Tony Khan teases 7-foot giant's AEW return after nearly four years

AEW President Tony Khan has involved celebrity guests in his company's programming several times, from Kevin Smith's appearance on the first episode of Dynamite to Snoop Dogg's frog splash on Serpentico in January 2021. But there's an enduring mystery surrounding one NBA legend who competed for the young promotion.

On the March 3, 2021, episode of AEW Dynamite, Shaquille O'Neal and Jade Cargill took on Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet in a mixed tag team match. It was Cargill's first-ever bout and only the second in-ring appearance from Shaq, who had previously competed in the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 32.

Cargill won the match for her team, but Shaq was driven through a couple of tables by Cody Rhodes just before the pin. The NBA Hall of Famer was loaded into an ambulance but mysteriously disappeared from it before the end of the show.

Fans have since wondered why the angle was set up this way, as O'Neal hasn't yet made another appearance for the promotion. Speaking on a recent episode of The Dan Le Batard Show, AEW President Tony Khan revealed that it was meant to be a cliffhanger:

"I don’t think it serves us well to close the loop because I think Shaq wanted to leave it open-ended for him to come back. He saw that being a really good cliffhanger to a return, and I think he’s right. People are still talking about it and it’s been three and a half years. What he was going for clearly worked because he wanted a cliffhanger that leads to his return. When Shaq is ready to wrestle again, that will be a perfect entry point for him to return to the world of professional wrestling. We loved having Shaq in AEW," Khan said. [h/t Fightful]

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Tony Khan reveals that AEW will return to the UK in 2025

AEW fans were shocked by the recent announcement that All In 2025 will not be held at Wembley Stadium. The Jacksonville-based promotion is moving its biggest event of the year to Arlington, TX, where it will hold its first-ever US stadium show at Globe Life Field.

However, Tony Khan was quick to reassure English fans that All In would return to Wembley in 2026. On top of that, he revealed in the same interview with Dan Le Batard that the company would be heading back to the UK next year, although it wouldn't be for All In:

"We love having AEW at Wembley Stadium and we're back in 2026 in England. (...) Absolutely, we love doing a show in England, and we will be back in England in 2026, and you can bet you will see us there in 2025 as well. It won't be AEW All In. It'll be something different, but we got some big plans coming up next year as well."

AEW is presenting its first episode of Dynamite in the UK today, with this week's flagship show being held at the sold-out Utilita Arena in Cardiff, Wales. Collision will be taped alongside Dynamite as Tony Khan & Co. prepare for All In this Sunday.