Injured AEW Star Provides Long-Awaited Return Update

Kyle O’Reilly arrived in All Elite Wrestling right at the end of 2021, quickly reuniting with Bobby Fish (as the tag team reDRagon) and Adam Cole to form The Undisputed Elite with The Young Bucks. However, O’Reilly would only wrestle 15 matches in 2022 before undergoing neck fusion surgery. His final appearance on AEW programming came on Aug. 3 where he and Cole confirmed they weren’t medically cleared and promptly turned on the Young Bucks. Cole has been out of action ever since to deal with a serious concussion, while Fish was released from the promotion over a disagreement in contract negotiations. 

O’Reilly has remained mostly silent on social media since announcing he underwent neck fusion in September but returned to Instagram this weekend to confirm the struggles he’s been facing in his recovery. 

“New year, new me. I hate how cheesy and cliche that sounds but in the case of Kyle O’Reilly and 2023 it rings very true. Dealing with a post-surgical issue (that I will disclose at a later date) has caused me a lot of frustration and I’ve spent the last few months of ’22 with anger and confusion. In order for me to return to the ring I simply cannot come back as good as I was. I have to become better in every aspect of my athletic wellness. I have to train better, eat smarter and recover with intention,” O’Reilly wrote. “Many of you are aware of my battle with type-1 diabetes and that also puts me at a disadvantage in terms of healing and recovery. Thankfully working with @thediabeticfighter has inspired me to regain control of my life and to finally hop off the blood sugar roller coaster. I cannot recommend this man’s services enough, in 6 days alone I’m spending more time in my target range than I have in months. And of course I couldn’t pull it off without my trusty @eversensecgm. It’s astonishing how consistently accurate this device is and has been my tag-team partner for almost 5 years. If the transmitter falls off during physical therapy or when I walk into a door frame I can just stick it back on.

“I haven’t spoken much about my injury and the mental struggles I’ve faced but I’m realizing how therapeutic it is to just write this down,” he continued. “Our words have so much power even if you’re just thinking them or writing them down. So a ‘new me’ is a necessity to ensure that I will once again have the honor and privilege of walking down that ramp and stepping through those ropes. Expect more from me as the months go on and witness a glimpse into how I rebuild and retrain myself for a return that I can’t wait for you all to see.”