Rob Van Dam endorses 41-year-old AEW star: "He should be f**king on top, crushing the competition"

ECW and WWE legend Rob Van Dam has showered high praise on a 41-year-old AEW powerhouse. The talent in question, Brian Cage, has been signed with the Tony Khan-led promotion since 2020.

The Machine is widely considered to be one of the most underrated athletes currently employed by All Elite Wrestling. He recently joined The Don Callis Family and became part of a new tag team alongside Lance Archer. The former FTW Champion represented the villainous faction against one of its former members, Will Ospreay, last week on AEW Dynamite, albeit in an unsuccessful effort.

Fans and viewers were very much impressed by Cage's performance against The Aerial Assassin this past Wednesday, as was former WWE Champion Rob Van Dam.

On the latest edition of his 1 Of A Kind podcast, The Whole F'n Show complimented the California native for his physique and musculature. He also suggested that AEW ought to present Cage as a tough opponent to overcome.

“I watched the match between Brian Cage and Will Ospreay yesterday. Man, he reminds me of Hercules for a lot of reasons. Except he’s actually of course way more jacked. But at that time, we hadn’t seen anyone that looked like Brian Cage. But he just comes across like a Greek God to me. Just watching him perform out there, he’s so strong and so jacked. He looks like he should be a lot - he should be really hard to beat. Let me put it that way. You know, he looks like he should be f**king on top, crushing the competition.” [H/T - 411Mania]

RVD, incidentally, had made appearances in AEW in 2023 and in 2024 - in fact, he battled Cage's former Moghul Embassy stable-mate Swerve Strickland in a hardcore match in January last year.

---

Tommy Dreamer on how AEW should book Brian Cage

Brian Cage has clearly left a favorable impression on multiple pro wrestling veterans, courtesy of his formidable appearance and his solid in-ring work.

One such veteran, Tommy Dreamer, argued last month on Busted Open After Dark that AEW should consider repackaging the former Impact World Champion and book him as a top name.

"Brian Cage needs a complete overhaul for him to be taken as a serious person instead of this guy who you are going to have a great match with. It's either 'Great Match Brian' or 'Money-Making Brian' that's going to be the difference. His look is good; this is where someone has to say, 'Hey, man, this guy could do everything; let's make him the next big thing!'" he said. [H/T: WrestlingInc.]

Cage did have the distinction of being Kenny Omega's first opponent in All Elite Wrestling after his recovery and return from diverticulitis.