AEW's Adam Cole Reveals He Had Cadaver Bone Inserted In Ankle During Surgery

AEW star Adam Cole has dealt with a list of serious injuries over the past several years, forcing the wrestler to spend more time on the shelf than he might like. The wrestler's latest injury took place last September, with Cole fracturing his ankle while jumping off the entrance ramp on an episode of "AEW Dynamite," requiring surgery and months of recovery. During a recent conversation with Sports Illustrated's The Takedown, the wrestler went into detail regarding the extent of his injury.

"The first piece of news that I heard was, 'Your ankle is way worse than we anticipated. You have to get another surgery in seven days,'" Cole stated. "So not only did I have to get double the amount of screws in my ankle, but also, I had to get someone else's bone put into my ankle because the bone piece within my ankle just completely disintegrated."

Cole confirmed that the bone came from a cadaver, and thanked the deceased as well as their family for the donation. Because of it, Cole was able to avoid having a metal plate inserted into his ankle, which could have vastly reduced his mobility. While the wrestler said he can feel a difference between the two ankles, he is still able to move around safely.

Since returning earlier this month at AEW WrestleDream, Cole has reignited his long-running feud against MJF that occupied much of last year. Cole has yet to wrestle a match, however, with his last in-ring performance taking place all the way back at AEW All Out 2023.

Since suffering a severe concussion in June 2022, Cole has wrestled just 12 matches, all of which took place between March and September 2023. After the injury, Cole maintained a presence on AEW TV, eventually revealing himself to be the masked devil who had been harassing MJF.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Sports Illustrated with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.