The entirety of the stable that ran NXT during the Wednesday Night Wars has made their way to All Elite Wrestling, just at different times. The defections began at AEW All Out 2021 when Adam Cole debuted, aligning himself with The Elite. In the months that followed, Bobby Fish joined AEW, and it wasn’t long until he started tagging with Cole and company. That December, Kyle O’Reilly officially arrived on the scene, immediately linking up with his former stablemates. The trio would team together on just a couple of occasions before Cole and O’Reilly went down with injuries and Fish departed the company altogether.
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Since then, Cole has returned to AEW TV and has had the company of the fourth member of Undisputed Era, Roderick Strong. Strong made his surprise debut earlier this year, coming to the aid of Cole and helping his long-time friend during his feud with the Jericho Appreciation Society.
Considering the JAS still has the numbers advantage on Cole and Strong, many have speculated that O’Reilly could make his AEW comeback this Sunday at AEW Double or Nothing to help even the odds a bit. When asked about O’Reilly’s recovery status, Cole emphasized that he is eager to get back in the ring now that the bulk of his faction is active.
“He’s doing good. He’s in good spirits. He’s on the right track. There is nothing that Kyle wants to do more than come back to work especially now that Roddy is here and things like that,” Cole told Barstool Sports. “He seriously is one of the toughest guys that I’ve ever met, for sure. So everyone, keep your fingers and toes crossed. Kyle is doing awesome. He’s seen great progress and hopefully we’ll see him again very soon.”
Cole, O’Reilly and Strong spent the majority of their NXT time together. Cole’s official NXT debut came alongside O’Reilly and Fish, birthing Undisputed Era. Roughly one year later, Fish went down with an injury, forcing Cole to defend the NXT Tag Titles with O’Reilly. After a successful defense, Strong joined forces with UE, becoming the fourth member of the group and essentially filling Fish’s spot while he was out of action. The four men dominated NXT together from 2018 until 2020, even holding every male championship within the brand simultaneously.
Speaking on Strong’s arrival specifically, Cole stressed that he “could not be happier” that the Messiah of the Backbreaker is now All Elite.
“This guy is genuinely one of my absolute best friends, a guy that I’ve traveled up and down the roads with, whether it be Ring of Honor, PWG, obviously NXT as well. He’s one of the best in-ring performers in the world, in my opinion,” Cole continued. “He’s such a massive asset to any wrestling company that has him. AEW won big on that one.”
AEW Double or Nothing goes down this Sunday, May 28th.
