AEW wrestler quietly returned this summer after long absence
While it wasn’t in an AEW ring, current roster member Matt Sydal quietly returned to action over the summer for the first time since May 2024 — something that seems impossible in today’s social media age.
Sydal competed against the 58-year-old Ultimo Dragon in July at the France-based ABC 15eme Festival International De Catch. Dragon picked up the win.
While it caught attention on social media Saturday, it was actually firsat reported in the August 4, 2025, Observer Newsletter via our European correspondent Markus Gronemann.
It was Sydal’s first in-ring action since May 2024 when he fell to Konosuke Takeshita in two minutes on Dynamite. He has yet to wrestle since.
The reason for his absence was surgery on his right foot after what he called “a decade of suffering.” The 42-year-old had surgery to both break and re-fuse three bones in addition to having hardware to set his toes into his joints.
While still listed on the AEW roster, it’s unclear if there is interest from Tony Khan in bringing him back. He has been part of the company since September 2020’s All Out and has wrestled more than 100 matches for the brand in addition to 19 matches in Ring of Honor.
While active on X in retweeting AEW posts, Sydal never tweeted about his return.
Since 2011, Josh has been a contributing editor to Wrestling Observer/F4WOnline.com and also hosts the Punch-Out podcast. He has also written for Fight Magazine, Bloody Elbow, Bleacher Report, and other websites. He's a 2000 graduate of the University of Maine, worked in pro sports, and once was an indie ring announcer.