AEW star Billy Gunn was a notable absentee from the 25th-anniversary celebration of DX at the Season Premiere of Monday Night RAW. However, he could have appeared on the show had Tony Khan gotten his way.
Original members Triple H and Shawn Michaels were joined by Road Dogg and Sean Waltman for the celebration. But the other half of the New Age Outlaws wasn't there because he was under contract with AEW.
Billy Gunn was not only happy to make an appearance but was also allowed to do so. However, according to Dave Meltzer, things fell through at the last minute. In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, he wrote:
"[Tony] Khan agreed to let him do to the show but on the air they would have to mention he’s from AEW, or that AEW allowed him to appear or some wording, but there had to be one mention that in some form he works for AEW, just as WWE already did when they got Mickie James for the Royal Rumble this past year. WWE stalled on the yes or no, and then at the last minute would not agree to it." (H/T F4Online)
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Gunn's portion of the New Age Outlaw's signature entrance was performed by the fans in attendance instead. This prompted Corey Graves to reference the veteran's association with AEW's The Acclaimed.
Billy Gunn has appeared on WWE TV while under contract with AEW before
When the time is right, WWE is more than willing to work with other companies, including AEW. Chris Jericho also appeared on Broken Skull Sessions, where he and Steve Austin openly talked about All Elite Wrestling.
However, had Gunn appeared, it would have been the second time he would have shown up on WWE TV while being "All Elite." The first instance came during the 2019 Hall of Fame ceremony.
At the time, AEW had not yet held its first event, but Gunn was still under contract with the company. Hunter even made some interesting comments about the Jacksonville-based promotion during the show.
Would you have liked to witness Billy Gunn on Monday Night RAW? Let us know in the comments section down below.