Report: Will Ospreay Signing With AEW at Full Gear

The Aerial Assassin will officially be #AllElite on Saturday.

By Liam Crowley

Will Ospreay was set to become one of professional wrestling's biggest free agents in 2024. The current IWGP United States Champion has been on the books with New Japan Pro Wrestling since 2016, entering the Far East company as a junior and ascending to the heavyweight division over the past seven years. Ospreay's unique in-ring move-set combined with his mic skills and character work have made him a hot commodity across the industry, with promotions like WWE and AEW both expressing interest in the 30-year-old. Ospreay has been keen on getting the best deal possible evident by his hiring of notable wrestling agent Barry Bloom, the same man the negotiated contracts for the likes of Kevin Nash and The Elite.

Will Ospreay Officially Joining AEW?

AEW-FULL-GEAR-WILL-OSPREAY
(Photo: AEW)

The Aerial Assassin may be putting pen to All Elite paper before any other company has the chance to speak with him.

According to Andrew Zarian of The Mat Men Podcast, Will Ospreay is the mystery signing that AEW President Tony Khan has been teasing for AEW Full Gear. This was described as a "huge deal" due to the fact that "WWE was actively pursuing him."

Considering Ospreay is under NJPW contract until February, this suggests that either AEW bought out the remainder of his current deal or the company's working relationship with New Japan allowed something to be finalized before 2024 comes around. Ospreay is currently scheduled to defend his IWGP United States Championship at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 18 against David Finlay and AEW's Jon Moxley.

Ospreay is no stranger to AEW. He was a core piece of the original AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door puzzle back in 2022, feuding with Orange Cassidy. He then returned later that summer to compete in the AEW World Trios Championships Tournament, teaming with United Empire stablemates Kyle Fletcher and Mark Davis. Fletcher and Davis, collectively known as Aussie Open, signed with AEW earlier this year.

In 2023, Ospreay has been sporadically involved with AEW programming, working with The Don Callis Family. He has wrestled at three AEW pay-per-views this year including the record-breaking AEW ALL IN: London at Wembley Stadium in August.

Related:

"Going out and hearing people sing my song... man," Ospreay told ComicBook.com. "I literally heard people screaming it and then pointing up to the sky and when the fireworks were going off. Just watching it, it felt like two minutes. It felt like everything was going in slow motion.Then to get in the ring and the bell rung and then just 80,000 people do the olé! chants. Oh man, it was just the coolest thing. It was the coolest thing I've ever done."

AEW Full Gear goes down this Saturday, November 18th.

Trending Now: