After entertaining offers from both WWE and AEW, former IWGP Tag Team Champion Kevin Knight is officially All Elite. According to PWInsider, Knight recently had a trial at the WWE Performance Center with plans to join the NXT roster. Ultimately, Knight chose the more lucrative contract offered by AEW.
The official announcement of Knight’s acquisition comes after his debut on Saturday night’s episode of AEW Collision. Knight squared off against Switchblade Jay White, taking the NJPW Grand Slam Champion to the wire.
Unfortunately, Knight couldn’t begin his AEW career with a victory, falling to White’s Blade Runner. However, he made quite an impression on the crowd and White himself.
White led the applause from the crowd stating, “I’m pretty sure we’re going to see a lot more of Kevin Knight in AEW.” White then shook Knight’s hand before the debuting star left the ring to more applause from a clearly impressed audience.
Since debuting in 2019, Knight has appeared on various independent and mainstream promotions, building his reputation along the way. Having signed with NJPW in 2020, his breakthrough came in 2022 when he struck up a formidable partnership with KUSHIDA. This signaled his graduation from Young Lion status.
As the Intergalactic Jet Setters, Knight and KUSHIDA went on to win the IWGP tag titles on two occasions. As well as impressing in NJPW, Knight has also appeared in CMLL, GCW, MLW, ROH, and TNA. In the latter, Knight unsuccessfully challenged for the X Division Championship in 2023.
While last night’s bout with Jay White was his official debut for AEW, Knight has appeared for the promotion before. Knight wrestled several matches on AEW between 2022 and 2023, memorably appearing in a 10-person tag match featuring a number of his LA Dojo stablemates.
At just 28, Knight has already clocked up an impressive résumé with victories over Rocky Romero, Ace Austin, David Finlay, and El Desperado. As a talent with only room to grow, Kevin Knight could end up being a real coup for AEW.
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header photo – AEW – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on the Kevin Knight, AEW, 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 on Wednesday nights at 8 PM ET on TBS. AEW Collision airs Saturday at 8pm Eastern on TNT. More AEW content available on their YouTube
