Nick Aldis wrestled one match in three years and turned it into a job offer nobody was making before Saturday.
WrestleVotes Radio reports the belief inside WWE is that Aldis will compete again following his performance at SummerSlam. One source cautioned it might not happen until 2027. The outlet also reports a number of people backstage rate Aldis as talented as, or more talented than, several of WWE’s regular television performers, and would like to see him get a proper in-ring run.
The match itself was a loss. Gunther submitted him with the sleeper in under 12 minutes on Night 1 at U.S. Bank Stadium, closing a feud that had run since Night of Champions. Aldis had given up the SmackDown general manager role to take it.
The reaction was the story. Mickie James and their son joined him in the ring afterwards while the crowd chanted that he still had it. Hours later, on the post-show, Aldis handed Triple H a resignation letter. Triple H tore it up and put him back in the job.
Both men have since said things that line up with the report. Triple H told the post-show press conference that the desire to compete never dies, that the opportunity had come on short notice, and that Aldis looked like a million bucks. Aldis, speaking on WWE Now, did not close anything off.
I don’t know. I came in with no expectations and I come out with none. If it’s there, it’s there. Sure, in the right circumstances, yeah.
He also said he needs to get in better shape, which fits a 2027 timeline better than a quick follow-up.
The complication is the day job. Aldis is a full-time authority figure on SmackDown, and the more he wrestles, the harder that role is to hold. He was back running the show on Night 2, adding Gunther and a returning Kevin Owens to the No. 1 Contender’s match.
Before Gunther, Aldis had not wrestled since a five-way at ACW Bluegrass Con in October 2023. He joined WWE weeks later as a producer, then took the general manager role two months after that.
