Tony Khan Comments On Kota Ibushi Injury, Gives Update On Swerve Strickland AEW Return

In a wild and accidental spot during the October 11th episode of AEW Collision, Kota Ibushi suffered a leg fracture in his match against Josh Alexander. During a lock-up on the top rope and ring post, Ibushi fell off Alexander's shoulder and landed on the mat, fracturing his femur, an injury Ibushi said will keep him out of action for up to two years, according to his most recent Instagram post.

During the AEW WrestleDream media call, Tony Khan replied to TheSportster's question about the injury, calling it "devastating," and revealed that plans for WrestleDream had to be altered. He also revealed that Ibushi had just received his new visa just before suffering the injury.

Absolutely, Kota Ibushi was planned to wrestle on WrestleDream, and the injury was devastating, and [we] have had to make changes in recent days, accordingly. But Kota Ibushi is absolutely somebody we'll be excited to have back in AEW if and when he's ready. I'm very sad about his injury. Absolutely, I was excited for his return. We had gotten his new visa, and I was so excited to have Kota Ibushi back.

Khan mentioned that he met with Ibushi and Kenny Omega together while at Daily's Place, and visited Ibushi while he was in the hospital. Khan stated that Ibushi was in great spirits in spite of the setback.

I went to see him in the hospital, and I really felt, to be honest, that he was in great spirits. Considering how much pain he had to be in and how huge of a setback this was to a legendary pro-wrestler, one of the great wrestlers of this era, in my personal opinion, who was having an amazing comeback here. [He] was somebody that I had earmarked to be a big part of AEW this year. I wish Kota Ibushi could be a big part of AEW throughout the rest of 2025. But whenever he is able to return, which he says he wants to come back, then I'll be very, very happy to have Kota Ibushi back in AEW.

Tony Khan Says Swerve Strickland Could Be Back Sooner Than Later

Another one of AEW's top stars, former AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland, was sidelined after his match against Kazuchika Okada at Forbidden Door. Not injured directly from the match, Strickland had taken time off to repair a torn meniscus that had been plaguing him since 2019.

TheSportster asked Tony Khan for an update on the return of Swerve Strickland, one that Khan replied would be happening "sooner than later."

I definitely think Swerve will be back long before Kota Ibushi. Swerve was dealing with a serious injury, but not a long term of an outlook. Swerve, I think, hopefully can come back relatively soon, and it's not the situation where you'd expect him to be out for a year or more than a year, anything like that. Thankfully, Swerve, it's a shorter timetable. I can't say exactly when because I'm not a doctor, and also I don't want to put words in his for where he's at in the healing. But based on the conversations I've had, and even today tracking on that, I think he's on a good pace.

AEW WrestleDream takes place on Saturday, October 18th from the Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis, MO. The event can be seen on HBO Max, Prime Video, and TrillerTV. Check your local listings for start times in your area.

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