AEW: PAC, formerly WWE’s Neville, Officially Signs

Among the many notable moments during the AEW Double or Nothing press conference was the arrival of PAC, with his Dragon Gate title in tow, and the announcement of MJF, Joey Janella, and Penelope Ford all signing with AEW.

As Hangman Page made the announcement that he would be the first person to win AEW gold in 2019, music hit, and PAC, formerly Neville in WWE, walked out for an exciting confrontation.

He’s has made quite the impact in the short time he has been back on the wrestling scene outside of WWE, winning the Open the Dream Gate title in Dragon Gate.

PAC remains one of the most innovative and high-flying wrestlers on the planet. He has a long history working with Dragon Gate and several US based independent promotions, and signing him as a star will make major waves for any show that he is on.

Upon his arrival in WWE, PAC started a feud with Bo Dallas in NXT that saw PAC ultimately unseat Dallas for the NXT Championship. After a few successful title defenses, PAC dropped the title to Sami Zayn and was called up to the main roster, where he spend some time as an undercard babyface before getting injured in a match with Chris Jericho. Upon his return, PAC was placed on the show 205 Live, where he quickly became the cruiserweight champion, debuting a darker heel character that saw him crown himself King.

After a brief feud with Enzo Amore, PAC quit WWE and was held to his contract for a period of time before WWE finally released him. Upon his release, he returned to Japan and worked some local shows in the UK. AEW’s press conference marks his first major North American appearance since he left WWE.

PAC signing with AEW also carries other implications. Since PAC is the Dragon Gate Open the Dream Gate Champion, it is entirely possible that a working agreement is forming between AEW and Dragon Gate. This idea is furthered by CIMA partnering with the promotion to bring wrestlers from OWE to AEW as well. CIMA is one of the biggest names in Dragon Gate history, and surely working with them is good news for AEW.

Regardless of how this plays out, we have a company that is offering serious money for stars outside of WWE, and it seems like AEW are off to a very strong start.