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Adam Cole Stopped From Making A Life-Changing Decision At AEW All In

Originally posted on The Sportster | By Shawn Van Horn | Last updated Jul 15, 2025 11:14 AM ET

AEW All In: Texas was a big success, with plenty of great matches and a main event between Jon Moxley and "Hangman" Adam Page that lived up to expectations. As good as the show was though, there was also one darker moment. During Zero Hour, it was announced that Adam Cole wasn't medically cleared and would be dropping his TNT Championship immediately. This meant that his match with Kyle Fletcher was off, with a new one put in its place that saw Dustin Rhodes become the new titleholder. Before that, Adam Cole came out and spoke about his health. Without saying what happened, he shed tears as he hinted at retirement. However, according to a new report, Cole did in fact want to retire right there, but he was stopped from doing so.

Adam Cole Wanted To Retire At AEW All In: Texas

It was revealed by Fightful Select that the injury Adam Cole is dealing with is indeed a concussion. It appears that he was hurt during a lariat from Kyle Fletcher on the Thursday Collision, and in the early hours of Saturday morning started to feel unwell. The decision was made for Cole to drop his title and focus on his health, but in the heat of the moment, he actually wanted to retire in front of the All In crowd.

According to Bryan Alvarez on Wrestling Observer Live, everything shown on TV was 100% real and not at all a storyline. Alvarez added:

“From what I can gather… he was pretty much ready to go out on Saturday and retire. And I guess, you know, cooler heads prevailed, and it’s exactly what he said. He was like, ‘I’m not in the right headspace to make that decision right now.'

"His future as a wrestler is very much in doubt, and it’s just going to be a matter of time when he feels he’s in the right headspace, he’s going to make a decision, and we’ll see what happens.” (h/t WrestlingNews.co)

Will His Latest Concussion Force Adam Cole To Stop Wrestling?

When Adam Cole, who was the face of WWE NXT, jumped ship to AEW in 2021, it looked like he would become one of the company's biggest stars. Sadly, his time with Tony Khan's promotion has been hindered by some big injuries. Not only was he kept out for several months due to a broken ankle, but a scary moment at Forbidden Door a few years ago saw him sidelined for a long time due to a very serious concussion.

Fans want to see Adam Cole have a big run in AEW, and at only 36, he could have many more years left in professional wrestling. However, now having suffered a second concussion, he might be forced to say goodbye. It was the wise choice to not do it at All In, but don't be surprised if we have sadly seen the last of Adam Cole in a wrestling ring.

This article first appeared on The Sportster and was syndicated with permission.

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