44-year-old former WWE champion will return to the ring after 8 years of absence, says JBL

WWE Hall of Famer John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL) recently addressed the future of a current superstar. He claimed the 44-year-old would return to in-ring competition after a long absence.

The superstar in question is none other than Wade Barrett. The five-time Intercontinental Champion has not wrestled in over eight years. His final match came in April 2016 when he and Sheamus lost a WWE Tag Team Championship Match against The New Day on Monday Night RAW. He has since stepped away from the ring. Although he left the promotion in 2016, he returned in 2020 to become a color commentator.

A potential return to the ring for Barrett was recently teased on the red brand when he was confronted by his friend, Drew McIntyre. In an interview with the Huge Pop podcast, Hall of Famer JBL was asked whether he thinks the current RAW color commentator would compete again inside the squared circle. The 57-year-old legend said he believes the former Intercontinental Champion will:

"He's still young. He was a good worker. Yeah, I think he probably will. If I were him, do it. You have all of your life to do commentary. You don't have all your life to get into the ring. If I'm him, if you still have the urge, just try it. If it doesn't work out, so what, go back to commentary. If it does, you've got something, and then go back to commentary," JBL said. [H/T: Fightful]

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Did Wade Barrett tease an in-ring return after WWE RAW?

After his confrontation with Drew McIntyre about two weeks ago on Monday Night RAW, Wade Barrett dropped what many considered another tease for a potential in-ring return after last week's episode of the red brand.

As Rhea Ripley speared Liv Morgan over the announce table, taking down Barrett on their way, the WWE color commentator took to X to point out that it had been eight and a half years since he took his last bump. Meanwhile, he claimed that although his job is dangerous, he was willing to take the risk if the situation demanded:

"8.5 years since I last took a bump. It can be a dangerous job, but as a gentleman, it’s a risk I’m willing to take. #WWERaw," he wrote.

While many speculate that the five-time Intercontinental Champion could be on his way to making an in-ring comeback, it would be interesting to see if that would indeed happen.