Shawn Spears Provides Cryptic Update On His AEW Status

One AEW star long absent from weekly television is telling fans not to hold out for his return. Shawn Spears has been off AEW programming since May, outside of a one-off appearance on "AEW Rampage" in mid-October where he teamed up with FTR for a six-man tag team match. After the show, Spears told the live crowd that he's been taking time off for two reasons: his mother's death earlier in 2022, and the fact that he and Impact Wrestling's Cassie Lee are expecting their first child together.

On Tuesday, Spears signaled to fans that he won't be coming back to the Tony Khan-led promotion in the near future. Spears tweeted his career update in response to a fan site asking where the pro wrestler has been and when he'll be returning to AEW: "Don't hold your breath," he tweeted. "Not going there anytime soon."

Spears appeared to be written out of AEW storylines following a May loss to Wardlow in a steel cage match that featured MJF acting as the special guest referee. Five months later, Spears returned for his trios match with FTR. While 2022 has been an emotional year for Spears, the AEW star sounded eager to share the good news about he and his wife's pregnancy when he broke the news about his son's name to Renee Paquette in November. Late last month, Spears clarified his priorities are outside the squared circle at the moment, telling K&S WrestleFest his responsibilities are being a "dad first, everything else, second."