Will Ospreay Reflects on Time in New Japan Pro Wrestling

With his soon-to-come departure to All Elite Wrestling, Will Ospreay reflects on his last days in Japan and what the last eight years have meant.

By: R. Faliani

After his match against Kazuchika Okada at Battle in the Valley, the “Aerial Asssasin” Will Ospreay talked about his plans now that he’ll go to America and reach a bigger dream in All Elite Wrestling.

The former IWGP World Champion reflected on his time in Japan and his relationship with Okada, from being the Rainmaker’s young boy to what he has become today.

Does Will Ospreay’s A-Game Help AEW Like CM Punk’s Cult of Personality?

Ospreay has been with New Japan for eight years, and he has risen up the ranks just like his 2023 rival Kenny Omega.

As AEW is looking to invest in the European market with All In, Ospreay is the one that can reel in the wrestling fanbase in Europe.

【新日本】オスプレイ「俺が馬鹿なヘマをする度に、失望させたんじゃないかと思ってお前のいるロッカールームに行くのが恥ずかしかった。でもお前は決して見下すことなく、いつも優しかった。だからこそ、起こってしまったことに対して後悔もあるけれど、築き上げてきたものがあったことに感謝している… pic.twitter.com/EwVp6eEMwO

— プロレスTODAY/楽しめるプロレスNEWSサイト (@ProresuToday) January 16, 2024

While he will work with AEW these next years, the relationship between the American company and New Japan allows him to come back for bigger shows like Wrestle Kingdom, Dominion, or The New Beginning tours, just like Jon Moxley and Bryan Danielson did earlier this month. Ospreay even acknowledged this in his post-match comments:

“It’s weird now even saying this, because there’s a high chance you [Okada] might end up in the same area I’m in, but there’s a chance that these are my last words, so, you know, thank you.”

When Ospreay got to talk about his relationship with Okada, he said sorry to him for everything he did in 2020 as part of the United Empire.

When Ospreay became a Heavyweight, he betrayed the CHAOS leader and formed The Empire, which was renamed to the United Empire. Then he went on to win the New Japan Cup and got to win his first IWGP World Heavyweight Championship, by defeating Kota Ibushi. After four years of battling against his biggest rival in Japan, Ospreay shared some words for “The Rainmaker”:

“I can’t tell you enough the type of person Okada is. I have so many examples of your kindness and your generosity. On my first tour with New Japan, my bank card got shut down for some reason and I couldn’t get my card to operate while I was over in Japan, and being who I am, over in Japan it panicked me and I couldn’t get any money out. And you looked after me the entire tour, never asked for any money back. You just took care of me.”

Ospreay’s final match in New Japan will be on February 11, as he will compete in the first Steel Cage match in the company in many years, the last one being Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Kazunari Murakami on March 28th, 2004. The United Empire (Ospreay, Jeff Cobb, HENARE, TJP & Francesco Akira) will team up against the Bullet Club War Dogs (David Finlay, Alex Coughlin, Gabe Kidd, Clark Connors & Drilla Moloney) for a final showdown in Osaka.

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