WWE Hall of Famer Rob Van Dam Makes Surprise Appearance on AEW Dynamite

RVD wrestled Swerve Strickland on AEW Dynamite.

By Liam Crowley

All Elite Wrestling may be a young company, but it has had no difficulty in attracting wrestling legends of yesteryear to make guest appearances. Bret "The Hitman" Hart unveiled the AEW World Championship back at AEW Double or Nothing 2019. Jake "The Snake" Roberts confronted Cody Rhodes on an episode of AEW Dynamite before becoming Lance Archer's manager. Sting even came out of retirement for one final in-ring run in AEW that is set to wrap up this March. While some of these legends sign contracts with AEW, others are brought in for one-off appearances. That was the case with Rob Van Dam this past summer.

Rob Van Dam made his AEW debut in August 2023, wrestling then-FTW Champion Jack Perry during Perry's reign of terror against former ECW wrestlers. RVD went on to align with Hook, competing in a tandem of tag team matches with the second-generation star. His last AEW appearance came in October 2023.

Rob Van Dam Makes AEW Return

ROB-VAN-DAM-AEW-DYNAMITE-SWERVE-STRICKLAND-RVD
(Photo: AEW)

The Whole F'n Show is back on TBS.

WWE Hall of Famer Rob Van Dam was revealed to be Swerve Strickland's mystery opponent on tonight's AEW Dynamite. Swerve and rival Hangman Page competed in "Dealer's Choice" Matches throughout the evening, a stipulation that mandates that each man selects each other's opponent. Swerve picked stablemate Toa Liona to go up against Hangman while Hangman chose RVD to stand opposite Swerve. Hangman also added that the contest would be a Hardcore Match, which Swerve went on to win.

You can check out highlights from RVD's AEW return below...

This was RVD's first wrestling match of 2024. The 53-year-old wrestler has been competing for over 30 years now, making a name for himself in ECW throughout the late 1990s. RVD would eventually join WWE during the infamous "invasion" angle and eventually became a full-time member of that company's roster. He found big success in the midcard, winning the WWE Intercontinental Championship on six occasions. His biggest victory would come in 2006 when he upset John Cena at ECW One Night Stand to become WWE Champion.

RVD left WWE in 2007 and returned to the independent circuit. He eventually found a home in TNA in 2010. He spent just three years there during his first run as he would go back to WWE in 2013. After leaving WWE again in 2014, RVD floated around the independent circuit and would occasionally pop into Impact Wrestling for a storyline. He was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2021.

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