Stu Grayson’s time with AEW might have come to an end.
Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter is reporting that Stu’s contract with AEW is up and the two sides haven’t struck a new deal at this time. There is no word on whether or not talks are completely done between the two sides.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful has also been trying to get the final word on Grayson’s status with AEW.
It’s interesting to note that more recently, we’ve seen the likes of Joey Janela, Marko Stunt, and Jack Evans not have their contracts renewed by AEW. They are free to sign elsewhere.
Grayson’s profile has been removed from the AEW roster page. It seems to be AEW’s policy to try to avoid releasing talent and instead just let those contracts expire.
SEScoops will keep you updated on the status of Stu Grayson as more details become available.
If WWE shows MJF the money, he’ll be more than happy to leave All Elite Wrestling (AEW).
Maxwell Jacob Friedman (MJF) has established himself as one of AEW’s top heels over the course of the past three years. The 26-year-old began making a name for himself during his early days in the business, working for promotions such as Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW) and Major League Wrestling (MLW).
He eventually signed with AEW in January of 2019 and has been a huge part of the promotion ever since. However, MJF has been very open about his contract with AEW being set to expire in 2024, and WWE reportedly has interest. MJF discussed the matter further during the “For The Love Of Wrestling” convention in Liverpool recently.
In regards to potentially signing with WWE, MJF said that, if Vince McMahon is willing to shell out the cash, he’ll be more than happy to depart from AEW.
“I don’t know if you guys are aware of this, but on January 1st of 2024, I’m going to be a free agent,” MJF said. “Who here would want to see me in WWE? So let me explain something to you people — I did not get into this business to make any of you happy.
“I got into this business to make as much money as humanly possible. And if Vincent Kennedy McMahon is willing to shell out more money than my good friend Tony Khan, then yes, I would go to WWE.”
Recently, there have been many WWE stars who have departed to join AEW. Its been very rare that an AEW talent leaves for WWE instead. In fact, the only notable name to have done so is Cody Rhodes, who returned to WWE at WrestleMania 38 earlier this year after his AEW contract expired.
Perhaps MJF will follow in Rhodes’ footsteps come January of 2024 when his own WWE deal is up.
Booker T doesn’t believe the “Forbidden Door” event does anything for AEW outside of catering to its existing fanbase.
AEW and NJPW have teamed up to create a joint PPV event, “Forbidden Door.” The event will be held inside the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on June 26. No matches have been announced at this time.
Booker T Not Sold On Forbidden Door Attracting New Fans
Taking to his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T said he doesn’t see the AEW-NJPW crossover show attracting new fans (h/t EWrestlingNews.com).
“I do not think the majority of people here in the United States are clicking to go find Japanese wrestling. I just don’t believe that.”
Booker said he understands that the existing AEW fanbase will enjoy the show but it won’t be making waves outside of that group.
“They’re going to love it, I get that. The AEW fanbase, they’re going to love it,” Booker expressed. “But what I am saying is, outside of the AEW fanbase, there aren’t a whole lot of people are going to look at this like it’s a forbidden door because don’t too many people know about it but the AEW fanbase.”
As of now, no matches have been announced for the “Forbidden Door” show. IWGP World Heavyweight Champion Kazuchika Okada has squashed speculation that he may not be able to attend the show.
Big AEW names such as Bryan Danielson have also committed to being in action on the show. The Hardys have made it clear that they want to add the IWGP Tag Team Titles to their mantle.
Tetsuya Naito has said that he won’t be calling anyone out and that he’ll let the AEW stars come to him. His status is a bit of a question mark, however, as he’ll be undergoing surgery on his right eye soon. Naito had a quick turnaround for a similar surgery back in 2019.
Much like NJPW, it appears Stardom has warmed up to the idea of working with AEW.
Dave Meltzer hopped on the Sunday Night’s Main Event podcast to discuss all things wrestling. During his appearance, he reported that Stardom is high on the idea of working with AEW. In particular, the company would like to bring in some big names for some of its more high-profile events.
Which AEW Talents Have Stardom’s Eye?
Stardom has certainly grown in popularity and served as a bright spot in Japanese wrestling during the pandemic. As the promotion gears up for some of its major events, eventually at full capacity with Japan starting to open up more, there is interest in top AEW talent.
Meltzer noted that Stardom wouldn’t hesitate to have the likes of AEW Women’s Champion Thunder Rosa and Britt Baker for some of its key shows.
The report may not come as a surprise to many. After all, Bushiroad owns both Stardom and NJPW. We’ve seen NJPW team up with AEW ever since Harold Meij was replaced by Takami Ohbari as the promotion’s president.
AEW and NJPW will be holding a joint PPV event dubbed, “Forbidden Door” on June 26. At this time, Stardom isn’t expected to participate. The promotion has its own event on that date.
Kazuchika Okada says the upcoming Forbidden Door pay-per-view wouldn’t be much of a super-show without him.
The reigning IWGP World Heavyweight Champion spoke about the upcoming PPV at Sunday’s press conference following NJPW Dontaku.
Okada says he does not know what the format will be when AEW and NJPW make history on June 26th. It might be AEW stars vs. NJPW stars, it might be talent from both companies teaming up together. What matters is that he’s a part of it.
“Well, of course I don’t know what shape that event will take, but the fact that we’re having this combined event at all means I should absolutely be a part of it,” he said (via NJPW1972.com).
“There wouldn’t be much point in having a supershow like that if I’m not there.”
– Kazuchika Okada
Okada feels that New Japan Pro Wrestling will gain new fans from working with AEW, just like some NJPW fans will discover All Elite Wrestling.
Okada joked that he is certainly aware of AEW. He complimented them for having world class talent. However, there is always the opportunity to reach new fans.
There are still many people who have never heard of AEW. He said that cuts both ways, and there are many people who will be seeing him for the first time, as well.
“Whatever happens, I’m fully confident that those people will be leaving knowing how good I am. No matter who it might be, I think that a lot of people will get fired up, draw on that energy. There’ll be fans counting the days, not sleeping the night before, and that’s great. But anything more specific, I can’t really say at this point.”
He added that he plans on walking into Chicago as IWGP World Heavyweight Champion.
A former Impact Wrestling star has made his AEW debut.
JJ Williams was in attendance for an AEW Dark taping. At the show, there was a former Impact X-Division Title challenger in action. This talent just so happened to have parted ways with Impact back in March.
Jake Something Wrestles On AEW Dark
JJ Williams of Wrestling Observer Newsletter attended an AEW Dark taping and he witnessed Jake Something make his AEW debut.
There’s currently no word on whether or not AEW will be doing business with Jake Something in the long term. We’ve seen plenty of recognizable names on AEW Dark in the past but not all of them end up with full-time roles, at least not right away.
Jake debuted in the wrestling industry back in 2010. He was trained by the ROH dojo. Jake made appearances for the likes of ROH and NWA before making his way to Impact back in 2017.
Fightful Select reported that Jake’s contract with Impact was up in February of this year. He ended up working the Sacrifice event in March anyway and it’s been said that the split was amicable and that the door is open for Jake to return down the road.
Thank you to @IMPACTWRESTLING and @ScottDAmore for taking the chance on me, and helping me learn and grow so much. Much love to the entire locker room, a true family.
“Thank you to @IMPACTWRESTLING and @ScottDAmore for taking the chance on me, and helping me learn and grow so much. Much love to the entire locker room, a true family.”
One former AEW Women’s Champion looks to be on the verge of making her return.
The current world titleholder in AEW’s women’s division is Thunder Rosa. The TBS Champion is Jade Cargill. Jade has been shutting down all challengers, while Thunder’s reign is in the early stages. A return could add a spark to the division.
Riho Expecting To Return Soon
(via AEW)
Riho has confirmed on her blog that she has completely healed from a broken collarbone. Her return to the United States is imminent (via The Midwest Marks Podcast).
The Hardys have long cemented their legacy but they may not be done adding more hardware to their mantle.
On June 26, AEW and NJPW will team up for a special cross-promotion event dubbed, “Forbidden Door.” The action will be held inside the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. No matches have been announced at this time but The Hardys seem to already have one goal in mind.
The Hardys Want Gold In NJPW
Matt and Jeff are looking to add to their already stellar legacies. In a new video posted by AEW, Matt said he and his brother have their sights set on IWGP gold.
“The Forbidden Door event is going to be massive. It is going to be huge and blow people’s minds. There should be plenty of opponents for us to ‘DELETE! DELETE! DELETE!’ And you know what, Brother Nero? We never held the New Japan Pro Wrestling tag team titles. Maybe it’s time for a new expedition of gold. See you at the Forbidden Door.”
Bullet Club members Bad Luck Fale and Chase Owens recently captured the IWGP Tag Team Championship at Wrestling Dontaku. They defeated previous champions Jeff Cobb & The Great-O-Khan as well as Hiroki Goto & Yoshi-Hashi in a three-way tag team title match.
Please H/T SEScoops if you use any quotes from this article.
Leon Ruff made his debut for All Elite Wrestling at the May 1st AEW Dark tapings from Universal Studios in Orlando, FL.
Ruff previously wrestled for WWE, starting in late 2019. He worked primarily as enhancement talent on the main roster until he signed with the company in late 2020.
Ruff joined NXT and feuded with Johnny Gargano. That program saw him win the NXT North American championship, which he held for 25 days.
You can see video of Leon Ruff scoring a shocking win over Johnny Gargano to win the NXT North American Championship HERE.
Fuego Del Sol has had a rough April and he’s hoping the worst is behind him.
Fuego, an AEW talent, dealt with a nasty mouth infection that was bad enough that he needed to have surgery. Fuego revealed the news on his Twitter account and believes better days are ahead.
“Been in the hospital all day with a horrible mouth infection, surgery is done and on the road to recovery! Hopefully leaving this place tomorrow! Send positive vibes my way!”
Del Sol was given an AEW contract following a loss to Miro back in Aug. 2021. Fuego has mostly been seen on AEW Dark and has been used in some spots to get stars such as HOOK over on Dynamite and Rampage.
Del Sol’s career record with AEW is 10-54. He has gone 3-5 in 2022 thus far.
Adam Cole is now eight months into his run with All Elite Wrestling, but when he sits down for interviews, questions are still asked about his time with WWE NXT. That’s for good reason — Cole was one of the most decorated stars in the history of the brand.
That being said, Cole never had a run on the WWE main roster despite many clamoring for it over the years. Undoubtedly one of the most talented wrestlers in the world, Cole took his talents to AEW and feuded with “Hangman” Adam Page for the AEW World Championship earlier this year.
Speaking this week with Stephanie Chase, Cole addressed his past with NXT and whether he has any regrets.
“I cherished my time in NXT, and I would not change a thing about the way my career has gone,” Cole said. “I think in a lot of ways, my time in NXT made me a better performer. It put me in a position where I got to learn under guys that I idolized. Like Triple H was a guy that I really looked up to, and I formed a great relationship with him and he helped me a lot.
“Shawn Michaels is my favorite wrestler of all time, in my opinion, just the greatest ever. We still have a wonderful relationship, again, we still keep in touch, and we still talk and stuff like that. He helped me more than anybody, he was just so, so helpful on so many different levels. So, definitely do not regret at all my time in NXT, I loved my time there.”
(via AEW)
Cole also discussed his career in general and how he believes he has been in the right place at the right time, joining promotions that were either hot or just starting to gain momentum. That has definitely been the case when you look at his runs with the Bullet Club in ROH and Japan, NXT, and now AEW.
“My whole career, I don’t know how this has happened. But I feel like whether it be Ring Of Honor, or CZW where I started, or New Japan, I feel like I’ve gotten so lucky in so many different ways as far as the timing of stuff that has happened. So, to me, NXT was peaking as I was coming in. And then I got to work with all these guys that I have known for years, and years, and years, and ended up on television, which was really cool. Now with AEW, same thing. I feel like I am at a point where AEW is just doing this (growing) right now, and I feel like they will for years,” Cole said.
Make sure to check out the Top Rope Nation wrestling podcast for your weekly dose of pro wrestling talk featuring interviews, analysis and exclusive news: Apple – Spotify – YouTube.
Kazuchika Okada and Kenny Omega have put on some classic matches under the NJPW banner. Omega’s bouts with Okada helped him become a worldwide star among fans. However, their rivalry ended when Omega left NJPW in 2019 to sign with AEW.
The top New Japan Pro Wrestling star has no problem running it back with Omega in the United States, but only if that’s what the fans want to see. AEW and NJPW will host their first joint pay-per-view event, AEW X NJPW: Forbidden Door, on June 26th.
While speaking with Sports Illustrated about whether or not he will wrestle Omega at the pay-per-view, Okada stated that if there’s enough support from fans for the bout then they will go in that direction.
“Is there still unfinished business there?” Okada asks. “I’ve already wrestled a lot of great opponents. It was an honor for me last month to team with Tatsumi Fujinami and wrestle against a legend like Yoshiaki Fujiwara. There are a lot of truly great professional wrestlers out there and a lot of possible dream matches. If running me and Kenny back really is a dream match, well then that’s definitely a direction to take.”
Okada also stated in this interview that he feels confident the day will come when he wrestles CM Punk and Bryan Danielson.
Foley made the announcement on his Twitter account. He’ll be managing Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler for a Patriotic Wrestling Federation event. The action will be taking place inside York Comprehensive High School.
The event will be taking place on May 14. Back in March, FTR announced that they would be taking limited independent bookings. The move has seemingly opened the door for them to be managed by the likes of Bret Hart, who is believed to have signed a deal with WWE that doesn’t allow him to appear on AEW TV.
Bret will be in FTR’s corner for a Big Time Wrestling event on June 10. That show will take place inside Webster Town Hall in Webster, MA.
As expected, FTR paid homage to wrestling royalty during their Owen Hart Cup Tournament qualifier match.
Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler were in action on the April 27 episode of AEW Dynamite. The two have insisted that this was the first and last time they will wrestle each other and it lived up to the billing.
In the end, it was Dax Harwood who got the pinfall and he will move on to the opening round of the Owen Hart Cup.
Promo Joe has put together the tributes made by FTR. While the two honored Bret Hart and Owen Hart, they also paid homage to Scott Hall and Mr. Perfect.
Adam Cole still thinks Pat McAfee is a “dirtbag” – but gives the SmackDown Live commentator props for his performance at WrestleMania 38.
Cole was recently interviewed by Stephanie Chase and was asked about his former NXT rival’s performance on “The Grandest Stage Of Them All.” McAfee went one-on-one with Austin Theory in Dallas, Texas and managed to come out on top.
Still playing up to their old storyline, Cole said McAfee is still a “dirtbag,” but admits McAfee’s performance was one of the highlights of the entire weekend.
“As a person, he’s a dirtbag, can’t stand him,” Adam Cole said. “But if I will look objectively and talk about how much potential he has, Pat McAfee blows my mind. He’s so athletically gifted, as far as the wrestling part he’s done great.
“Everyone knows he can talk for hours, and he’s super compelling and interesting. Pat knocked it out of the park, he did an amazing, amazing job. So, as far as the potential of where he could go, and what he could do in the pro wrestling industry, I think he could go as far as he wants to, seriously.
“To me, it was one of the highlights of the entire weekend was Pat’s match. He’s a terrible person, but a lot of potential.”
McAfee had a big WrestleMania weekend in Dallas. First, got to make his in-ring WrestleMania debut against Austin Theory. The ex-NFL punter impressed with his in-ring ability, and even managed to pull out the win over the WWE Superstar. However, what came next was, arguably, even bigger.
Vince McMahon, sitting ringside to support Theory, came into the ring and demanded an impromptu match between himself and McAfee. McAfee, already beaten and tired from his first match, eventually fell to McMahon for the three count.
While McMahon and Theory celebrated, WWE Hall Of Fame Stone Cold Steve Austin hit the ring, stunning both Theory and McMahon to make the save. McAfee actually got to partake in a beer bash celebration with Austin, before “The Rattlesnake” hit McAfee with a stunner as well.
For McAfee, it was a dream-come-true for the longtime professional wrestling fan, and his performance inside the ring alone was impressive on its own.
NJPW President Takami Ohbari isn’t opposed to having a second crossover event with AEW in Japan.
Earlier this month, Tony Khan and Ohbari announced a joint PPV event dubbed, “Forbidden Door.” This special crossover show will be held inside the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on June 26.
Forbidden Door 2?
During an interview with Sports Illustrated, Takami Ohbari said that Japan is now open to international workers, making travel much less of an issue. Japan took extreme lockdown measures during the COVID-19 pandemic and it was more long-term than many would’ve liked.
Ohbari says now the door is open for a potential Forbidden Door part two in Japan.
“Traveling between Japan and the U.S. is no longer a significant problem,” says Ohbari, who also addressed whether there will be a follow-up event with AEW in Japan. “If Japanese fans are invested in this event and the demand is there, then there will absolutely be the impetus for us to take the next step of holding an event in Japan.”
Ohbari went on to say that his main focus is on ensuring that NJPW represents itself to the highest order this June.
“NJPW and AEW will open the ‘Forbidden Door’ together this June, but what lies on the other side is something we will all have to wait to find out,” Ohbari says. “One guarantee: I always say that NJPW’s wrestlers carry the pride and the fight of wild lions. Whomever they fight against, or whomever they even team with, they will carry a fighting spirit that is unmatched and unbeatable.”
Deonna Purrazzo is the next competitor to walk through the “forbidden door” onto AEW television.
Purrazzo is currently signed to Impact Wrestling, where she’s a multi-time Knockouts Champion. She’s also the reigning Ring of Honor Women’s World Champion.
Next week, she’ll make her AEW in-ring debut in a match that has championship implications. The Virtuosa battle AEW star Mercedes Martinez, who holds the Interim ROH Women’s world title.
The championship unification match will determine which competitor will represent ROH’s women’s division moving forward.
Purrazzo reacted to the match announcement by letting fans know that she’s been eager to grace an AEW ring:
Page wasn’t advertised for the show. Last week, he had a stare-down with CM Punk, who has been signaling for a title shot.
SEScoops wishes the “Hangman” a quick and full recovery.
The growing list of wrestlers who have gone public with their COVID-19 diagnoses over the past few months include Roman Reigns, Randy Orton, Jeff Hardy, Goldberg, Matt Jackson of the Young Bucks, Will Ospreay, KENTA, Jake Roberts, Carmela, Nyla Rose and Pat McAfee.
Adam Cole says everyone in AEW is psyched for Forbidden Door, and he already knows who he wants to work with at the show.
During a recent discussion with Stephanie Chase, Cole spoke about the excitement that’s building for the upcoming inter-promotional super-show.
Both companies have huge stars and passionate fan bases. Forbidden Door is a chance to see the top stars of both companies square off.
Some AEW fans do not watch New Japan Pro Wrestling. Many NJPW fans don’t watch All Elite Wrestling. This collaboration will expose both companies to new viewers and that’s a huge win for everybody.
“Some of my fondest moments years ago were over in New Japan so yeah, I’m very, very excited for this event,” said Cole. “I think it’s gonna be awesome.”
Cole vs. Okada
The top stars of AEW and NJPW are making it known who they want to work with at Forbidden Door. Cole has his eye on Kazuchika Okada, the reigning IWGP World Heavyweight Champion.
“So I’ve never had a singles match with Okada,” he said. “I’ve wrestled Okada before in like a six-man tag team match in Ring of Honor but we barely had any interaction together.”
Cole is eager to make history with Okada and steal the show at Forbidden Door.
“I’ve wrestled Tanahashi, just wrestled Ishii, which was really cool. Wrestled Jushin Liger, YOSHI-HASHI.. so many different guys, but I would love a classic one-on-one singles match with Okada at some point. I think that’d be really cool.”
While no matches have been signed as of this writing, it’s worth tracking who wrestlers are saying they want to work with. In addition to Cole saying he wants to wrestle Okada, we’ve also seen:
The Human Suplex Machine currently works for AEW as a broadcaster. He’s also the on-screen leader of Team Taz, the faction comprised of Powerhouse Hobbs, “Absolute” Ricky Starks and his son, Hook.
Prior to his transition to the announcer’s booth, Taz had a legendary in-ring career. An ECW original, the pitbull from Red Hook, Brooklyn, NY was known for his deep arsenal of suplexes and submission holds. He choked out a couple guys, and dumped a couple guys on their heads, back in his day.
Unfortunately, all those years in the ring took a toll on his body. The 54-year-old legend is now undergoing stem cell and PRP (Platelet-rich plasma) therapy to repair the bad knee.
Wrestlers using Stem Cell Therapy
Several pro wrestlers have resorted to stem cell therapy in recent years, including Rey Mysterio. Many years ago, Mysterio was in bad shape after his In this video from 2019, Mysterio explains how stem cell therapy has revolutionized how he treats his injuries. He credits the procedures for extending his career and “turning back the clock” on the wear and tear his his has body endured.
2022 could end up being a very good year for wrestling video games. WWE 2K22 has been released to a lot of positive reviews, and the latest reports indicate that AEW’s first console video game offering could be coming before year’s end.
So far, our looks at the AEW video game have been few and far between. The game was first announced a little over a year and a half ago.
Speaking on the Put Your Quarters on the Glass YouTube channel, Omega discussed the game’s pending arrival and updated fans on when we can see some more footage from the game.
“I mean we’re working real hard on trying to get something that is presentable, trying to get something that is gonna be complete, ASAP and hopefully that means this year,” Omega said (h/t ComicBook).
He continued, “Hopefully we’re also gonna have more materials to show everyone real soon and I know that there should be something actually really soon being released. I’m not sure when this will release but you may have already seen it by now and that’s just a little taste for things to come but there should be something more expansive, something a little more of an in-depth look, I would say in the upcoming months for sure. Just keep everyone up to speed let everyone know where we’re at.”
Jungle Boy in the AEW Video Game
In a report a couple of week’s back, Fightful Select noted that the AEW video game is expected to release this year among talent and staff. The target date is September. They recently had a cutoff for the roster’s theme music entries and the roster itself that will make it into the game. The company and developers have also reportedly reached an agreement with a publisher. That announcement should be made officially very soon.
Make sure to check out the Top Rope Nation wrestling podcast for your weekly dose of pro wrestling talk featuring interviews, analysis and exclusive news: Apple – Spotify – YouTube.We discussed the updates on the AEW video game a couple of weeks ago on the show.
Former WWE Producer Pat Buck has confirmed that he’s working for All Elite Wrestling.
After almost three years with the company, Buck requested his release from WWE. He announced that he left the company right after Wrestlemania 38 on Apr 4. At the event, he helped produce the Ronda Rousey vs. Charlotte Flair and Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar title matches.
In a Tweet, Buck shared that he felt that he accomplished all that he wanted to do in WWE and wanted to focus on outside ventures. PWInsider reported a week later that he was backstage at AEW Dynamite, and the company hired him. Buck has now confirmed on Apr. 26 in a Tweet that he is indeed an AEW Producer and has added that he is an AEW Coach in his Twitter Bio.
Since Buck’s departure, WWE has been looking for a new producer to help with matches. On Apr. 8, Fightful Select reported that the company has brought in former WWE talents Curtis Axel and Ariya Daivari to try out as WWE Producers. Fans may also know Axel as the son of WWE legend Mr. Perfect and Daivari, the brother of current WWE Producer Shawn Daivari.
Although they are receiving tryouts, it’s unclear if WWE will hire them as a full-time producer. Former talent Jimmy Wang Yang had a tryout opportunity as a WWE Producer, but the company ultimately decided that it wasn’t a good fit.
On the Apr. 22 episode of Friday Night Smackdown, Fightful Select shared that Axel and Daivari helped produce matches on the show as part of the tryout. Axel helped Adam Pearce with the Madcap Moss vs. Angel Garza match, while Daivari assisted Michael Hayes with the Riddle vs. Jey Uso match.
While Buck has found a new opportunity with AEW, WWE hopes to provide new opportunities to someone else.
Becky Lynch says the women’s division in WWE is far superior to AEW’s.
WWE is heading overseas this week for the annual post-WrestleMania European tour. The company is still running shows in the US this weekend, including a “Saturday Night’s Main Event” house show from Lakeland, Florida at the RP Funding Center.
Big Time Becks called in to Drew Garabo Live Featured Cut Of The Day to promote the Lakeland event and had some interesting things to say about the state of AEW’s women’s division.
She sees two big issues with the AEW women’s division:
They don’t feature women prominently, as WWE does
The women in AEW are not on “the same level” as WWE
Frankly, they’re not as good as we are
Lynch was asked if she feels motivated by having competition from AEW. She wishes that was the case, but she’s not feeling the heat.
“I wish I could say ‘yes,’ but, unfortunately, I don’t think they are represented the way we are, they don’t get as much time as we get and frankly, they’re not as good as we are,” said Lynch (via Fightful).
Lynch went on to say that WWE has the best women’s division in the world — and it’s not even close.
“Competition is great and it’s great for there to be another place and I have a very good friend, Ruby Soho, over there and I would love to see her as champion one day,” she said. “I would love to see her get the spotlight she deserves. Competition is always great. Over here, we’re on another level.”
Listen to Becky Lynch’s appearance on Drew Garabo Live Featured Cut of the Day:
WWE & AEW’s Women’s Divisions
Top female competitors in WWE include Raw Women’s Champion Bianca Belair, SmackDown Women’s Champion Charlotte Flair, Sasha Banks, Bayley, Alexa Bliss, Asuka, Carmela, Naomi, Natalya and Liv Morgan.
Top female competitors in AEW include Women’s World Champion Thunder Rosa, TNT Champion Jade Cargill, Britt Baker, Hikaru Shida, Nyla Rose, Serena Deeb, Kris Statlander, Ruby Soho and Riho.
Will Ospreay is making it known that he wants to face Kenny Omega at AEWxNJPW: Forbidden Door.
Omega has been out of action since late 2021. He worked through multiple injuries as AEW World Champion. Omega underwent multiple surgeries during his time off, including for his knee and a sports hernia.
Ospreay and Omega have exchanged a lot of trash talk on social media and in interviews. On Tuesday morning, Ospreay tweeted about his upcoming match against Hiroshi Tanahashi at Wrestling Dontaku (5/1/22). He wrote, “I will be paying homage to a wrestler that largely impacted my career, to show my appreciation for his contribution & sacrifice.”
Omega assumed Ospreay was talking about him, and said, “thanks, I guess.” Ospreay reacted with an inquiry about Omega’s health, and whether or not he’ll be healthy by June.
— Will Ospreay • ????????? (@WillOspreay) April 26, 2022
AEWxNJPW: Forbidden Door takes place Sunday, June 26th from Chicago, IL.
No matches have been announced as of this writing, but wrestlers from both companies are already making challenges and dropping hints about who they want to face. Omega vs. Ospreay would be a match worthy of this inter-promotional super-card.
A few months ago, Will Ospreay spoke to SEScoops and expressed his desire to work with AEW stars. To put it more bluntly, Ospreay expressed his desire to “embarrass” the likes of Kenny Omega, CM Punk and Bryan Danielson.
“If you guys really want it that bad, you know what to do,” Ospreay told SEScoops. “You just gotta call my number and I’ll show up. I’ll show up. But 9 times out of 10, these guys don’t want me to show up. Because A, I’ll embarrass them. I’ll embarrass them.”
“Guys like Bryan Danielson made a living being one of the best wrestlers in the world. But if I showed up, he would not last in the ring with me. Kenny Omega was THE guy in New Japan Pro Wrestling. He left. I took over. Nobody could compete with me in 2019. If I got in the ring with him, I’d embarrass him.”
Mick Foley loves the idea of honoring Owen Hart through the ongoing AEW tournament. The wrestling veteran feels that it’s long overdue.
The Hardcore Legend appeared on Throwing Down w/ Renee & Miesha. He talked about things such as the 20th anniversary of Randy Orton’s WWE debut and more.
He was also asked for his thoughts on AEW and the Owen Hart Cup Tournament. Mick Foley first joked that they shouldn’t stop themselves from spreading any rumors about him making an appearance. So he can get a lucrative deal similar to Bret Hart.
He then said that the idea of honoring Owen Hart is beautiful:
“Look, I’ll be honest Renee, I don’t watch [AEW] as much as I used to. I catch it when I can. I turn it on. I like what AEW is doing. I love the idea of honoring Owen Hart.
It’s way overdue and I know that it means a lot to people, like those guys [FTR]. The Owen Hart tournament. It’s a beautiful thing.” said Mick Foley, “I think that they should do it every week. This whole forbidden door concept where partners get to wrestle partners. It’s pretty cool.”
The match Mick talked about will be taking place on Dynamite this Wednesday. It will see FTR’s Cash Wheeler going up against his partner Dax Harwood in a qualifying bout for the Owen Hart Cup tournament.
