Rampage.

On the taped episode, a backstage segment featuring Willow Nightingale being interviewed by Renee Paquette was aired. She would soon be interrupted by her former ally Kris Statlander who wished Willow the best for her match on January 5 at Wrestle Dynasty in the International Women's Cup.

Statlander also alluded to things that she has to say to Nightingale, referencing her betrayal by aligning with Stokely Hathaway. She has since been removed from Stokely's side and is looking to course correct.

#2. Mariah May has commented on future modeling or acting projects

Mariah May is a certified top star within AEW and has been reminding everyone of her worth every week ever since she captured the Women's World Title. The Glamour is seemingly just at the start of her professional wrestling career and is yet to become even more popular.

May has now spoken out about possibly branching out to pursue modeling or acting projects. Speaking over on Niko Exxtra, she stated that she's currently all in on her journey as a professional wrestler in All Elite Wrestling but stated that if she wanted to do different projects, Tony Khan would allow it:

“If I ever did want to do a TV show or a film or anything like that, [Tony Khan] will allow you to do those things. We have such a stacked division that, I mean, if I went, it would be a great loss, but it’s like, okay, let’s give another girl a chance to make a name for herself so I can come back to something. So I think that is the exciting part about AEW is they want the best for you." [H/T: Fightful]

#1. Tony Khan expressed his desire to sign Bandido when AEW first launched

Tony Khan has expressed his desire of wanting to sign Bandido for his promotion when it first launched back in 2019.

Bandido finally signed with All Elite Wrestling in November 2022 and was a regular feature on programming until he faced a wrist injury at a Rampage taping on June 14, 2023. He has now finally made his return at ROH Final Battle on December 20.

Tony Khan spoke at the ROH Final Battle post media scrum and commented on the star's return further stating that he wanted to sign him when AEW first launched.

"It was really great to see him back. When I first acquired ROH, Bandido had been the reigning champion and we had the match to crown the undisputed ROH Champion, he was the lineal champion at the time. It was great to get Bandido, who actually missed Final Battle 2021 due to COVID and we crowned an interim champion and then the undisputed champion at my first ever event, Supercard. That was my first time working with Bandido. I really wanted to sign Bandido when we first launched AEW. He made a choice and signed with ROH. He became a great World Champion for them and when things changed and I acquired the company, Bandido became a great asset to AEW and ROH. It was exciting to have him return tonight in New York," Khan said. [H/T: Fightful]

It will be interesting to see what Khan has in store for Bandido in the near future.