One of AEW’s biggest names had admitted to dealing with a major injury. He is none other than the reigning AEW World Champion, Maxwell Jacob Friedman (MJF). Amid his spectacular run as the top titleholder, reports emerged that The Salt of the Earth was dealing with a knee injury.
He reportedly suffered the injury during his title defense against Rush on Dynamite a few weeks ago. MJF appeared in an interview with Brian Soloman to confirm that his knee was indeed banged up. He also added that a medical team would not allow him to compete in the ring. However, the Devil said he continues to appear each week because he is the top attraction for All Elite Wrestling.
My knee is f*cked. It’s swollen to sh*t. I’m in a sh*t ton of f*cking pain. But it’s on me because I’m the f*cking top guy and people are leaning on me to make sure that we’re doing well. So I’ve got to f*cking lace my f*cking boots up and get in that g*ddamn ring. And obviously, a doctor is never going to let me go in there unless structurally I’m okay. So don’t think I’m burying the AEW medical team. I’m in a lot of pain, there’s swelling, but structurally, I’m good.
MJF is set for a huge match at Forbidden Door 2026
Despite admitting to his injury, MJF is still slated to compete in a huge match at AEW’s next pay-per-view, Forbidden Door 2026. He will team up with the Don Callis Family (Kevin Knight, Kyle Fletcher, Jake Doyle, Kazuchika Okada, and Andrade El Ídolo) to battle the squad of his nemesis, Mark Briscoe, who will team up with Orange Cassidy, Roderick Strong, Kyle O’Reilly, Konosuke Takeshita, and Darby Allin.
Should Briscoe’s team emerge victorious, he will earn a future AEW World Championship match against MJF. So, it will be interesting to witness this collision at Forbidden Door.