There are rumors circulating that wrestling veteran Samoa Joe may be making a comeback and appear at WWE NXT soon.
WrestleZone reported that Ring of Honor featured the return of Samoa Joe on March 1. Before the ROH World Championship match, Joe entered the ring covered in streamers given by his fans. The fans chanted "Welcome back!" and were full of smiles as the former champion made his way. He announced that he wanted to fight again and win the world title, which is currently held by Jay Briscoe.
Joe was last seen in the ring in 2008. He is also the longest reigning ROH World Champion in the history of the organization. He held the title for 645 days and defended his title 29 times, including a series of fights against CM Punk and battles against Daniel Bryan, AJ Styles and Christopher Daniels.
WrestlingInc reported that ROH may have new plans for the returning Samoan.
Frankie Kazarian shared a photo with Samoan Joe and other wrestlers on Twitter and posted, "RoH13 starts now. Not only a celebration, but a reunion. #Triad".
Inquisitr wrote that although there were initial talks that Joe signed a long term contract with ROH, these were not true. Joe was confirmed to be working per date like many others in the ROH roster. He is also preparing for an independent tour, with ROH as one of his major stops. Fans wondered if there was a no-compete clause in his contract when he left TNA, so he might be waiting for it to expire before transferring to places like WWE and other interested groups like AAA, Lucha Underground and New Japan Pro-Wrestling.
He might also make a big move to WWE when his contract expires. He is currently accepting various bookings, but kept his schedule unavailable starting April 23. April 23, 2015 is also the taping date of WWE NXT, so many speculated that he might be involved in the project and appear in WWE soon.
Triple H is a big Joe fan and shared that the Samoan was offered a contract by the WWE. Joe has yet to accept or decline the offer. Perhaps he is waiting for his contract to expire or plan to make a big surprise comeback on WWE NXT. Although some fans thought that he wanted to go Japan, Joe always included the possibility of wrestling in WWE in his plans. With Triple H on the WWE Board of Directors, Joe could have big opportunities and more appearances on WWE. He is also expected to earn well if he accepts the deal.