Since early 2000, we saw the growth of WWE acquiring several rival companies and conquering the wrestling scene. After Vince McMahon’s owned WWE dominated the wrestling era for nearly two decades, his rival Tony Khan stepped up with AEW (All Elite Wrestling) in 2019. This certainly changed the game of the wrestling scene as it brought changes to the sports entertainment market.
The billionaires McMahon and Khan went on to build their own rosters of wrestling superstars. Some professional WWE wrestlers even moved to AEW, signing a brand new contract.
Today, we will look at the ten popular WWE superstars to AEW roster.
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10) Brandi Rhodes
Brandi Rhodes’ debut in WWE can be traced back to 2011, signing a development contract as a ring announcer under the name ‘Eden Stiles.’ While she left WWE in December 2011, she rejoined the wrestling scene in 2013 before parting ways again in May 2016. She finally made her ring debut in October 2016 after signing the contract with TNA in September; TMZ broke the news. This signing didn’t last long as the wife of professional wrestler Cody Rhodes left Impact Wrestling in 2017.
After the announcement of AEW in 2019, she became Chief Brand Officer and debuted in the first pay-per-view match in May 2019. She performed in AEW, becoming a wrestler and a top executive. During her AEW career, she worked harder than any other wrestler, as per the reports of theundefeated.com.
With almost three years stint in AEW, she left the franchise on February 15, 2022 alongside Cody Rhodes. AEW announced the duo’s departure on their X page (formerly Twitter).
9) Pac
Benjamin Satterley, ring name Pac, debuted with WWE in July 2012. He wrestled in NXT under the name ‘Adrian Neville’ and fought several superstars like the Wyatt Family, Dean Ambrose, Kevin Owens. He becomes a reigning NXT champion before losing his championship belt to Sami Zayn. He was then drafted to WWE RAW in 2016 and went on to become Cruiserweight Champion. After the contract dispute, WWE announced in August 2018 that Neville was no longer under the contract.
The British superstar joined the AEW (All Elite Wrestling) rosters in 2019 under the name Pac. While he was absent in AEW during the COVID pandemic, Tony Khan assured it was due to travel restrictions. He makes a stunning return to AEW Dynamite in November 2020 after being quarantined for seven months, wrestlinginc.com reports.
8) Sting
Sting is one of the greatest professional wrestlers known as ‘The Ultimate Warrior,’ gaining fame from WWF (World Wrestling Federation). Since his CWA (Continential Wrestling Association) debut in 1985, he became renowned for holding Heavyweight Championship. Due to his loyalty to WCW (World Championship Wrestling), it took a decade for him to debut in WWE.
Sting made his first WWE ring appearance in November 2014, attacking Triple H that build to Sting vs. Triple H for WrestleMania 31. He announced his retirement from the wrestling scene during the WWE Hall of Fame speech in 2016. In May 2020, WWE announced that Sting was no longer in a contract with WWE. After leaving the wrestling brand, he joined AEW in December 2020, making his debut in AEW Dynamite.
7) Goldust
Goldust, aka Dustin Rhodes, one of the best wrestlers of WWF (now WWE), debuted in the pro wrestling scene in 1995. He fought The Ultimate Warrior, The Undertaker, Al Snow and formed a team with Booker-T in WWE Raw. After fighting briefly in TNA, he returned to WWE in 2005 before entering the TNA roster once more in 2007. He then parted his ways with TNA in 2008. Goldust also fought under the SmackDown and NXT brand. He left WWE after his contract expired in March 2019, becoming a free agent.
In August 2019, AEW’s Twitter announced that Rhodes would join AEW as a wrestler and coach. Dustin, the legendary wrestler Dusty Rhodes’s son, signed a multi-year contract extension with AEW joining the coaching staff.
6) Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes, the half-brother of Goldust, debuted in the WWE in 2006, playing in Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). He teamed up with Hardcore Holly after a brief rivalry, and the duo won World Tag Team Championship in late 2007. During his tenure with WWE, Rhodes became known for his feud with D Generation X, aka Shawn Michaels and Triple H. He partnered with Goldust, and with his name as Stardust, the duo fought with The Shield and had bad blood established with The Authority.
He left WWE in May 2016 and later claimed that Triple H took his departure personally, as per his interview with Bleacher Reporter. After a brief stint with TNA and New Japan Pro-Wrestling, Rhodes joined AEW as an executive vice president.
He alongside Brandi Rhodes left the franchise on February 15, 2022 with AEW announcing the duo’s departure on their X page (formerly Twitter).
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5) Brodie Lee
Brodie Lee was a professional wrestler known for his ring name Luke Harper. Before joining WWE in 2012, he worked on the independent circuit. He joined ‘The Wyatt Family’ with Eric Rowan and Luke Harper in November 2012, and the trio went on to conquering the NXT circuit. During his tenure, he fought superstars Jon Moxley, CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Brock Lesnar, to name a few. He left WWE in November 2019 after settling the contract with the giant wrestling company.
After WWE, he debuted in AEW Dynamite in March 2020 as ‘The Exalted One.’ But he suffered an undisclosed injury that AEW confirmed in November 2020. The American wrestler died at 41 on 26 December 2020. His wife Amanda Huber confirmed Lee’s death due to a non-COVID lung-related issue.
4) Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho made his WWF (now WWE) debut in 1999 and became renowned for his longtime feud with fellow wrestler Chyna. He fought several legends like Chris Benoit, Kurt Angle, Rob Van Dam, The Rock, Christian, and has left WWE on several occasions. The greatest professional wrestler of all time, Jericho has won several titles, including World Heavyweight Championship, World Championship, and Intercontinental Championship. After Wrestlemania 33 in April 2017, he made a departure from WWE once and for all.
Later in his interview with Glenn King, Jericho revealed he felt like he was insulted by Vince McMahon that made him seek to leave WWE. He signed a three-year contract with AEW in 2019, and since then, he has become one of the top wrestlers of AEW rosters.
3) Matt Hardy
One half of ‘The Hardy Boyz’ tag team, Matt Hardy is best known as the WWF Tag Team Champion alongside his brother Jeff Hardy. He and Jeff feuds with Edge, Christian, and The Dudley Boyz before both stormed as solo competitors. He left WWE on multiple occasions before making his debut with TNA in January 2011. Due to his TV tapings, he got suspended from TNA in June 2011. Later he reunited with his brother in WWE, but Jeff suffered a knee injury that prompted Matt to appear less. In March 2020, WWE announced that his contract was expired.
Nonetheless, one of the greatest WWE showrunners, Matt, joined AEW in March 2020 and kept his wrestling spirit firm. He feels ‘very rewarding’ for having creative freedom with AEW, as per his interview with TV Insider.
2) Jon Moxley
Jon Moxley is highly recognizable for his WWE appearance as Dean Ambrose from 2011 to 2019. He was one of the trios of ‘The Shield‘ alongside Seth Rollins and Roman Reigns. After Rollins betrayed ‘The Shield’ with ‘The Authority,’ the group went separate ways and continued to feud with each other. During the time, Ambrose fought several superstars like Kane, Big Show, Sheamus, and even become the WWE World Heavyweight Champion after winning the 2016 Money in the Bank ladder match.
His wrestling stint continued with WWE before Vince McMahon tried to introduce his character with a new storyline. During his podcast with Chris Jericho on Talk is Jericho in May 2019, he revealed that he left WWE due to a disagreement with McMahon. Regardless, he joined AEW as Jon Moxley and became renowned for his feud with Chris Jericho.
1) Big Show
Since his WCW days, Big Show, aka Paul Wight, was a massive star feared by all wrestlers as ‘The Giant.’ One of WWE’s fan-favorite, he won multiple championships and initially served as McMahon’s enforcer. He built rivalry with several superstars like Kurt Angle, Brock Lesnar, John Cena, Triple H, and more during his tenure.
After appearing for 22 years, Big Show and WWE couldn’t come to financial terms. He left the company in February 2021. Soon after ending his long-term run with WWE, it was reported on 24 February 2021 that he would be joining AEW as a wrestler and commentator on the show AEW Dark: Elevation.
