4 Surprise returns Tony Khan must pull off in AEW before 2025 ends

AEW President Tony Khan had a great year. 2025 is not over yet, and a lot can happen in one month. The annual Continental Classic Tournament will start from the upcoming edition of Dynamite. A lineup featuring stars like Jon Moxley, Darby Allin, Konosuke Takeshita, and Claudio Castagnoli has made the fans excited for the C2 season.

While the roster seems complete, a few absent names might have helped AEW in different ways. Jay White, Will Ospreay, Dustin Rhodes, and Adam Cole have been absent for a long time and may not return anytime soon. However, some stars are on the verge of recovery. Not every star on a hiatus is injured; many are absent due to outside projects.

To make 2025 even better, Tony Khan should bring back some major stars. Let's take a look at some of the top names that could get back in the mix before the year ends.

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#3. Buddy Matthews

Buddy Matthews has been a major member of the Hounds of Hell. During his absence, his teammates have made other alliances. Julia Hart has joined the Triangle of Madness along with Skye Blue and Thekla, while Brody King recently had a great run as the AEW World Tag Team Champion with Bandido until Full Gear last Saturday.

Meanwhile, Buddy is yet to recover from an ankle injury he suffered in February this year. The unfortunate incident occurred when he was wrestling in his home country, Australia, against Kazuchika Okada at Grand Slam Australia. A September report claimed that Matthews might return at the end of the year. Now that Brodido has lost the titles, Tony should bring Buddy back and reunite him with Brody King.

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#3. and Cope and #2. Cage

Adam Copeland and Christian Cage haven't been seen in AEW since All Out. The duo took down FTR at the pay-per-view. However, the Rated-R Superstar's wife, Beth Phoenix, was ambushed by the current AEW World Tag Team Champions. Later, he took a hiatus from the promotion to focus on his family.

In reality, the former TNT Champion had to finish filming for 'Percy Jackson'. Along with Copeland, Christian Cage was also nowhere to be seen. With FTR being the tag team champions again, Cope and Cage could return and reignite their feud before 2025 ends.

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#1. MJF wins the AEW World Championship

The AEW World Championship changed hands at Full Gear. Hangman Page lost the title to Samoa Joe. After the contest, Swerve Strickland returned and confronted the Samoan Submission Machine. Hangman and Swerve might enter the title scene soon. However, MJF could make a wild-card entry and cash in his world title contract during the next big event, Worlds End.

Maxwell has been absent since All Out. In his last match, he lost to Mark Briscoe. He is also on a hiatus due to outside projects and was reported to return in December. He might shock the world by not only returning, but also winning the gold.

It will be interesting to see which other surprises Tony Khan might have in store before 2025 ends.