AEW star Eddie Kingston has been injured since NJPW Resurgence back in May of this year, where he dropped the Strong Openweight Championship and suffered a post-match attack by The Elite. Kingston recently appeared on “The DAVINci Report,” where he further opened up about his injury and explained his mental state across his rehabilitation time.

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“I’m starting to get itchy at home,” Kingston said, noting how badly he wants to return now that he’s regained the ability to walk again with weights. “It’s at the point of like, alright, let’s hurry this up, let’s get going.” He then admitted that the injury has taken a toll on him mentally, but that he’s now blessed to be a part of a company like AEW, where he still gets paid despite being injured, unlike his days on the indies.

“That’s the blessing in disguise,” Kingston added, noting how easy it is to look at the negatives as a human being instead of seeing the silver lining. He then recalled having to push through injuries during his time on the indies in order to make money in order to pay rent.

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Kingston was also asked why he doesn’t make promo appearances during his recovery time. “The Mad King” explained why this has simply been the way he’s always handled injuries, saying, “If I’m not there to be in the ring? I don’t want to be there. If I can’t give you everything I have, I don’t want to be there.”

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “The DAVINci Report” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

Tonight is the final three-hour edition of “WWE Raw” on the USA Network, with the show set to shift to a two-hour format for the rest of this year before departing for Netflix in 2025. Among the matches scheduled for tonight is Zoey Stark vs. Lyra Valkyria, and former WWE Women’s Champion Bayley has expressed her excitement for the bout on X.

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“This’ll be a bangerrrr,” Bayley wrote.

Stark’s position in the company has risen in recent months with the creation of a new faction — Pure Fusion Collective. The group, which also includes Shayna Baszler and Sonya Deville, began its formation in May, building off previous history between Baszler and Stark. Deville returned to the company that month after nearly a year away from wrestling, and though it took some convincing, Deville was soon able to persuade Baszler and Stark into joining up with her.

As for Valkyria, the Ireland native is a former WWE NXT Women’s Champion who was called up to the main roster earlier this year in the WWE Draft. She’s already taken part in both the Queen of the Ring tournament as well as the Women’s Money in the Bank ladder match, and though she wasn’t successful in either, she has picked up some key wins early in her main roster career.

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Valkyria and Stark also have some history together, as Valkyria defeated Stark during the tournament, and Valkyria teamed with Natalya and Zelina Vega to defeat Pure Fusion Collective earlier this month. Even more recently, on “WWE Main Event,” Valkyria defeated Stark in a singles bout, which must have impressed someone backstage, as the two will now run it back tonight.

Is Shane McMahon’s involvement with AEW imminent, or just a pipe dream? Since the internet-breaking photo of McMahon meeting with Tony Khan in July, any further talks between the two have been kept quiet. However, McMahon stirred the pot again, taking a photo alongside AEW’s EVPs, Matt and Nick Jackson, that was touted as a chance encounter, but it was enough to ramp up rumors once more. Pictures notwithstanding, former WWE talent Nic Nemeth, formerly known as Dolph Ziggler in WWE, was asked on “Busted Open Radio” if he could envision McMahon becoming involved with AEW in some capacity, and he wouldn’t rule it out. 

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“Without knowing anything, 100%,” Nemeth said. “I really liked what he had to say on certain things. He always helped us out backstage for big pay-per-views, especially [Royal] Rumbles and different things. … He has all these ideas, he has all these different things, but with a different perspective, a much younger perspective as we were getting from Vince — a trendier, hipper thing of like, ‘Hey, here’s where you can go in the future. … The mind behind the scenes is something really positive for the wrestling business, and I would love to see him be involved.”

Some believe McMahon never fully realized his creative potential within WWE, partly due to his father’s unwillingness to relinquish control. However, “The Prodigal Son” reportedly had a big hand putting together the 2022 Royal Rumble, though his contributions were not well-received that night. He allegedly butted heads with his father over what was perceived as selfish booking, and McMahon was reportedly released from WWE as a result. His last appearance on WWE programming was at WrestleMania 39, where an impromptu match against The Miz ended abruptly when Shane tore his quad.

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