Brian Cage Reveals He Was Supposed To Return At AEW Full Gear Before Learning He Had To Undergo Third Knee Surgery Of 2025

The plan was for Cage to come back at Full Gear.

In 2025, Brian Cage underwent three knee surgeries. The third surgery was a success, and Cage is in the recovery stage.

He provided an update on his recovery while doing a virtual signing for East Coast Autograph Auctions. Cage went on to reveal that before he learned he would need a third surgery, he was supposed to return at AEW’s Full Gear pay-per-view. Cage added that the silver lining in his situation is that he’s hoping for a big return to AEW when the time comes.

“It’s going fantastic,” Cage said when asked about his recovery from knee surgery. “Crowbar’s been stretching the hell out of — he’s like Stu Hart down here. It’s been terribly painful but it’s been amazing recovery and results so far and just been under a week.

You know what? I’d say (I’m feeling) like a million bucks but I wouldn’t want the pay cut. That’s an old Triple H line,” Cage smiled. “No, I’m feeling good, I’m feeling good. All things considered, this has been, I mean, far and away the longest I’ve ever been out. I got some real sh*tty news that instead of coming back, which would have been at Full Gear, that I had to get another surgery, and yeah, to be out this long, three different surgeries. I tore my bicep, and within 20 years of wrestling, that was the only surgery I ever had, which is a pretty substantial record, and then to go to this year, and have three surgeries in one year is pretty sh*tty. But, I say all that, and that I’ve actually been in a really good mood, very optimistic. There’s been a couple of down moments, like when I found out the bad news but, overall, I’ve been really good.

There’s been a couple of surprise benefits from being out and being hurt, and I’m hoping a good silver lining would be an epic return so we’ll see what happens.”

Cage has not wrestled since March. In 2024, Cage stated that he had ‘about six years’ left on his contract with All Elite Wrestling.

If the quotes in this article are used, please credit East Coast Autograph Auctions with an H/T to Fightful for the transcriptions.