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Former WWE Star Shawn Spears Announced For 'Casino Battle Royale' At AEW's Double Or Nothing

Wrestling WWE Kenny Omega
Andrew Thompson May 21, 2019 8:30PM

Shawn Spears to debut for AEW at Double Or Nothing.

All Elite Wrestling's Double Or Nothing show in Las Vegas, Nevada is a mere four days away and it was announced via the company's Twitter account that joining the field of competitors in the 'Casino Battle Royal' on the pre-show is former WWE star Tye Dillinger, now going by Shawn Spears.

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In February, Spears asked for his release from WWE after having two runs in the company that added up to nearly a decade. WWE granted Spears his release two days after he made it public that he asked to be let go.

Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated had the opportunity to interview Spears prior to the breaking announcement and he stated he is coming to All Elite Wrestling because he believes in what they are doing. The former Tye Dillinger added that he believes that wrestling fans have always wanted an alternative and shared that he is looking forward to proving himself in AEW.

"I’m coming to AEW because I believe in what they are doing,” said Spears. “I believe in providing an alternative for fans, and I really believe that the audience has wanted an alternative for quite some time. This is now the platform to give people exactly what they want, and I am really looking forward to proving myself in AEW.”

Spears then spoke about his friendship with AEW co-Executive Vice President Cody Rhodes. Shawn Spears explained that he looking forward to bringing his experience to AEW and that the team of Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks are at the top of his list in regards to people he would trust to put this project together.

“I’m able to bring a great deal of experience to a company that is looking to build young talent, which is vital to the future of professional wrestling,” said Spears. “I’ve known Cody [Rhodes] for a very long time, and in terms of this endeavor, there are no better four guys than Cody, The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega that I would trust to put this together. AEW is history-making. When the chance presented itself to be a part of something so groundbreaking, I wasn’t going to wait around any longer.”

Shawn Spears is also in the process of opening a wrestling school in Florida with Tyler Breeze. Before Spears passes on his knowledge to trainees, he'll be back in the ring in Vegas at Double Or Nothing. Here's the updated match card for the May 25th show:

SCU (Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, Scorpio Sky) vs. CIMA, El Lindaman, & T-Hawk

Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho

Three-Way Match
Britt Baker vs. Nyla Rose vs. Kylie Rae

AAA World Tag Team Championships
The Young Bucks (c) vs. Lucha Brothers (Pentagon Jr. & Fenix)

Dustin Rhodes vs. Cody

Best Friends (Chuckie T & Beretta) vs. Jack Evans & Angelico

Aja Kong, Yuka Sakazaki & Emi Sakura vs. Hikaru Shida, Riho & Ryo Mizunami

BUY-IN Pre-Show

Casino Battle Royale
Sonny Kiss, Brandon Cutler, Ace Romero, Glacier, Brian Pillman Jr., Sunny Daze, MJF, Joey Janela, Chuck Taylor, Trent Beretta, Dustin Thomas, Jungle Boy, Michael Nakzawa, Private Party, Luchasaurus, Shawn Spears

Kip Sabian vs. Sammy Guevara

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