Chris Jericho Talks Career Longevity and How Much Time He Has Left

“What worries me about the guys working today is here I am at 55, 35 years in, with still some career left to go. I don’t know if it’s a year, two years, four years — I’m not sure. But I don’t know how many of the guys working now will have the option to go 35 years. Hopefully all of them.”

Jericho said today's wrestling tends to emphasize physical in-ring work over the character and performance aspect of the business, and he wonders if that will make longevity harder to sustain for the current generation of stars.

A younger Chris Jericho once thought he was invincible in the ring, but then he suffered his first injury in León, Mexico. He went to perform a dive over the top rope and his opponent just moved out of the way when they were supposed to catch him.

"I landed on old-school bolted-down arena chairs. I messed up my arm and I thought, oh, I could actually get hurt doing this. And if a guy doesn’t want to catch you, that’s even worse. After that I started getting smart about which moves were worth the risk. The guys who figure that out early are the ones who get the longevity.”

Chris Jericho rumored to return to WWE after successful seven-year run in AEW

Jericho shocked the pro wrestling world in January 2019 when he appeared at a media event for an upstart company called All Elite Wrestling.

Alongside founders Cody Rhodes, Kenny Omega, and The Young Bucks, Jericho lent instant credibility to the newest rival promotion for WWE. He signed a full-time three-year contract upon his arrival and went on to become the inaugural AEW World Champion when he defeated "Hangman" Adam Page at All Out 2019.

After dropping the title to fellow WWE alum Jon Moxley at AEW Revolution 2020, Jericho entered into programs with the likes of MJF, Eddie Kingston, Orange Cassidy and other 'home grown' AEW talent to help elevate their stock with the company. He formed multiple factions with other members of the roster to try and accomplish the same with them. It didn't always work, but attempts were made.

By the time 2025 rolled around, established stars like Jon Moxley, MJF, Kenny Omega, Swerve Strickland, "Hangman" Adam Page, Will Ospreay, Timeless Toni Storm and Mercedes Moné had firmly solidified themselves as the ones who would lead the charge for All Elite Wrestling moving forward.

Sensing audience fatigue, Jericho stepped away from AEW in April of last year and has yet to return. His contract was reportedly set to expire at the end of 2025, but the belief among those in the industry is that his deal was frozen amid rumored WWE interest.

Jericho turns 56-years-old this fall, and word started circulating late last year that WWE was interested in bringing him in for a retirement tour. It's not yet known when he'll become a free agent, but Fightful Select reported last month that he was firmly under contract still with AEW.