Former Wyatt Family Member Returning To AEW To Form Unique Tag Team
Despite never signing a full-time contract with AEW, Erick Redbeard [formerly known as Erick Rowan in WWE] has made his presence felt in the promotion over the past few years.
Following the death of his former tag team partner, Brodie Lee, Redbeard appeared on the memorial "Brodie Lee Celebration of Life" episode of "AEW Dynamite" on December 30, 2020, where he protected Dark Order members from a post-match beatdown at the hands of Wardlow. After rescuing Lee's former stablemates, he would embrace Dark Order in an emotional moment while holding up a sign that read: "Goodbye, for now, my brother. See you down the road."
Earlier this year, Redbeard returned to AEW TV and aligned himself with PAC and Penta Oscuro of Death Triangle, who were embroiled in a feud with House of Black (Malakai Black, Brody King, and Buddy Matthews). The storyline would lead to a Trios Match at AEW Revolution's "Buy-In" pre-show event, which Black & Co. would win.
Redbeard Returns To AEW!
It was announced on the August 10 edition of "AEW Dynamite" that Redbeard will be returning the promotion this Friday on "AEW Rampage."
Interestingly, Redbeard will be teaming up with the highly-unorthodox Danhausen in a match against the Gunn Club. The match was set up during a backstage segment Wednesday where Danhausen interrupted Billy Gunn giving a dressing down to his boys, Austin and Colten, for losing to The Acclaimed in a Dumpster Match the previous week. It was later announced that Danhausen will be paired with 300-plus pound Redbeard as they face the Gunn Club this Friday.
The news of Redbeard's AEW return shouldn't come as a huge surprise. Earlier on Wednesday, Fightful Select reported that the former Wyatt Family member was backstage at the Target Center in Minneapolis, MN, where the "Quake by the Lake" edition of " AEW Dynamite" was held. The report did not specify if Redbeard was in negotiations to sign a full-time deal with AEW.
Besides the few cameos for AEW, Redbeard has also been active on the indie circuit in recent months, wrestling matches for promotions such as NEW, CYN, and Battleground Championship Wrestling. Following his WWE release in April 2020, Redbeard also landed several acting gigs, making cameos on an episode of "Mayor of Kingstown" and the 2021 film "Ghost of the Ozarks."