Rusev Returns to WWE Raw After WrestleMania Following 5 Years in AEW as Miro

Rusev made his long-awaited return to WWE during Monday Night Raw after a fiver-year stint at AEW.

Fans were stunned by the unexpected mid-match return during a tag-team clash between Otis and Akira Tozawa and The New Day.

or the first time since 2020, Rusev made his dramatic return to Monday Night Raw, with his name echoing through the arena, earning a thunderous pop from the crowd for the eight-year WWE veteran.

Rusev's AEW run peaked in 2021 when he defeated Darby Allin to become the TNT Champion. However, not much came to fruition for the former champion after that. His last televised appearance with the program came in December 2023.

Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com had first reported that the three-time United States champion had visited the WWE headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut and signed a contract to return.

Fans were expecting a return for the big man at WrestleMania, but they thankfully got one the following Monday, on the coveted Raw after WrestleMania.

Leaving the WWE was not his decision, after he was a part of a large wave of roster cuts that happen usually after WrestleMania.

In the fall of 2020, he debuted in AEW under the new name Miro. His wife CJ Perry AKA Lana in WWE, also moved to AEW for a short stint, raising eyebrows about a potential Lana return alongside Rusev.