Nigel McGuinness in-ring return one of AEW All In Casino gauntlet surprises
AEW broadcaster Nigel McGuinness made his surprise return to in-ring action at Sunday’s All In from Wembley Stadium as part of the Casino gauntlet match.
McGuinness, a native of London, entered third to a raucous ovation, standing toe-to-toe with current AEW Continental Champion Kazuchika Okada before the two exchanged offense.
The 48-year-old hadn’t been in the ring since December 2011 and had previously retired due to medical issues. Over the last year, there had been some rumors that McGuinness was training for an in-ring return and might be tabbed for a singles match with Bryan Danielson for AEW’s return to Wembley.
McGuinness, the former ROH World and Pure Champion, got his chance to mix it up with fellow Englishman Zack Sabre Jr. which the fans also responded to with a standing ovation.
At one point, it appeared McGuinness was going to win after hitting an assisted Tower of London on Kyle O’Reilly before the pin was broken up. He then hit a Teeter Totter on O’Reilly and was about to go for a pin but was taken out by a Christian Cage spear.
After being released in October 2022 by WWE after six years, McGuinness made his surprise return to Ring of Honor at April 2023’s Supercard of Honor, joining the commentary team and eventually making his way to the broadcast desks of AEW.
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Other surprises in the match include former WWE star Ricochet, NJPW G1 winner Zack Sabre Jr., reigning AEW Continental Champion Kazuchika Okada, Jeff Jarrett, and Patriarchy teammates Luchasaurus (announced as such) and the aforementioned Christian Cage nearly two hours after they lost the AEW Trios titles.
Luchasaurus/Killswitch teased a split with Cage based on the aforementioned title loss, but instead choke slammed O’Reilly and pulled Cage’s body on top of him for the win which gives Cage a future AEW World title shot.