3 Mistakes WWE must avoid if it brings back Chris Jericho

As his AEW status continues to be in question, wrestling fans are bracing themselves for Chris Jericho's WWE return. The former multi-time champion could be parting ways with the Tony Khan-led promotion at the end of 2025, and many expect him to return to his old stomping grounds as early as this coming January, or possibly as an entrant in the 2026 Royal Rumble match.

Recent reports have claimed that the Stamford-based company could be offering Jericho a retirement run. Last Saturday, while attending a YouTube special stream on the same day as AEW Worlds End 2025, the veteran even teased the possibility of his World Wrestling Entertainment comeback in response to a fan. All the signs seem to point to Y2J jumping ship imminently.

In case Jericho does return to WWE this coming year, there are a few booking calls that should arguably be avoided for his final run. Let us consider three mistakes the promotion should avoid.

#1. WWE should not immediately slot Chris Jericho into a World Title program

Both sets of Men's World Titles in World Wrestling Entertainment are involved in major programs at the moment. Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes has been feuding with Drew McIntyre for a while now, and the two men will battle it out for the belt in a Three Stages of Hell Match on SmackDown next month in Berlin, Germany. World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk, on the other hand, has had his hands full with The Vision and with Bron Breakker in particular, and the latter will try to unseat The Best in the World on the first RAW of 2026.

While it is true that Chris Jericho has a lot of history with Cody Rhodes and CM Punk, over the course of their shared tenures both in WWE and in AEW, The American Nightmare and The Straight-Edge Superstar are both in the middle of ongoing storylines weeks, if not months, in the making, with other players who have actively contributed to said storylines.

Unless the company is willing to hand Y2J a Royal Rumble win, Jericho should ideally not be reintroduced to programming directly as a World Title contender, even if he does belong in the main event scene.

#2. Chris Jericho should not be taking over an existing faction

While Chris Jericho was not primarily known for being in factions during his WWE tenures, his All Elite Wrestling run saw The Demo God thrive as a leader. In the early years of AEW, he was the frontrunner of a stable called The Inner Circle, comprising Santana and Ortiz, Sammy Guevara, Jake Hager, and, for a brief while, MJF and Wardlow. Later on, he kicked out Proud and Powerful and revamped the group as the Jericho Appreciation Society, adding 2Point0, Daniel Garcia, and TayJay to its ranks.

More recently, he had launched a new group with his Learning Tree gimmick, serving as a teacher and mentor to Big Bill and Bryan Keith. Jericho's relationship with his acolytes had been deteriorating since the start of the year, however, and after The Redwood stood up to him for himself and for his tag partner, The Nueve had a violent meltdown and walked out on them on live television. This, incidentally, was Jericho's last appearance on AEW television, taking place in April.

While "The Wizard" has never really struggled with maintaining his presence on any wrestling program, at his current age and in-ring form, it might be ideal for Jericho to have a new stable doing his bidding if he does return to WWE in 2026. This would allow the former AEW World Champion to take part in compelling television segments and character arcs alongside his stablemates, as well as their enemies and opponents.

Chris Jericho and his "Appreciation Society" [Image Credits: AEW on YouTube]

That said, Jericho's next faction should preferably not be a pre-existing one like The Vision or The Judgment Day, with its own established set of players. Instead, WWE should book him to assemble a brand-new group of fresh faces to the platform and elevate.

#3. WWE should not let Chris Jericho continue actively wrestling after a couple of years

Every major wrestling promotion in the world utilizes its veterans as worthwhile assets, not only to continue drawing long-time fans and audiences, but also to help establish the next generation of stars. Chris Jericho is undoubtedly one of those veterans who has reinvented himself and produced entertaining wrestling content for multiple decades now. Furthermore, across his WWE and AEW runs, he has helped put over several future top names, including MJF, Ricky Saints, Powerhouse Hobbs, and Bandido.

Despite his wealth of experience and knowledge, it cannot be denied, unfortunately, that Jericho is no longer in the same shape that he once was, even at the start of his AEW career. Fans have for some time been calling out the 55-year-old for getting slower in the ring. If he does return to WWE in 2026, the former Undisputed Champion will very likely take up a part-time schedule, and possibly wrestle only on special events and PLEs.

Even so, the promotion should consider approaching Jericho to hang up his boots with a proper retirement program after a couple of more years at the latest. A superstar of his status and pedigree could arguably continue contributing to the promotion and to the industry in general, even after wrapping up his in-ring career.

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Edited by Angana Roy