Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select <\/a>confirmed on Jawerhouse Hobbs Signs with WWE After AEW Exitnuary 22, 2026, that Hobbs is now under contract with WWE. <\/p>\n\u201cOh yeah, before I leave for a weekend off. No longer \u2018believed.\u2019 Powerhouse Hobbs is signed by WWE.\u201d<\/p>\n
This confirmation ends the brief but intense free agency window that opened when Hobbs\u2019 AEW contract expired at midnight on January 15. His final AEW match\u2014a trios title defense\u2014aired on the January 17 episode of AEW Collision: Maximum Carnage, but as of that date, Hobbs was no longer tied to Tony Khan\u2019s promotion.<\/p>\n
WWE had been considered the frontrunner all along. As previously reported by Fightful and Wrestling Observer Radio, WWE had long-term interest in Hobbs, and insiders believed he would make the jump the moment his AEW obligations ended.<\/p>\n
\u201cWWE had expected that they had Hobbs for actually quite a while,\u201d Dave Meltzer noted. \u201cAEW made an offer. He turned down the AEW offer, wanted to go to WWE.\u201d<\/p>\n
At 35 years old, Hobbs brings serious size, presence, and upside to WWE\u2019s roster. There\u2019s still no word on whether he\u2019ll debut on RAW, SmackDown, or NXT, but insiders believe Hobbs is expected to be around during Royal Rumble weekend in Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n
With Hobbs now officially signed, the attention turns to when\u2014and how\u2014WWE will introduce him to the WWE Universe.<\/p>\n
Where do you want to see Powerhouse Hobbs land in WWE? NXT dominance? SmackDown monster? RAW enforcer? Let us know in the comments.<\/p>\n