Report: Chris Jericho Signed 3-Year AEW Contract; Best Deal of Star's Career
January 10, 2019
Chris Jericho reportedly signed a three-year deal with All Elite Wrestling this week.
According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Marc Middleton of WrestlingInc.com), the 48-year-old said it is the "best contract of his career."
Jericho appeared at Tuesday's AEW Double or Nothing rally in Jacksonville, Florida, and later officially inked his contract with the promotion:
Per Meltzer, the deal will allow Jericho to continue working with New Japan Pro-Wrestling, and it will also allow him to run another cruise in 2019 after the success of his first one in 2018.
Jericho appeared on SiriusXM's Busted Open Radio on Thursday to discuss his decision to sign with All Elite Wrestling.
During the conversation, the veteran wrestler said he knows of some significant discussions AEW officials have had regarding a television deal:
Meltzer reported that Jericho was in conversations with both WWE and AEW before deciding to sign with AEW.
All Elite Wrestling is being run by Cody Rhodes, Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson, as well as Tony Khan, who is the son of Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan.
Jericho worked exclusively for WWE from 1999-2017 before entering into a feud with Kenny Omega for New Japan.
Jericho went on to face Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 12 before beating Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship.
He dropped the title back to Naito at Wrestle Kingdom 13 last week, which led to speculation regarding his next step.
With Jericho on board, All Elite Wrestling has a legitimate superstar in the fold, and his mere presence should give the new company the type of credibility it needs to land a TV deal and develop into a successful wrestling promotion in the coming months and years.
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