Dolph Ziggler is officially a free agent. Ziggler was released by WWE this past September following company-wide layoffs as a result of the UFC merger. Like all talent releases, The Show-Off was under a 90-day no-compete clause that only just recently expired this past December. Now that he is free to lace up his boots anywhere he pleases, speculation is already running wild on where fans will see the real-life Nic Nemeth next. Many have clamored for Ziggler to reignite his rivalry with Matt Cardona somewhere on the independent circuit while others have hoped to see Ziggler make his way to a televised company. The interest of Ziggler competing on television goes beyond the fans too, as AEW is rumored to have their eye on the former WWE World Heavyweight Champion.
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Does AEW Have Creative Plans For Dolph Ziggler?
aWord of AEW’s plans for Dolph Ziggler have yet to reach the man himself.
Speaking to ComicBook.com, AEW star Ryan Nemeth noted that neither he nor his brother are in the know of any rumored creative plans being put in place for a potential Ziggler debut.
“If that is happening, I am unaware of it and I think he may also be unaware of it,” Ryan said. “I don’t know. I love hearing wrestling gossip about things that may be imaginary.”
This stems from a report in December which noted that there is an internal push within AEW to sign Ziggler, and that interest is already high enough that there are “multiple creative pitches” being drawn up for his possible arrival. One plan reported involved Ziggler being managed by CJ Perry en route to a feud with Miro.
If Ziggler does sign with AEW, he and his brother might only share a locker room for a short time. Ryan’s AEW contract is set to expire in early spring of this year.
“I will face some type of a crossroads in a few months. I don’t know what will happen. I have mostly had a great time working with AEW and if that continues, that’d be great. If for some reason doesn’t, I will have a great life in some other direction,” Ryan said. “I love performing live comedy with my brother and we will be both wrestling in Puerto Rico for WWC coming up on January 20th. It’s a mystery what’s going to happen specifically, but I’m excited either way.”
2024 represents the first time since 2013 that the Nemeth brothers have the opportunity to share the ring together. When Ryan was in WWE, he worked one match with Ziggler, standing opposite his sibling in a tag team match on an NXT live event.
With the opportunity now to form a brotherly tag team, Ryan beamed at the idea of testing themselves against AEW’s biggest sibling duo, the Young Bucks.
“That would be awesome. I would really enjoy that,” Ryan said. “[Dolph has] come to visit AEW tapings a few times when I’ve been on the show and I’m like, ‘Oh, this is Nic. This is the Jacksons.’ We’re both, ‘Hey, what’s up?’ It’s always been very pleasant. I like them a lot. I like my brother a lot. That would be a fun match.”
