Dustin Rhodes Confirms Double Knee Replacement Surgery Date

AEW veteran Dustin Rhodes has officially confirmed that he’s heading in for surgery—double knee replacements, to be exact—and it’s no longer just talk.

The 56-year-old took to Twitter on August 5 to share a sobering update about his condition and his next big fight—this time outside the ring. Rhodes revealed that both of his knees are completely shot and he’ll be undergoing surgery on August 21. The damage is apparently too severe to repair conventionally, so doctors are going all in with a full double knee replacement.

“Knees are both destroyed. I have to go under the knife August 21st. They can’t actually fix the damage so we are getting 2 knee Replacements. Damn!”

Despite the grim diagnosis, The Natural isn’t throwing in the towel just yet. Rhodes made sure fans knew this wasn’t his curtain call.

“By the way…….This is NOT THE END”

The announcement comes after Rhodes went to war in a brutal Chicago Street Fight against Kyle Fletcher on AEW Collision, where he dropped the TNT Championship. It was later confirmed that the injury was real and not part of any storyline, and that Rhodes was expected to miss extended time—possibly until 2026.

Back in July, Dustin told fans that he was dealing with “intense pain” and hinted at “a very invasive major surgery.” Now that surgery is locked in and the timeline is official, there are serious questions about his future—especially regarding the championships he currently holds in Ring of Honor.

Rhodes has defied expectations his entire career, and while this setback is one of his most serious yet, fans know better than to count him out. With the operation looming and rehab on deck, this could be his toughest battle yet.

Do you think Dustin Rhodes has one more comeback left in him, or could this be his final chapter in the ring? Drop your thoughts in the comments.