Ezekiel Jackson Addresses Possible WWE Return After Coming Out of Retirement

Ezekiel Jackson is lacing up his boots again, nearly a decade after stepping away from the ring. The former WWE Intercontinental Champion is set to make his wrestling comeback this March for FWE in North Carolina, marking his first match since his abrupt “retirement” that wasn’t exactly what it seemed.

Speaking with MuscleManMalcolm, Jackson got real about how his exit from wrestling was completely misinterpreted back in the day. According to him, his retirement wasn’t even official—it just spiraled out of control thanks to one misheard conversation.

“It always sits on my shoulder that, man, did I finish this correctly? You know what I mean? How my ‘retirement’ went last time, I was at wXw in Germany and somewhere it got lost in translation where it’s like, I told the guys, ‘Man, if this was my last match, that’d be a great thing.’ All they heard was, last match, great thing. By the time I got in the car to drive from Germany to Frankfurt, my Twitter had blown up—Ezekiel Jackson announced his retirement.”

From there, Jackson pivoted away from wrestling, focusing on his personal training business, his family, and life outside the ring. But now, at 46 (soon to be 47), he’s got unfinished business and a renewed hunger to close out his career on his own terms.

“I got in the ring a couple months ago and I felt really good. I didn’t die the next day after. I was sore, but I didn’t die, so I thought maybe it’ll be time to give it a shot and see what happens.”

Of course, the big question is—could WWE come calling? Jackson isn’t ruling anything out, but he’s not looking to put his life on hold either.

“Man, I’m always open. Again, I love the life I have now. The flexibility of stuff within the last ten years that meant a lot to me was being there for every birthday for my kids and my wife and anniversary and for my son’s basketball, then he switched to football games, my daughter is a theater person, I’ve been to every play two or three times. Those are the things that were really important to me and still is. Again, being under contract is different as compared to deciding to take a couple of shows here and there. Again, it’s there if God willing, we’ll see.”

So, could Ezekiel Jackson’s return to the squared circle be the start of something bigger? With WWE constantly looking for veteran presence, a surprise comeback might not be totally off the table. But for now, Jackson is stepping back into the ring on his terms—and he’s just seeing where the road takes him.