AEW's Tony Khan Addresses Status Of Long-Absent Chris Jericho

Former AEW World Champion Chris Jericho has not appeared on AEW programming since losing the ROH World Title to Bandido at the Dynasty PPV in April. Jericho recently lauded TNA and its partnership with WWE for creating a bigger spectacle than AEW at their recent Slammiversary event, and gave the final match between The Hardys and The Dudleys 5 stars, leading many to wonder what Jericho's status with AEW is. In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, AEW President Tony Khan threw cold water on anyone thinking Jericho had left the company.

"Chris Jericho is somebody who is in AEW," Tony Khan said, lauding Jericho's loyalty to AEW since 2019, and putting. "He's been away from us for a bit...I love Chris personally and professionally. I just reached out and wished him a happy birthday recently."

Khan noted that Jericho has been in matches as recently as April, but would not commit to when Jericho would return to the company.

"I love having Chris in AEW and...the door's always open," Khan said. "[His absence] comes down to working out the dates."

When pressed about Jericho's contract being due to expire soon, Khan deflected and simply reiterated his appreciation for Jericho's 6 years of work in AEW. The answer was similar to Khan's answers about Jericho back in October, where Khan again praised Jericho's reign as AEW World Champion and his tenure with the company. Jericho's upcoming epynonymous wrestling cruise announced its lineup, which notably featured no AEW talent like in years past.