It looks like veteran pro wrestler Nigel McGuinness will not be returning to the ring at AEW All In this weekend.
It was recently reported that McGuinness had taken measures to try to return to the ring, and while it was not confirmed that he was medically cleared for an in-ring return, he had completed steps that indicated he was looking forward to a ring return.
In an update, McGuinness did media in London today to promote All In, and said he will not be wrestling on Sunday at Wembley Stadium. McGuinness specifically cited Bryan Danielson’s arm injury as something that kept him from wrestling at All In.
The 47 year old McGuinness also said he thinks he does better as a commentator. He currently calls the weekly AEW Collision show with Kevin Kelly, and sometimes Jim Ross.
Regarding McGuinness and Danielson, there was speculation on the former ROH World Champions possibly reigniting their rivalry after Danielson knocked McGuinness during the AEW Double Or Nothing media scrum in late May, as noted here. McGuinness then discussed Danielson on the AEW Unrestricted podcast earlier this month, noting that the only way he was going to come out of retirement was if he could wrestle Danielson at All In. McGuinness also discussed the karma of Danielson’s broken arm and more on their history, as noted here.
It remains to be seen if McGuinness will make a comeback when Danielson is medically cleared to return to the ring from his broken arm.
There have been 11 Danielson vs. McGuinness singles matches since 2005, and Danielson is currently up in the series, which is at 6-3 and 2 draws. Their rivalry includes many multi-man matches, teaming up and going against each other, and the following singles bouts: then-ROH Pure Champion McGuinness defeated then-ROH World Champion Danielson by count out in a Title vs. Title match on April 29, 2006 at Night 2 of ROH Weekend of Champions; Danielson retained the ROH World Title over McGuinness at ROH Generation Now on July 29, 2006; Danielson retained the ROH World Title and captured the ROH Pure Title from McGuinness at ROH Unified on August 12, 2006; Danielson retained the ROH World Title as he and McGuinness wrestled to a time limit draw in their 2 of 3 Falls match at ROH Epic Encounter II on August 25, 2006; Danielson defeated McGuinness on June 9, 2007 at ROH Domination; they wrestled to another time limit draw on October 19, 2007 at ROH Survival of The Fittest; McGuinness retained the ROH World Title over Danielson on February 23, 2008 at the ROH Sixth Anniversary Show; Danielson defeated McGuinness at Day 2 of wXw & Pro Wrestling NOAH’s Dead End VII event on June 22, 2008; Danielson defeated McGuinness at ROH Battle of The Best on September 13, 2008; McGuinness retained the ROH World Title over Danielson at ROH Rising Above on November 22, 2008; and Danielson defeated McGuinness on September 26, 2009 at ROH Glory By Honor VIII: The Final Countdown.
McGuinness, who signed with ROH/AEW back in April, began wrestling around the world in 1999. He originally worked for ROH from 2003-2009 as a top talent, holding the ROH World Title and the ROH Pure Title. He would go on to work for TNA, then was forced to retire from in-ring action in late 2011 after a tour of the indies. McGuinness has not wrestled since losing to Jon Ryan at the wXw 11th Anniversary show on November 26, 2011, and his last televised match was a TNA Xplosion win over Stevie Richards in September 2010 (taped August 23, 2010). McGuinness returned to ROH as the on-screen matchmaker and commentator in August 2011, and worked there until December 2016. Thanks to Michael Cole, WWE hired McGuinness in December 2016 to work as a commentator on various shows. He was furloughed due to COVID-19 in April 2020, but brought back later in the Fall. Nigel was then released by WWE on October 22, 2022. In addition to working for ROH/AEW, McGuinness is now doing his own one-man magic & speaking shows, while also hosting pro wrestling seminars in the United States and Europe.
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