Nigel McGuinness is just looking to prove that he’s the better wrestler when he faces Bryan Danielson at this Wednesday’s Gram Slam special of AEW Dynamite.

The wrestling veteran had an interview with Battleground podcast to promote the upcoming AEW special. He talked about things such as when he first decided to make an in-ring return, what his journey to get back into ring shape has been like, and more.

When asked what is the thing he is looking forward to the most this Wednesday, apart from defeating Danielson, McGuinness noted that he is excited to be in front of a live crowd again:

“I just think the experience of being in front of those people again. It’s something that I arguably took for granted when I was a wrestler. I suppose I still am a wrestler to that extent. But when I walked out at Wembley Stadium and got that reaction, it was just incredible. So heartwarming to be remembered that way and respected that way.”

• Nigel McGuinness Reveals Real Reason Behind His 2011 Wrestling Retirement

You Just Need People To Care: Nigel McGuinness

The former ROH Champion knows that the reaction in New York’s Arthur Ashe Stadium will not be the same as his home country, but Nigel McGuinness feels that any kind of reaction from the crowd is a good reaction:

“So I know it’s not going to be the same reaction. There’s going to be plenty of people in New York that don’t like me. But I’ve always said, when people ask me about getting in the job, ‘What do you need?’ ‘You just need people to care about you.’

It was always the case with me—people either loved me or hated me—but as long as they had an opinion, that was all that mattered. I think there’s going to be a lot of that, hopefully.

A lot of those people who followed our careers since Ring of Honor are going to come out and really want to see who can prove that today they are the better wrestler. That’s all I’m trying to do. I’m just trying to show that all this success he’s had should have, could have, and would have been mine in a different universe.”

Apart from the match between McGuinness and the AEW World Champion, the show will also feature bouts such as Jon Moxley vs. Darby Allin, The Young Bucks vs. Kyle Fletcher & Will Ospreay and more.

• Make No Mistake, Nigel McGuinness Is In It To Win It All

Mariah May is on the road to Wembley after winning the Owen Hart Women’s Cup, and has split from Women’s World Champion ‘Timeless’ Toni Storm.

In the finals of the 2024 Owen Hart Foundation women’s tournament, May defeated last year’s winner Willow Nightingale on Dynamite. May advanced to the finals by defeating Saraya in the first round and Hikaru Shida in the semi-finals, both of whom are former AEW Women’s World Champions. Willow’s path to the finals saw her defeat Serena Deeb in the first round and her former ally Kris Statlander in the semis. Statlander and Stokley Hathaway would get involved in the finals to try and cost Willow the match.

With this victory, May has earned herself an AEW Women’s World Championship match against ‘Timeless’ Toni Storm at AEW All In. After the match, Storm seemed happy for her ‘understudy’ to win, seemingly predicting an easy title defense next month. On the ramp, May attacked Storm with the Owen Hart Foundation Championship and Luther also took a beating from the British wrestler.

On commentary, it was suggested that this had been May’s plan the whole time and that her loyalty to Storm was never genuine. Whatever the case may be, May now has a golden opportunity next month in her home country.

Bryan Danielson Wins 2024 Owen Hart Tournament, Earns AEW All In Title Shot

AEW All In 2024

AEW All In 2024 will take place on August 25, from Wembley Stadium in London, England. The show will be the second AEW All In event, and the third All In event overall. Tickets for the show went on sale on December 1 and the event will be AEW’s second pay-per-view to take place outside the U.S. AEW All In 2024 was confirmed immediately following last year’s AEW All In event.

Bryan Danielson is officially on the road to Wembley after winning the 2024 Owen Hart Foundation Men’s Tournament this week.

During the July 10, edition of AEW Dynamite, Danielson defeated ‘Hangman’ Adam Page in the finals of the tournament. Danielson reached the finals by defeating Shingo Takagi in the first round and besting PAC in the semi-finals. Page’s road to the finals saw him defeat Jeff Jarrett in the first round and Jay White in the semis. At 25:45, this was the longest match in the tournament and the longest match in the history of the Owen Hart Cup.

After the match, AEW World Champion Swerve Strickland appeared on the ramp for a stare-down with Danielson. By winning the tournament, Danielson has earned a World Championship opportunity against Swerve that will take place at AEW All In.

Danielson missed last year’s All In pay-per-view due to a fractured forearm injury he suffered at AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door 2023. In November of last year, it was confirmed that Danielson would be competing at All In 2024 and now fans know what exactly the American Dragon will do in Wembley Stadium.

AEW All In 2024

AEW All In 2024 will take place on August 25, from Wembley Stadium in London, England. The show will be the second AEW All In event, and the third All In event overall. Tickets for the show went on sale on December 1 and the event will be AEW’s second pay-per-view to take place outside the U.S. AEW All In 2024 was confirmed immediately following last year’s AEW All In event.

AEW’s road to the company’s second-ever All In pay-per-view will see the roster stay in Arlington, Texas for a series of Collision tapings. 

In a statement released by AEW, it was confirmed that the city will host five Collision tapings at the Esports Stadium, starting with the July 20 show. Not only that, but the deal ensures that Ring of Honor Death Before Dishonor 2024 will also happen in the Esports Stadium on Friday, July 26. 

AEW President and CEO Tony Khan was excited about the deal with Arlington. 

“We are thrilled to partner with the City of Arlington for AEW’s first-ever events at Esports Stadium. This AEW summer series will add to the rich legacy of major professional wrestling events held in the great state of Texas and serve as the ultimate springboard for AEW: All In London.”

Arlington Sports Commission Executive Director Matt Wilson was similarly excited to host the Collision tapings in the city. 

“We are honored to team with Tony Khan and All Elite Wrestling for this incredible opportunity. The ability to host TNT’s wildly popular AEW: Collision program is another milestone achievement to bring worldwide events to Arlington and shine a global weekly spotlight on our beautiful city.”

This is a much different move from AEW’s usual method of weekly touring and will mark the longest period that an AEW show has stayed in one place since the pandemic. At this time, no matches have been confirmed for All In: London 2024, but the show has already seen over 40,000 tickets sold for Wembley Stadium. 

More information about the upcoming AEW Collision episodes in Arlington, including how to purchase them, can be found at AEWTix.com

Bryan Danielson’s contract with AEW is due to expire within a matter of months, but the American Dragon is confident he’ll be competing for a long time to come. 

The popular wrestler is in the midst of what he intends to be his final year as a full-time wrestler. This has stemmed from a promise Danielson made to be ‘there’ more for his children. During an appearance on Casual Conversations with The Wrestling Classic, Danielson discussed his status with AEW.

“The big one is Wembley [host of AEW All In.] I wanna make it to Wembley. My contract actually expires before Wembley, but I wanna make it to Wembley. I’m not sure if I’ll make it, but one thing that would be a nice way to kind of close everything out for me is to do my last match as a full-time wrestler at WrestleDream at the Tacoma Dome because that’s the first wrestling show I ever saw.”

It’s hardly a surprise that Danielson hopes to compete at AEW All In 2024. Not only will the show be AEW’s largest event of the year but Bryan missed out on competing at last year’s event due to an injury. He returned to action days later at the following AEW All Out 2023 pay-per-view. 

AEW would be wise to keep Bryan on board with a new contract. Not only is he considered one of the best wrestlers in the world, but the Blackpool Combat Club member has proven to be useful behind the scenes. Danielson also oversees reprimands for any AEW talent who crosses lines on social media. 

Danielson’s next match will come on tonight’s episode of AEW Collision. He and Claudio Castagnoli will team to face off against Top Flight. 

Welcome to the Daily Drop for Tuesday, April 16, 2024. WWE brought a packed episode of RAW last night, as they continue telling their stories past WrestleMania 40.

The biggest talking point has to be Rhea Ripley vacating the WWE Women’s World Title. She suffered an AC Joint sprain and had to vacate the title after an attack from Liv Morgan on the RAW after WrestleMania 40. A new champion will be crowned next week on the 4/22 episode of WWE RAW.

Now, let’s get into today’s Daily Drop!

WWE:

– New Titles: Triple H took the RAW Tag Team Titles off Awesome Truth this week on RAW, and he gave them new World Tag Team Titles. It was quite an awesome moment, where Montreal fans chanted “you deserve it” while Truth thought Triple H was Tommaso Ciampa.

– He’s back, Fella!: Sheamus provided a warning to the rest of the WWE RAW locker room after his successful 4/15 return.

– Young’s NDA: Eric Young stated that he had to sign an NDA before he left WWE. He refused to come back due to an unnamed person, and while reports Vince McMahon was the problem, he could not confirm that due to the non-disclosure agreement.

– Chad Gable Turn: Gable lost to Sami Zayn in the main event of RAW this week, but then he turned on Zayn. Now, Gable is a heel after beating down Montreal’s favorite son in his home city.

– Rousey’s Book: We learned a lot from Ronda Rousey’s book, “Our Fight.” You may check that out below.

– Creed Brothers Impress: The Creed Brothers aren’t messing around. Even though they did not win the triple threat match to become #1 contenders for the new WWE World Tag Team Titles. Team #DIY on that match to claim a shot at Awesome Truth.

– Heyman’s HOF Speech: Paul Heyman had an amazing reaction when a fan stated that his 2024 WWE Hall of Fame speech may have been the greatest ever. As I previously reported, many within WWE regard the speech as the best promo ever cut in WWE history.

WTF???

MIGHT???

POSSIBLY???

We use declarative words on the Island of Relevancy. Words like "definitely" and "absolutely" and "undisputed," "uncontroverted," "shall be acknowledged as …"

MIGHT POSSIBLY my f'n kosher tuchus! https://t.co/tb6XYawGi3

— Paul Heyman (@HeymanHustle) April 15, 2024

– McIntyre’s Contract Status: Drew McIntyre has still not inked a new deal with Endeavor. At this point, he may be a massive free agent in a few weeks.

– The Maverick’s Big News: Logan Paul and fiancé Nina Agdal announced that they are expecting a baby in the fall.

– QR Codes Return: WWE aired another QR code this week on RAW. Those are certainly hinting toward something big.

Solve the QR Code message and this is what it leads to. #WWERAW #UncleHowdy pic.twitter.com/VgOyRT30Ux

— ?????? (@WrestlingCovers) April 16, 2024

WWE NXT Full 4/16 Card:

• Trick Williams vs. Carmelo Hayes – Steel Cage Match
• Dijak vs. Noam Dar – Singles Match
• Sol Ruca vs. Lola Vice – Singles Match
• Ridge Holland vs. Joaquin Wilde – Singles Match

AEW:

– Schiavone isn’t Happy: Tony Scahivone spoke on the All In Brawl footage. He isn’t happy about how things went down at all.

– Moxley’s Defense: NJPW set Moxley’s first IWGP World Heavyweight Title defense.

– Ospreay’s Level: Will Ospreay admitted that he is nowhere near Kurt Angle’s level.

– All In Sales: AEW All In 2024 is scheduled for Sunday, August 25, 2024, at Wembley Stadium in London. As of now, there are 9,771 tickets available, with the current setup accommodating 50,708 attendees. To date, 40,937 tickets have been distributed.

AEW All In 2024
Sun Aug 25 2024
Wembley Stadium, London

Available Tickets: 9,771
Current Setup: 50,708
Tickets Distributed: 40,937

? | +405 since the last update (12 days ago)
? | Days until show: 133 pic.twitter.com/vIjXjAL0cD

— WrestleTix (@WrestleTix) April 15, 2024

– Nikki was almost All Elite: Nikki Bella watched Mercedes Mone’s AEW debut, and she almost called Tony Khan herself. In the end, she decided that being a mother was more important.

– Hardy is Free Agent: Matt Hardy is now a free agent. He confirmed that his AEW deal expired, and he is talking to “everyone” right now.

Upcoming Major Pro Wrestling Pay-Per-View Events:

• AEW is coming to St. Louis, MO with AEW: Dynasty LIVE on PPV on Sunday, April 21st at Chaifetz Arena
• Backlash France is scheduled for May 4th at LDLC Arena in Décines-Charpieu, France.
• WWE NXT Battleground is booked for May 26th at Enmarket Arena in Savannah, Georgia, exclusively available on the WWE Network and Peacock.
• WWE Money in the Bank will be held on July 6th at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, followed by WWE NXT Heatwave on July 7th at the same venue.
• WWE Bash In Berlin is marked for August 31st at Mercedes-Benz Arena in Berlin, Germany.