Former AEW world champion confirms recent knee surgery

According to a Tuesday podcast from Fightful Select, Strickland had been working with his meniscus injury since 2019, dating back to his time at the WWE Performance Center.

“After last week, I started asking around about this mention of Swerve visiting the doctor, or the medical team and was told, ‘yeah, it’s very legit,'” Sean Ross Sapp said on the podcast. “And, not only is it legit, he’s been working with a tear in his meniscus since 2019 when he was at the (WWE) performance center … He was supposed to have time off after All In, but he worked for an extra month."

Strickland will likely be out for multiple months as he begins his recovery. He joins Will Ospreay as a key member of AEW's roster on the sidelines. Ospreay is dealing with two herniated discs in his back.

Without Ospreay and Strickland, AEW will be shorthanded at the top end of their card. Both wrestlers are among the major draws within the company. There's a chance we don't see either of them again until 2026.

Nevertheless, AEW fans will undoubtedly be pleased that Strickland's surgery appears to have gone well. If he can make a full recovery, there will undoubtedly be some additional championship runs in the future. For now, though, his sole focus should be on resting that injury and making sure he gets back near 100%.