The shoulder injury that MJF has been dealing with could leave him on the sidelines for much longer than expected.
The lead-up
MJF worked the AEW Worlds End pay-per-view event injured when he lost the AEW World Heavyweight Championship against Samoa Joe in the main event. Heading into the bout, he was dealing with a torn labrum and a hip injury.
The latter injury was sustained when he performed an elbow drop off the top rope to the floor in the Jay White match at Full Gear the previous month. Heading into the show, the belief that he would be taking time off coming out of it was something that was confirmed after the event.
A previous update noted MJF was debating whether to do rehab or get surgery, although should he get the surgery, AEW will be without him for a while.
Reality
In the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer reported that “He’s [MJF] hoping to have it heal through rehab rather than surgery because surgery would put him out for months, and he was told perhaps close to a year, which he wants to avoid.”
For now, MJF and his doctors will determine what direction he goes with while AEW looks to build off the momentum of Joe as its World Champion.
MJF is trying to heal through rehab and he hopes to avoid surgery. pic.twitter.com/PbVQCIdONO
— Wrestling News (@WrestlingNewsCo) January 5, 2024