Will Ospreay has made it clear that while he respects WWE, the company’s current in-ring style is a far cry from the kind of pro wrestling he wants to work.
In a recent appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Ospreay revealed that WWE made him an offer before he signed with AEW. He acknowledged it was a strong deal, but it would have required him to leave England and relocate to the United States, something he had no intention of doing.
The relocation wasn’t the only reason Ospreay chose Tony Khan’s promotion, though. He called WWE’s in-ring work “minimalistic” and also took shots at the way the company’s matches are filmed.
“I do respect [WWE]. I just don’t like the way it’s filmed. I don’t like the wrestling behind it. I think it’s very minimalistic — I’ve been seeing WWE recently, and I saw this one clip where the girl missed her by a country mile. But it’s not just the girls, it’s the guys as well. I do wonder if they’re being told ‘we’re already making money. You don’t need to like kll each other.’ I’m not saying everyone klls each other in AEW at all, but there’s just more contact and I like that. I like to feel alive when I do my pro-wrestling. I don’t want people to whiff a strike on me. I’d much rather people hit me than it look bad on TV. I know that’s weird.”
Ospreay also said he prefers the creative freedom AEW gives him, noting that he receives bullet points for his promos rather than a full script. Still, he didn’t completely rule out a WWE run somewhere down the line.
Ospreay officially signed with AEW at Full Gear 2023 after a lengthy run in NJPW.
His next big test comes Sunday, August 30, when he faces Kenny Omega for the AEW World Championship in the main event of All In at Wembley Stadium in London.