Possibly the most highly-anticipated rematch of the year goes down this weekend. IWGP United States Champion Kenny Omega defends his title against Will Ospreay at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door, running it back from their critically-acclaimed contest inside the Tokyo Dome at NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 17 this past January. For Ospreay, this rematch is a story about redemption. The Aerial Assassin had been building to a big stage clash with the Best Bout Machine for years, and his defeat came in relatively decisive fashion. Losing like that has put one thing on Ospreay’s mind as he heads into Toronto this Sunday.
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“Revenge, man. People don’t understand, but there was so much pressure put on me at the Tokyo Dome,” Ospreay told NJPW. “I won’t say the name of the NJPW legend that I walked past, but before I went out there for the match, he said, ‘Remind him what New Japan is all about.’ That pressure was put on me, that responsibility was put on me to fly the flag.”
While Ospreay arguably had home turf for their first match, Omega has the crowd advantage in this second contest as it goes down in his home country of Canada.
“I can’t stand Canada anyway. That’s a genuine thing,” Ospreay said. “This is going to be the most satisfying thing in the world for me, because I’ve got every bit of motivation and I know I’m capable of beating Kenny Omega, I know I am. I’ve just got to do it on his home soil.”
Beyond playing a home game, Omega also has durability on his side. The Cleaner has wrestled just 13 matches this year and has showed no signs of physical setbacks while Ospreay has laced up for 34 contests in 2023 and missed over one month of action due to a shoulder injury.
“I still have some issues. My injury was a partial pectoral tear, but because of that my shoulder does come out a little bit. Thankfully no major, major damage, but I’ve got a deformity up here as well, so I’ve got like a hole in my chest,” Ospreay said. “That’s going to take longer to heal, obviously, but I just feel like the time’s now, the momentum’s on my side. There isn’t anybody racking up the wins like I am, or putting up the caliber of matches like I am. I feel it, my time’s now, and I’ve just got to do it.”
Ospreay faces Omega this Sunday at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door.
