RUSH’s AEW Absence Tied to Visa Issues, Return Expected

RUSH’s extended absence from AEW programming has reportedly come down to a visa issue rather than any creative decision or injury. “El Toro Blanco” has been missing from the promotion for months, skipping several high-profile shows along the way, but word is his expired visa is the culprit behind the layoff — meaning a return could be on the horizon once his paperwork is sorted out.

RUSH signed with AEW in 2022 after a notable run in Ring of Honor and years of history in CMLL, quickly establishing himself as one of the promotion’s most dangerous brawlers. His intensity and willingness to fight dirty made him a natural fit for the Lucha Brothers’ old stomping grounds and gave AEW a legitimate lucha libre star with name value outside the company. But since his momentum cooled earlier this year, fans have been left wondering when — or if — he’d resurface.

With his immigration status apparently the simple explanation for the gap, AEW now has a logistics problem rather than a storyline one. Once RUSH is clear to work in the United States again, the obvious next step is figuring out how to reintroduce him in a way that means something.

That’s where speculation about a dream opponent comes in. There’s no shortage of candidates on the current roster who could make for a compelling comeback match. Bandido, a familiar rival from RUSH’s Ring of Honor and CMLL days, has never actually faced him inside an AEW ring despite their lengthy history battling for championships elsewhere — that unfinished business alone would make for an easy sell. Speedball Mike Bailey, similarly, has shared the ring with RUSH only in multi-man scenarios, leaving a one-on-one encounter unexplored.

For something with a harder edge, Konosuke Takeshita and Jon Moxley both represent the kind of physical, hard-hitting style that tends to bring out the best in RUSH. Takeshita has built his AEW tenure on stiff, high-impact matches as a former two-time International Champion, while Moxley, the current AEW Continental Champion, has never shied away from violence against any opponent willing to match his intensity. Either would make for a bruising introduction back into the fold.

Then there’s Ilja Dragunov, who debuted for AEW at WrestleDream 2026 and has already built a reputation as one of wrestling’s most ferocious in-ring performers. Fans have floated Dragunov as a dream opponent for RUSH almost since his arrival, and pairing two of the sport’s most unapologetically physical workers would be tough to turn down from a pure spectacle standpoint.

None of this is confirmed booking, of course — just logical pairings based on styles and unfinished business. But the larger point stands: RUSH’s time away wasn’t due to any backstage trouble or a quiet release, and that alone should ease some fan anxiety about his AEW future. Whenever his visa situation resolves, there’s no shortage of dream matches waiting for him, and the promotion has plenty of options to make his return feel like an event rather than an afterthought.