Its Miro Day! Well, it’s actually Kip Sabian‘s wedding day but in a shocking development on AEW Dynamite, the soon-to-be on-screen married UK star revealed his best man as none other than Miro, formerly known as WWE‘s Rusev.
Miro to AEW is certainly something that has been talked about for months now, ever since the 34-year-old was released from WWE earlier this year. The Bulgarian Brute spent his time away from wrestling by becoming a Twitch streamer, something he may have less time for these days now that he’s got a wedding to serve as first lieutenant to the groom for. As Miro even tweeted, no Twitch tonight, he’s All Elite.
And @TheKipSabian's best man is… @ToBeMiro?!?! #AEWDynamite on @tntdrama pic.twitter.com/Rah3veuaAx
— AEW on TV (@AEWonTV) September 10, 2020
With a background in rowing and powerlifting, Miro moved from Bulgaria to the United States with aspirations of becoming a professional wrestler. An 11-year veteran trained by Gangrel and Rikishi at Knokx Pro Wrestling Academy, Miro began his wrestling career in 2008 with San Diego’s New Wave Pro Wrestling and Vendetta Pro Wrestling. Miro wrestled just a few matches those first few years, so much that when he landed with Florida Championship Wrestling in 2011, it really was as someone who was relatively green to wrestling. Miro remained with FCW through their transition to NXT, where as Alexander Rusev, WWE began to build him into a dominant star. Miro received several title opportunities in NXT, both for the heavyweight championship and the tag titles, alongside former partner and current AEW wrestler, Scott Dawson. While Miro was unsuccessful in his pursuit of NXT gold, Miro received his main roster call-up with a huge Royal Rumble debut to kick off 2014.
By April of that year, the largely homegrown Miro, was a fulltime member of Raw, where his run toward the top truly began. Alongside his manager and now real-life wife, Lana, Miro who was presented as a Russophillic, American-hating national, went on to win all of his matches over his first 146 days with WWE. Among these wins, were his first run with the United States Championship, a reign that was ended by John Cena at WrestleMania 31. And while Miro lost that match, he made history, becoming the first and thus far only, Bulgarian-born champion in WWE history. Miro also made a huge impact in his ‘Mania debut, entering the show of shows in a bonafide tank. It was a sign of Miro’s star power and one that is still to this day considered a top ‘Mania entrance.
Unfortunately, WWE failed to capitalize on Miro’s successful run as the former champ went on to lose a series of PPV bouts in a row, thus damaging the lustre he had built up. Miro went through ebbs and flows after his WrestleMania loss, in large part because he mixed kayfabe with reality. Miro and Lana have gotten engaged off screen, but on screen, the two were meant to be broken up with Lana having left Miro for Dolph Ziggler, ending with him paired with Summer Rae instead. Following this awkward love square, Miro joined the League of Nations, whose biggest claim to fame was serving as foils for Roman Reigns in his attempt to capture and retain the world title.
While Miro did go on to win the United States Championship for a second time, much of his feuds over the next year or so saw him languishing in the midcard. It wasn’t until his move to SmackDown that the former unstoppable force once again found himself at the top of the company. Alongside Lana and Aiden English, Rusev Day was born. The gimmick was so widely loved that fans chanted for it constantly. This led to Miro getting a much-deserved world title shot in the summer of 2018, his first ever on the main roster. After Rusev Day came to an end, there wasn’t much left for Miro in WWE. He won the United States Championship for a third time, holding the title only briefly. After that, Miro engaged in a storyline that once again put his and Lana’s relationship front and center as Lana left Miro for Bobby Lashley. Rusev wrestled his final match with the company in a loss to Lashley, on February 17th, 2020.
Welcome to the team…#Miro is #AllElite pic.twitter.com/SEYxAnAacJ
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) September 10, 2020
Miro coming to AEW is a huge move and is certainly an interesting one given his alliance with Sabian. These two have never shared a ring much less a company, however they seem to have bonded over Twitch. The star power Miro brings to the table is huge for Sabian and his current push. One thing is for sure, this should be a wedding to remember.
Programming note: The September 16th episode of AEW Dynamite will air on September 17th instead due to TNT airing the NBA playoffs. Make sure to set your DVR in order not to miss any of the action!
Stay tuned to Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can catch AEW Dynamite Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TNT and AEW DARK Tuesday nights at 7 PM ET on YouTube.
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