Hold onto your hats, folks—especially if you’re Jake Hager! The big man with the even bigger purple hat is reportedly done with AEW after his contract ran out faster than a luchador on caffeine.
According to Bodyslam.net’s very own Cassidy Haynes, Jake Hager, aka the artist formerly known as Jack Swagger, has gracefully exited Tony Khan’s wrestling extravaganza. And, in a move shocking absolutely no one, the decision was mutual. That’s right, Hager and AEW amicably parted ways, making Hager the latest free agent in the wrestling cosmos.
For those keeping score at home, Hager’s final bout with AEW was on the February 21 episode of “AEW Rampage,” where he was pinned by Roderick Strong. His swan song on “AEW Dynamite” came at the end of December 2023. There, he joined forces with The Gunns and Matt Menard only to lose to Billy Gunn, The Acclaimed, and Scott Taylor—proving once again that teamwork makes the dream work, unless your dream is to win.
Hager signed with AEW back in 2019 and made his grand entrance on October 2 as part of Chris Jericho’s inner circle, which was like the cool kids’ table in the high school cafeteria of wrestling. However, it wasn’t until the following February at Revolution that he first laced up his boots for an AEW match. Unfortunately, Hager’s screen time has been scarcer than a clean finish in a triple threat match since the Jericho Appreciation Society disbanded.
Before his AEW escapade, Hager swaggered through WWE from 2006 to 2017, picking up a few titles and a whole lot of fan chants of “We the People” along the way. He burst onto the scene in WWE’s ECW revival and nabbed his first title from Matt Hardy in 2009. Hager’s WWE chapter closed in March 2017 after he asked for his release, proving even the Real American needs a real break sometimes.
In other news from the land of expired contracts, AEW’s Mark Henry has also revealed he’s not re-signing. Henry, who doubled as an announcer, coach, and scout, spilled the beans on “Busted Open Radio,” stating that the decision was mutual and he plans to focus on his personal brands. Because nothing says “World’s Strongest Man” like branching out into business ventures.