Last night (June 8), the wrestling world was surprised to learn that Lio Rush is retiring.
The 26 year old who’s won gold for pretty much every promotion he’s wrestled for suffered an injury during his appearance in Double or Nothing’s Casino Battle Royal on May 30. He’s deciding to prioritize his family and his health over a long-term career in pro wrestling.
Rush does say he’ll fulfill the commitments of the New Japan Pro-Wrestling contract he recently signed after he’s cleared, but after that, he’s walking away.
Among those reacting to Rush’s announcement are two men he’s worked for recently - AEW President Tony Khan, and MLW CEO Court Bauer.
Khan tweeted his thoughts:
#AEW wishes @TheLionelGreen all the best in his retirement! pic.twitter.com/znJNFbhu6o
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) June 9, 2021
And MLW shared this statement from Bauer:
“Lio is a brilliant athlete who made a difficult decision but one that I admire for his commitment to putting family first. I along with everyone at Major League Wrestling wish Lio continued success with the next chapter of his life and thank him for sharing his extraordinary talent with the world.”
On behalf of everyone in the Cageside Seats community, we echo Bauer & Khan’s sentiments. In a brief time, Rush made a lasting impression. For me personally, I think I’ll always remember Rush’s run as Bobby Lashley’s over-the-top manager on Raw, and his return to WWE to feud with Angel Garza over the Cruiserweight title feud with Angel Garza in NXT.
Thanks for the memories, Lio.