Nearly every AEW release has been speculated to make a jump to WWE, but perhaps no two ex-AEW stars have been scrutinized as much asMalakai Black and Rey Fenix. On Friday's episode of "WWE SmackDown," WWE added fuel to the speculative fire by airing two mysterious video packages that may tease Black and Fenix's imminent arrivals.
The first vignette began with a crack of orange lightning. Orange clouds parted to show a shadowy figure on top of a turnbuckle as ambient noise buzzed in the background. The video package quickly ended with another flash of lightning. Fans crowded on social media to connect the six-second video package to the imminent arrival of Rey Fenix, who is most known for his time in AEW alongside Penta as the Lucha Brothers. Fenix is reportedly WWE-bound after his AEW contract ended in early March, but it is unclear whether Fenix is due to join his brother on the "WWE Raw" roster, or if he will debut as a member of the blue brand.
Friday's second video package was more cryptic than the first. Grey smoke filled a black screen to open the vignette before a white, pulsating "4" appeared in center. The clip, approximately sixteen seconds in length, ended with a sudden cut to black. Fans gathered underneath Fightful's repost of the vignette to connect the video package to Malakai Black, who reportedly left AEW back inJanuary. Black, who operated under the name Aleister Black during his time in WWE, was last seen on WWE programming in 2020, when he lost to Kevin Owens in a no-disqualification match on an episode of "Raw." If the rumors are true, Black may be set to join his wife, Zelina Vega, on future Friday nights.
WWE, Fenix, and Black have yet to comment. Any further details regarding the latter two's debuts remain undisclosed.
