Chris Jericho reflects on how his adamant decision to not work elsewhere other than WWE was changed by Vince McMahon

Chris Jericho explains how Vince McMahon's decision to allow him to wrestle at the Tokyo Dome led him directly to AEW.

Chris Jericho reflects on how his adamant decision to not work elsewhere other than WWE was changed by Vince McMahon

Chris Jericho and Vince McMahon (via AEW/WWE)

Former WWE superstar Chris Jericho is a veteran in the pro wrestling industry. Currently, he competes for All Elite Wrestling after joining in 2019. In fact, Jericho is one of the first wrestlers to make the jump from WWE to AEW, solidifying the latter as a significant alternative. Recently, he spoke about his decision to leave the Stamford-based promotion and how Vince McMahon influenced it to some extent.

During an interview on The AEW-some Pod, Chris Jericho expressed how having AEW as an alternative company helps the wrestling industry. Jericho revealed that when he left WWE, he was adamant that he wouldn’t work for anyone in the wrestling industry apart from Vince McMahon. However, that soon changed as he started envisioning far greater things outside the promotion.

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Chris Jericho stated that he then realized the opportunities he had outside the realm of WWE. According to him, wrestling Kenny Omega at the Tokyo Dome allured him and made him crave it. The 51-year-old asked Vince McMahon if it was a better idea for him. To his surprise, Mr. McMahon appreciated the idea with open arms and insisted on pursuing it.

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“When I left WWE at the time, I was like, ‘I will never work for anybody other than Vince McMahon in wrestling.’ And then the idea for Kenny Omega vs. Jericho at the Tokyo Dome came up and it was a pretty exciting concept and pretty cool idea, so I actually asked Vince if it was cool if I go do it. He was like, ‘You gotta go do it, it’s awesome,” he said. (H/T Wrestling Inc.)

During the latter stages of his WWE run, the 52-year-old put over stars like Kevin Owens. Also, Jericho had achieved almost every accolade in the Stamford-based promotion. Therefore, it isn’t surprising that the nine-time Intercontinental Champion made the decision to jump ship to AEW.

Related: Sammy Guevara recreates the famous “2003 SEGMENT” between Chris Jericho and Shawn Michaels, taking a page out of Jericho’s book

Chris Jericho seemingly written off television during AEW Dynamite

Powerhouse Hobbs obliterated Chris Jericho in a fairly one-sided match on the most recent episode of Dynamite. Afterwards, Excalibur, in commentary, revealed that the legend had been “rushed to a hospital” owing to internal injuries.

Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho (via AEW)

Therefore, it seems that this was a way to write the Lionheart from television. Moreover, rumors suggest that Jericho took a break to tour alongside his band, “Fozzy.” However, there is no official confirmation from neither the company nor Y2J on whether the speculation is true.

This wouldn’t mark the first time that Chris Jericho has gone on hiatus for a music tour. During his last run with the WWE, he took time off for the same. Needless to say, the former AEW World Champion would be a big miss for the company in the coming months, as he was also involved in a major rivalry with Don Callis and Sammy Guevara.

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