Samoa Joe news about ROH, AAA, NJPW and WWE !!

ROH announced on 2/24 that Samoa Joe would be returning, working four dates, including the WrestleMania weekend show on 3/27 in Redwood City, CA. It’s interesting that a company clearly on a tight budget would add the expense of Joe for a show that was already sold out. They had added Jushin Liger to that show as well, but that was planned a long time back as the original idea was Liger and Tetsuya Naito (and I’d heard talk of a third New Japan guy) for Redwood City but they canceled Naito. Joe was also announced for 3/7
in Baltimore (a TV taping that also includes A.J. Styles and The Young Bucks), 3/13 in Milwaukee and 3/14 in Chicago.

The deal wasn’t agreed to until the day before, and at press time, the creative direction as far as who he is going to face and direction hasn’t been announced. While not announced yet, Joe is also booked for 4/4 in San Antonio and 4/25 in Hopkins (near Minneapolis), MN. That’s as far as the current agreement goes. It was not a done deal at press time to introduce him at the 3/1 PPV in Las Vegas, but that would make sense to put that together.

At press time we were told it’s still up in the air and was likely not to happen. Joe, the longest reigning ROH champion in history, last appeared for the promotion in 2008 when TNA and ROH had a business split and TNA would no longer let their talent work ROH shows because ROH had become a PPV promotion. Joe has also had an offer, or at least confirmed opening interest and conversation, from Lucha Underground, from AAA, and an apparently solid offer from New Japan, which may be New Japan using him outright, although we’ve been told more likely sending him to bolster NOAH at first and eventually move over. There is also what was described as active talks from WWE, which is why right now his long-term plans are very much open.