Tony Khan gave a gift to AEW fans to close out 2024 when he announced the signing of Will Ospreay, who was still technically under a NJPW deal. The announcement came on the heels of Ospreay’s performance at AEW WrestleDream, where he successfully tagged with Sammy Guevara and Konsuke Takeshita. The breakout UK star has not been seen in AEW action since but has remained active with NJPW, where he has a match against Kazuchika Okada this weekend at Battle In The Valley.
In an interview with Gamespot, Ospreay confirmed that he had an offer on the table to sign with WWE before he chose to go with All Elite Wrestling instead. He noted that the decision ultimately came down to AEW making him a better offer and that he had already built up trust with Tony Khan. It was pointed out that Ospreay has wrestled for Khan on ten separate occasions, including at the original Forbidden Door, where he defeated Orange Cassidy in a barnburner.
“I want to know what I’m doing within the ring, and the rest, for me, is easy,” Ospreay said. “What more could you want from a boss?”
Once Ospreay’s NJPW commitments fully wrap up, it is exciting to think about the opportunities and fresh matches that await him in AEW.
“There’s something for me to climb; there’s something for me to build upon,” Ospreay continued. “That first match with Chris Jericho, who is one of the biggest wrestling stars in the world, was probably the biggest star in the company at that time. I want to progress from that. I want to see what other bucket [list items] I can tick. I want to go for championships. I want to go for world titles.
“I want to see what I can actually do because I’ve never been put in these situations. New Japan is a sports-based wrestling product; it isn’t really known for its on-screen personalities. So this is all new for me and I just want to test myself. I want to try my very best to swim in waters I’m not very sure of, so for me, this is all a challenge.”