Adam Cole Has Big Goals After His AEW Return From Concussion Hiatus

Adam Cole has been regarded as one of the most exceptional in-ring talents in the wrestling world today. The Panama Playboy was brought in AEW to make him a prime fixture for the television programming, only to be sidelined by health issues. However, with his recent resurgence, Adam Cole is looking to make an even bigger impact and has big goals for the future.

The former NXT champion has been portrayed as a heel during his entire AEW run so far. Adam Cole had an incredible start in Tony Khan’s promotion, however, he missed months of action due to concussion-related issues.

When Adam Cole finally came back in January 2023 to AEW, he was welcomed back by the fans with a positive reaction. Moreover, right after he opened up about his road to recovery and how he overcame his health issues, fans came more on his side and cemented him as a babyface.

This will surely be a new direction for Adam Cole to explore in AEW. While speaking to Dave Meltzer and Garrett Gonzales on Wrestling Observer Radio, the former leader of the Undisputed Elite discussed now being a babyface in AEW.

“In this particular situation, if I would have come through with a different approach of cutting a heel promo or acting like a heel right from the return, we would have been fighting upstream. It was one of those things where, of course, the fans were going to be excited and be behind you, especially when they hear the story. In that sense, that process has been easier. In general, I have been a heel for 95% of my entire career. I’ve talked like a heel and wrestled like a heel for a really long time. To even step outside of that comfort zone and talk, like I feel, as a babyface would, was very mentally intimidating for me. Fortunately, the process of the real journey and real story makes it easy because it’s all real. It’s all things that I actually feel. The entire recovery process was all real. At this point, whether it’s heel or babyface, I’m just worried about telling my story and I’m glad the fans have my back on this one.” 

Adam Cole further spoke about his future goals now that he was back on AEW programming every week. One of those major goals was to climb the top of the mountain and win the AEW World championship in the company.

“I do think, and I’ve had this mentality, literally since I started. To go back a little bit, I remember when I first started training, I had this [goal] of, ‘Okay, I want to get signed by WWE, and I want to be the world champion, and I want to main event WrestleMania.’ When you think about all that, and how far away that goal is, it’s so overwhelming, especially for someone like me and the way that my brain operates. So I remember, very early on, saying, ‘I’m gonna drive myself crazy if I obsess on certain goals, especially goals that I can’t control, per se.’ I’m gonna take every day by day, and just be the best version of myself, in the ring or on the microphone, that I possibly can be. I’ve kind of instituted that mentality throughout my entire career. At this current time right now, I’m just so excited to be back. I can’t wait to get back in the ring, and I’m so thankful that I’m actually able to get back into the ring, especially with that scare of thinking it might not happen. Regarding the AEW World Championship, of course. I would love the chance to be the AEW World Champion. That’s absolutely a goal in the back of my mind. Again, that’s the stamp of approval from the company that you work for, saying, ‘Alright, we’re gonna get behind this guy. We’re gonna give this guy the ball.’ So certainly, being the AEW World Champion someday is a goal of mine, but currently, in this moment right now, I’m just thinking about being able to get back in the ring and wrestle, and being back on the road. That’s a big win for me.” 

Adam Cole has previously challenged for the AEW World championship in the past but did not get the job done. However, with Cole back in action with an entirely different mindset and direction for his career, we can probably see the Panama Playboy hold the gold in the near future.

Do you think Adam Cole is a future AEW World champion? Sound off in the comments!