Former World Champion Rob Van Dam hasn’t appeared on WWE television since 2014. But that could change very soon, according to the best source possible, Van Dam himself.
The wrestling legend hinted at a possible return to WWE via Twitter on Friday. When asked by a fan if he’d be appearing on the House of Hardcore shows in Australia in June, Van Dam responded by saying it “looks like” he’ll be scheduled to wrestle in Australia in August instead.
Nope but it looks like I’ll be coming in August. https://t.co/iBBn2JMWlO
— Rob Van Dam (@TherealRVD) March 17, 2017
Of course, WWE is scheduled for its own Australian tour in August. One fan took notice and asked Van Dam if his tweet meant that he was returning to the company, which the superstar continued to hint at.
More info soon. https://t.co/jApaCzH60m
— Rob Van Dam (@TherealRVD) March 17, 2017
During his career, Van Dam won 21 total championships and is the only wrestler to have held the WWE Championship, ECW Championship, and TNA World Heavyweight Championship, including having held both the WWE and ECW Championships simultaneously in 2006. Van Dam gained notoriety during his run in ECW during the mid-90s. He appeared sporadically on WWE television during the companies’ working relationship but didn’t make his full-time debut until 2001, which saw him emerge as one of the company’s most popular superstars.
A Van Dam comeback couldn’t come at a better time with WWE’s recent emphasis on the high-flying cruiserweights. During an appearance on Bill Apter’s Is Wrestling Fixed last week, Van Dam revealed that current Cruiserweight Champion Neville would be the WWE superstar he’d want to face most if he decided to return.
“Assuming that the business end of it was good and we were both happy on both ends with that part. The dollar amount (laughs). Neville. I knew him as a wrestler named Pac and I have wrestled him as Pac years ago in France or Ireland. He’s always been very good. I don’t know where he is as far as on the ladder or whatever. If I was getting paid and that part was worked out then it wouldn’t matter. That’s the reason you want to work up top because you make more money. Assuming that part is worked out then, sure, we’d have fun.”
In September, Van Dam appeared on Sean Waltman’s X-Pac 1,2,360 podcast and revealed that he still had a working relationship with WWE that allows him the freedom to come and go as he pleases.
“I have a deal now with them, just like [Chris] Jericho, where I can do short term deals. I did a three-month deal and still did sixty-six matches in ninety days, and then the traveling. So then the next time I went back I spread it out a little more, was doing mostly just TVs and that was over five months. It was like eighty matches, or eighty-eight. Me and Jericho have the same deal but I don’t have the ambition that he does. He likes being there a lot. I mean, I really like not being on the road. A lot of celebrities are afraid of being out of sight, out of mind. I’m the complete opposite. I’ve always been trying to do as little as possible and I’m getting better at it all the time.”
WWE is also rumored to have another draft this year , which will likely create a roster shakeup. Van Dam could be used to fill any vacant roster spots on Raw or SmackDown Live , as many expected last year. However, he confirmed that WWE hadn’t contacted him last year when several other veterans were brought back in to handle roles on both shows.
“No, I haven’t heard from them since [the brand extension], it’s almost been a year actually,” Van Dam told Waltman in September. “It was last October when we talked, and it really wasn’t a good time for me to go out on the road. I had personal stuff that I was going through. But there’s always a dollar amount that makes it worthwhile, you know what I mean? But the amount that would’ve made it worth it for me to go out and work wouldn’t have been worth it for them and what they were thinking, and so that just didn’t work out, which was good because I really wasn’t wanting to do it then. And also I might’ve scared them away with the number it would’ve taken to make it worth my while. So no, I really haven’t even talked to them.”
Van Dam’s potential return to WWE should be something that keeps fans excited during the post- WrestleMania programming.
[Featured Image by WWE]