At the time of this interview (mid-November), Will Ospreay was nearing the end of his time in the UK indies and set to make the move to a starring man slot for a Stateside brand. He had been named Wrestler of the Year by Wrestling Observer and his future looked unsure but exciting. He had his selection of deals and a period of freedom ahead, to pick and choose his next in-ring challenges. Speaking with Ewan Gleadow as he sought out new roles and responsibilities in the ring, Ospreay spoke candidly about his rise from the UK wrestling scene, the ego needed to survive the current industry, and flying the flag for his country as the spotlight shines on its independent scene.
Ewan Gleadow: How was Wembley? It must be up there as an all-time great moment.
Will Ospreay: It’s kind of indescribable. I remember pulling up to to the stadium and you could see the red seats everywhere. They opened the doors and I got to take it all in. It came back and marinated, wondering how the crowd was going to be, how they were going to react to me. In the last two or three years, after the pandemic hit and the UK was rebuilding their shows, I was performing at not a lot of sold-out house shows. You’d get a seven-hundred-seater or a thousand, but they were fairly empty.
It made me feel like I wasn’t doing my job as the quote-unquote draw. I felt I was letting my side of the deal down when it came to promotions. To go out to Wembley Stadium, not as part of the company, that’s the one thing people need to remember. I don’t work for AEW. I was wondering if five per cent of the audience even knew who I was. From the moment the music hit, I could hear people singing my music. I remember I had a point where the pyrotechnic guy asked me to look up to the ceiling and just started pointing up at the fireworks. I’m not even joking, it was like a dream. It was like a movie. Everything was going in slow motion. You’d see like the London 2012 Olympics or football matches when I used to work at Matic, the rubber seals company, and would sometimes do weekend jobs. I would watch the football fans pile in and pile out of Wembley Stadium.
I’d never been there before in my life. Having that moment man, is just ridiculous. I can’t tell you enough about the emotions going through there. The fans are there, my family, all there. Everyone was there. It was just perfect.
Ewan: What is a surprise is how big Wembley is, no matter how many times you go. How does it feel to be part of this collection of UK wrestlers gaining traction, it must feel like you have the pace needed to get there as a global name?
Ospreay: It speaks volumes to the talent we do have and the talent we have inside the UK. Pete Dunne is one of the guys I was growing up in the scene with and Mark Andrews, Drew Mcintrye. I’ve had loads of battles with and I know he’s not an Englishman but like Fergal Devitt was a big hand in all of this. I grew up alongside Zack Sabre Jr. Our talent is deep and I never thought of myself in the conversation as best in the world. When it came to pro-wrestling I was always learning the trades. When you’re an electgrician, you’ll learn the trade and you’re watching, but no one’s ever going to say “I’m the best electrician in the world,” but it’s something wrestlers want to feel in your heart. When I got the chance to go to Japan I wasn’t particularly driving the entertainment side of wrestling. I wanted to be a wrestler, and I had great grounds when it came to British wrestling.
My style was a lot of Lucha Libre. Then I went over to Japan and found myself in the mixed martial arts style but also the classical wrestling style. I’ve spread myself out and I’ve gone to so many parts of the world and now for the first time they’re saying the best wrestler in the world is someone from England. When we say best wrestlers in the world, we’ve always looked to Americans and Canadians like Bryan Danielson, Chirs Jericho or Kurt Angle. Canada too with Jericho had Kenny Omega and Bret Hart. Then we’ve looked to Japan with Masa Saito or Hiroshi Tanahashi. We’ve never said someone from the UK is the best wrestler in the world.
For me, it’s a chip on my shoulder. A pat on the back. I’m tired of being humble about this. It’s my time now and there’s literally no one on the same level of pro wrestling right now. I know that’s a lot of ego coming out but I’ve used my ego to benefit the country, to benefit anywhere I’ve ever wrestled. Just like right now, everything I’ve ever done, I elevate the game and that’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. People are saying there’s a whole crop of new talent coming up through the UK, too many to name right now. Loads of lads coming up on the scene.
I don’t want to be used as a locker room leader, I never liked that term, but I do want to be the frontman when it comes to British Wrestling. I’m a proud countryman, and I do fly my flag for the country. One thing I do want to do before I leave – because my time is coming up when it comes to the UK Indies and independent wrestling, my body can’t hack it anymore and I don’t know what my schedule is going to be like next year, I’m open to all options – but before I leave, I’ll make sure the UK scene is in safe hands.
Ewan: Is it that move to get recognised as one of the world’s greatest that is focusing you at the moment? Is your ego not just motivation to succeed at a higher level?
Ospreay: Yeah, I mean you’re rolling around in spandex and baby oil. You’ve got to have some type of ego to imagine you’re any good at this. You’ve got to imagine trying to tell this to your mates who don’t really watch wrestling. You’ve got to have some type of ego to think you’re good. I also believe in being humble and paying your dues but when you’ve done the things I’ve done – and I hate being like that- but I don’t work for that company. They sort me out. There’s a wonderful working relationship and it sorts me out. I just perform banger after banger. But one thing I’m aware of is there are still things for me to learn and I’m willing to graft.
Ewan: It must be exciting to not have anything set in stone just yet.
Ospreay: Yeah, there’s always this excitement. I guess it’s like throwing yourself in the water and seeing if you can swim. Right now it’s just a case of playing the waiting game and seeing what opportunities lie elsewhere. The one thing I keep saying is I’m open to everything. Things have changed dramatically. I’m thirty years old now. I can’t believe it. The first time I ever came into wrestling, when I was eighteen and doing this now, I’ve never been on the weekly TV or in the major leagues, but to have that recognition now, the timing couldn’t be more perfect.
Ewan: That move to the United States is a big one, isn’t it?
Ospreay: Yeah, of course. It’s a large thing to take into consideration. I’ve always been a homeboy. I loved living in Japan for two years and it was incredible. I’m extremely proud of that move. It was great to immerse myself in the culture but life has changed dramatically. I have a missus and a stepson. I’m a very family-oriented person now, which is, if you’d have said this to me three years ago, nobody would have believed you. They gave me a nickname and called me Wild Bill, so you can do the math yourself.
I never love saying it’s a major league but there is a divide when it comes to America for wrestling, like it does for anything in general. Japan’s pro-wrestling is very polite. New Japan and other Japanese pro-wrestling networks, I do think a lot more people are now aware of it. I can’t say enough wonderful things about Japan. Like, I was a very young, immature child that came in at twenty-two years and it’s been eight great years. The maturity levels and growth there, in Japan allowed me to do that. They’ve allowed me to fail and pick myself back up and move on. I don’t think I would’ve gotten the same opportunities if I had gone to America when they asked me in the first place. I’m eternally grateful to anyone who’s ever supported me because I do realise it’s a crazy journey. There’s been a lot of ups and a lot of downs, but I finally found a real good balance between pro-wrestling the business and pro-wrestling the passion. So that’s the best thing with me.
Ewan: Was the move to Japan partly to step out of your comfort zone and experience something wholly different to see if it would help?
Ospreay: I would always say to people if you’ve got a chance to wrestle in Japan, do it. I believe in my heart that Japan does grow and develop the best pro wrestlers in the world. I love their system. I love the way they do things. I love that it is about pro wrestling. I know with American TV shows it’s all about storytelling and characterisation, and Japan has that. But the main story is the wrestling. They can have extravagant entrances and pageantry but the moment the bell rings and the camera does a big zoom-in on the ring, the act is all about pro wrestling. I’m happy I grew up in that atmosphere.
I learned to be a wrestler before I became an entertainer. There’s a slide of being involved in that environment and it’s difficult. Understanding how to connect with the audience in that way, to hold their attention. In comparison to Japan who will happily give you their attention and wait patiently. They want to see your technique and your flow, and how you can translate your work to the audience. I think in America you do have to hold their attention because everyone’s got phones. If you see someone on their phone, you don’t think you’re doing a good job.
Ewan: Those cultural differences in accessing wrestling are very different. Is it a matter of winning the attention of crowds and then reading the response differently?
Ospreay: I remember AJ (Styles) telling me that just because they’re not making noise, it doesn’t mean they’re not paying attention. Japan’s audience is very reserved. They like to follow the journey and see the progress. They want to see what you can do, your development and how far your character and story go. They want to see you evolve and I think that’s beautiful. I think that’s beautiful. It is about the growth and I think the crowd warms up as the matches go along. I mean, like with American wrestling, I guess it is, once again, where you have to be doing something all the time. With Japanese wrestling, I found I would do short action and it would relax for a second, the crowd would see the anguish and they were seeing the pain you were going through. But also they saw the ability to fight on and keep pushing through. I mastered that style. I weirdly mastered that routine, and then diverged into heavyweight style.
I’ve stripped back so much of my aerial offence and I’m very much a strike wrestler. Wrestling in Japan is a trade. It’s a learning experience. For fifty years this formula has worked and developed so many top stars, so many guys have gone on and made huge leaps in pro wrestling. I sometimes wish people could see me before I went to Japan and now, because I don’t recognize who I was years ago, Japan has defined me, not only as a wrestler but as a man.
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