Before I defend Chris Jericho coming back to AEW, let me start by saying that I, personally, would not have brought Jericho back to AEW, or signed him to WWE, if I was either Tony Khan or Triple H. Even if you take all the outside of the ring baggage away from Jericho, you’re still left with a guy who, in my opinion, is three years removed from being a wrestler that delivered consistently good matches or promos. Like it or not, there is a certain performance standard wrestlers need to meet these days, and based on Jericho’s last run, where his feuds and matches often felt like neverending slogs, it’s tough to see where he fits into the modern wrestling landscape, particularly a “wrestling first” promotion like AEW.

At the same time, for those acting like the sky is falling because AEW brought Jericho back, let me assure you that the sun will, in fact, rise tomorrow. For starters, I get why AEW wanted him back; Jericho is an important part of their legacy, and he still does have name value, which makes him important in some regards for a promotion looking to secure another TV deal in an uncertain landscape. On top of that, while Jericho will undoubtedly be a part of shows going forward, he’s not going to suddenly be pushed straight to the top like he was in AEW’s early years. At most, Jericho is taking up a midcard to upper midcard segment on AEW’s four plus hours of TV per week, leaving plenty of time for everything else AEW wants to do. And again; I get it. I’m not jumping for joy about Jericho being back either. But in the grand scheme of things, this is not the end of the world, or AEW for that matter.

It wouldn’t be a WrestleMania season if there wasn’t the possibility of major celebrity guests appearing at the show. Last year, rapper Travis Scott was the big name to show up, much to the chagrin of some, as he helped John Cena overcome Cody Rhodes to win a record 17th WWE Championship. And while it doesn’t appear Scott will be returning for WrestleMania 42, WWE seems to have another rapper in mind for the big show.

Wrestlevotes Radio on Fightful Select reports that the promotion has been in talks with rapper Lil Yachty about appearing at WrestleMania, and have been talking with him for some time. Though they stop short of saying it’s a done deal between Yachty and WWE, the expectation is that the rapper will be on hand for WrestleMania 42, and that the two sides are trying to work out a deal where Yachty continues to make appearances after “the showcase of the immortals.” 

A relationship between WWE and Yachty was first hinted at by Yachty himself in February, when he expressed interest in getting into wrestling during an appearance on “Impaulsive.” Last Friday on “SmackDown,” WWE star Trick Williams shouted out the rapper, and extended an invasion for him to appear on this week’s episode; it’s believed Yachty will be appearing. 

Given his association with Williams, it would be reasonable to expect that a Yachty WrestleMania appearance would see him getting involved again with the former NXT Champion. Williams is scheduled to make his WrestleMania debut in a high profile match, challenging Sami Zayn for the WWE United States Championship.

Earlier this week, former WWE star John Cena announced that he will be the host of WrestleMania 42 this month in Las Vegas, Nevada, but according to a new report, the 17-time World Champion was not originally planned to serve as the master of ceremonies for the two-night event.

On Thursday, Wrestlevotes Radio on Fightful Select reported that Cena hosting this year’s WrestleMania was not an idea that was discussed as early as his retirement match at Saturday Night’s Main Event against GUNTHER in December. Cena apparently was asked to be present at WrestleMania this past February and agreed to taking on hosting duties for the weekend. Additionally, several reports have indicated that the move to have Cena host WrestleMania was in light of the lower-than-expected ticket sales for this year’s event, with WWE hoping that the “Never Seen 17’s” inclusion will fill more seats. On Monday, 39,866 tickets have been sold for night one, and 41,330 tickets have been sold for night two, which is 13.3 percent lower than last year’s show.

Throughout his farewell tour, Cena claimed that he would be open to taking on non-wrestling related opportunities within WWE, and just four months ago, he signed a five-year deal to be an ambassador for the company. Cena explained last December he begged WWE to allow him to be an employee in some capacity for as long as possible, but stated that he’s committed to not getting involved physically on-screen and breaking his promise to permanently retire.