Tributes poured in from Eric Bischoff, Ric Flair and William Regal on Ted Turner’s passing at the age of 87.
Turner, who founded CNN as the first 24-hour cable news channel, was also an instrumental figure in bringing pro wrestling to air on TV in the 1970s in Atlanta. He also founded World Championship Wrestling (WCW) which later collided with WWE in the Monday Night Wars in the late 1990s.
“I’m sad to hear of the passing of Ted Turner. Ted bought me to the US and paid me and allowed me to feed my family for 6 years. Ted also took care of mine and my families green cards. Rest well.”
“So sorry to hear about the passing of the great ted turner! The man that created cable before cable was cool! He created CNN and look at it now! He rolled the dice and wasn’t afraid of taking risks. he won the America’s cup for sailing! His office looked like the hall of fame which included a picture of him and (Krusher) Khrushchev. On top of all of that, he created so many opportunities for so many wrestlers because of his love for wrestling. Rest in peace my friend! Thank you for the memorable personal times that we spent together.”
Bischoff was associated with WCW throughout the 1990s. He initially joined as an announcer and was promoted to Senior Vice President before serving as President of the promotion. Flair competed on WCW and was positioned as a top star who carried the promotion across multiple eras.
Former Olympic and pro boxer, infrequent wrestler and current Shane Taylor Promotions member Anthony Ogogo says he was set to join Blackpool Combat Club and Inner Circle in AEW.
In an interview with ITR Wrestling, Ogogo revealed he was initially set to be a part of Chris Jericho’s Inner Circle — an idea greenlit by Tony Khan who wanted Jericho to mentor him. However, Jericho had other plans with Jake Hager eventually stepping up given their time together in WWE.
“With Jericho, I was supposed to be Jericho’s bodyguard, part of his Inner Circle group. That was supposed to be me. I think Tony Khan’s idea was for me to work with Jericho and learn from Jericho,” he said, also giving the inaugural AEW World Champion credit for being a real life “Learning Tree.”
“Especially in the early years, he was the learning tree and I would always ask questions and he’d teach me stuff. He’d always watch my matches and give me critique and say ‘Do this, don’t do that. He’s the man who knows how to get over so Jericho is someone I definitely learned a lot from,” Ogogo said.
Ogogo, a former Olympic medalist and boxer officially made his in-ring AEW debut in 2021. He was trained by Cody Rhodes, QT Marshall and Dustin Rhodes.
He then said at one point, he was working with both Bryan Danielson and William Regal who he said were training him to join the Blackpool Combat Club.
“At that point, I was being groomed to join the Blackpool Combat Club before it became the Blackpool Combat Club and it never really materialized. So, I trained all this time with Danielson and Regal and put in all those hard work in to learn,” he explained.
He then further elaborated on their guidance both with Danielson’s impact in wrestling and Regal teaching him old school British wrestling style.
“The whole thing about pro wrestling is you can be who you wanna be. Just because I wrestle like big and strong and do like power moves. Regal taught me this as well, Regal taught me this old school British wrestling big guy, tough styles. Just because you do the impact stuff doesn’t mean you can’t learn the intricate stuff. It just thus far hasn’t been called to use, doesn’t make sense for me to be using it.”
“He (Danielson) taught me so much, again, not just wrestling stuff, but how to get over. He got this thing [(he Yes chants) over. And when someone does a move, or a quote, and it transcends outside of wrestling, that guy knows what he’s talking about. Tremendous guy, wonderful man. Really really nice guy as well. Super nice guy.”
The 37-year-old last competed on this past weekend’s ROH TV tapings in Jacksonville, Florida — his first match since last November, also in ROH. That was his first action in a Khan-owned company since August 2024.
The Blackpool Combat Club was formed in 2022 with Jon Moxley, Wheeler Yuta, Danielson and Claudio Castagnoli with Regal as the group’s manager. By 2023, Regal departed AEW and returned to WWE in a backstage role.
Danielson’s dispute with Moxley after his betrayal at 2024’s All Out led to the pivot to the Death Riders.
Dave Meltzer led off with a look at Vince McMahon addressing WWE stockholders at an annual meeting which included comments about the Chris Benoit tragedy, their wellness policy, and more.
Dave also recaps and reviews that year’s Judgment Day pay-per-view and previewed a busy weekend ahead of events.
There was also news of William Regal being suspended by WWE for 60 days, year-to-year business comparisons for both WWE and TNA, and plenty of results and happenings.
More on the Paramount purchase of WBD and details of when it goes through, if it goes through and details on how it helps or hurts UFC, AEW and Zuffa Boxing as well as a cost efficiency look at the three properties for 2027 if plans go through as stated.
The road to WrestleMania and why Paul Levesque is in a position where it’s impossible for him to do the job people want and impossible for him to fail, business notes on the show, and a look at the Elimination Chamber show, how it did on Netflix, the good and the bad.
Preview and updates on AEW Revolution and interest level
Odds on upcoming wrestling matches
Coverage of the New Japan New Beginning USA show in Trenton with two title changes
A look at the Demolition tag team as they go into the WWE Hall of Fame
The most detailed look at the ratings of all the pro wrestling TV shows, including demos, competition and comparisons with last year.
Johnny TV in the most heated match so far this year with Angel de Oro
Why AAA television is so entertaining
Stardom Cinderella tournament notes
Brothers face off in NOAH jr. tag tournament final
New Japan Cup first two days
Final night of Fantastica Mania notes
Jeff Jarrett documentary
Wrestler out of prison starts working on indices this week
Real American Freestyle angle
Update of the robbery of the Canadian promotion and the Davey Boy Smith Jr. Hall of Fame ring
John Laurinaitis wants back in to wrestling
16 Carat Gold weekend in Germany
Pro Wrestling Eve has biggest show of its history this week
Brodie Lee Jr. first singles match date
Steph De Lander talks why she and Mance Warner quit TNA
Notes on David Finlay signing with AEW
ROH first TV tapings in a studio
UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight title updates
Lots of new UFC fights
Updates on WWE front office news and changes
The story behind leaking fast nationals
WWE accused of deleting key information in a lawsuit
More notes on the WWE deal with Endeavor and how it went down
Janel Grant speaks in favor of changing Connecticut law on NDAs
Bianca Belair update
WWE sends out unchecked email to network subscribers causing a panic
PWInsider reports that, prior to his appearance on NXT last night, William Regal had not been seen at the Performance Center for some time and also had not been on the road with the main roster for an extended period. The report says it’s expected that Regal and Fit Finlay will be regulars on NXT going forward for their role with NXT’s Birthright faction.
Cody Rhodes appeared on a new episode of Complex’s Graps podcast. He’ll also be the guest on a new edition of Insight with Chris Van Vliet this Friday.
Three months ago I fractured my nose, and that’s why you haven’t been seeing Chantel Monroe in action these past couple of Wednesdays… but don’t worry divasss I’m officially fully cleared, back, and ready to give EVOLVE the sparkle it’s been missing #wwenxt #wwe
Renee Paquette spoke to TV Insider about how much she enjoys passing on knowledge to up-and-coming female broadcasters in the wrestling industry:
I love to be able to help the other girls. That’s something I didn’t have as much time to do when I was in WWE. With the time I spent there, and the things I learned there and the experience I have for the duration of my career, I love being able to help these other girls out. Someone like Lexi [Nair] I think has grown so much. She is so great and awesome to work with. She always has a good attitude. She always wants to learn more. She will be doing Ring of Honor tapings till whatever time in the morning. She wants to be there and get better.
It’s the same for Arkady Aura. I’m not a ring announcer, so I can’t contribute with that, but with all the prep she does wanting to get all the names right and pronunciations right, especially when you have all these wrestlers coming in. You have guys from CMLL and New Japan Pro-Wrestling, so you want to make sure you’re on your game with that stuff. To see these girls grow and develop, I love that. Even with the WWE side, to see what Jackie Redmond has been able to do over there. Her and I go way back, so it’s really fun for me to see her in that role at WWE.
TV Insider asked Paquette if her daughter Nora understands what her mother and father (Jon Moxley) do for a living:
Oh yes. She is very into it. She has really gotten into watching women’s wrestling, which is really fun for me to get to show her some stuff. She doesn’t love watching dad wrestle so much because it’s much scarier. It’s cool to see her soak it all in. One day she is like, ‘Mommy, I want you to teach me everything about broadcasting.’ The next day she’ll tell me she wants to be a wrestler like dad. I think she has a good comprehension of what we both do. Maybe not the gravity of it or the magnitude, but she has an understanding. It is funny being a parent and watching your kids soak up that environment. I sort of pull myself out of it wondering what her first memories are going to be of walking into the women’s locker room with me, and there are all these amazing female athletes and characters, and all the people who see backstage getting there earlier in the day. She sees the stage and set and how the show comes together. I wonder if she is going to think about that when she is older.
I’m a massive control freak. It’s like, these are the colors. This is my logo. I design it. I was working with somebody and I was telling him it’s gonna be a mix of a spider with a hazard sign, right? So, it’s all me. I’m great on ideas and then connecting with people and telling them this is exactly what I want.
I get hyped when I go out and I think the fans can really feel this. There’s those two things. The person and the music really make sense together. Those are small artistic details that I’m crazy about.
Pro Wrestling Eve promoter Dann Read put out a statement addressing the backlash over Paul Robinson working for the promotion as a producer. During the Speaking Out movement in 2020, Robinson was accused of having kissed a 16 year old girl and getting close with her until the mother of his children found out.
Taiji Ishimori will be in action at Fantastica Mania USA in Charleston, South Carolina on April 12. The event is being put on by MLW in collaboration with NJPW and CMLL.
After Charlie Dempsey agreed to team with Tavion Heights, he turned against his former tag team partner on Tuesday after seeing his father William Regal and Finlay at the entrance. It was then that he dragged Heights out of the ring and gave him a German suplex, eventually allowing Birthright to score the victory. Dempsey then entered the ring and posed with the rest of Birthright, solidifying himself as the newest member of the group.
Birthright, consisting of Lexis King, Stacks, Arianna Grace, and Uriah Connors had been attempting to recruit Dempsey for several weeks. At Vengeance Day, Dempsey rejected their offer outright and agreed to team with Heights for Tuesday’s match.
Tony D’Angelo came to the ring on Tuesday following his victory over Dion Lennox and said the other reason he returned to NXT was because he wanted to win the NXT Championship, calling out Joe Hendry. He said last year he would have asked to break bread with Hendry but now things are different, saying Hendry better prepare for him because he would not be denied.
The main event of Tuesday saw Ethan Page and Ricky Saints defeating Hendry and Myles Borne after Page pinned Hendry, setting himself up as one of the top contenders for the NXT Championship.
This week’s newly-posted retro issue of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter is political in nature…in that it featured 2008 U.S. presidential candidates appearing on WWE Raw followed by an in-ring skit with parodies of those characters including Barack Obama (seen above).
Dave Meltzer covered that in addition to Georges St. Pierre regaining the welterweight title from Matt Serra in front of a raucous Montreal crowd at UFC 83.
Also, the Ultimate Warrior made his surprise return at a Spain indie show and there was a lot to discuss from that.
This was the issue that also covered Michael Hayes being suspended due to a backstage incident with Mark Henry, William Regal winning the King of the Ring tournament, and more.
Shortly after concluding AEW Worlds End last month, fans saw wrestling legend William Regal open up in public and address wrestlers performing dangerous and high-risk spots in wrestling as a fallout from the All Elite Wrestling PPV. Now, almost a week later, AEW President Tony Khan responded to Regal’s comments positively.
“Pro wrestlers are always taking hard-hitting and high-risk chances. That’s one of the things that makes pro wrestling so exciting. In AEW, we’ve been able to have all of these great events, and we’ve never had a career-ending injury like that from our wrestling,” Khan added.
“I don’t think that AEW is any different than any other wrestling promotion in the world. The wrestlers want to do their very best, and sometimes a promotion will step in. AEW and I have at times stepped in and said, ‘I can’t do that. I don’t think that’s a good idea.’ I don’t want to do that every day or every match, but there are times where it comes up, and that’s okay.“
“Everything you talk about, these are things you constantly balance in sports. Not just AEW, but all sports. Taking care of your athletes and doing things to protect the health and safety of the athletes to make the sport work,” Khan concluded.
A spot from AEW Worlds End saw Kyle Fletcher land abruptly on his neck, which brought up concerns regarding the safety measures in pro-wrestling. Mark Hoke also noted on his show that it could have been the moment that led to Regal’s comments.
Tony Khan shares his thoughts on Jon Moxley vs. Kyle Fletcher from AEW Worlds End
In the same podcast, while addressing the injury concerns and risky moments in the sport, Khan also made sure to reveal his thoughts on the Moxley vs. Fletcher match.
“I thought Worlds End was great, and I thought everything about it was wonderful. And if anybody was talking about Kyle Fletcher vs Jon Moxley, that’s my one of my favorite matches of all time. And, it’s all subjective. Best match is always in the eye of the beholder. And I do think it’s something to be really proud of AEW to hang our hats on. How fantastic a year that was. All our wrestlers are doing well, and what AEW accomplished in 2025, going into 2026.“
Just days after sending out a warning about potential neck injuries in wrestling via his social media account, WWE legend William Regal has now published his ‘first and maybe only’ wrestling message for the year. Reflecting on his social media activity, Regal released a stern message asking people who made “a cent” using his name to donate money and help Yoshihiro Takayama & Shinjiro Otani.
“My first and maybe only message this year involving Wrestling. FYI, I never read anything unless it’s old wrestling or music and old comedy so save the typing time and your head space by replying. I wish you all contentment , happiness and good health. I won’t be reading anything except my x2 weekly look at old wrestling. Too many people from too many companies send me all the things I do or don’t need! I have been using this platform since 2014 at least to warn and help future talent that I can’t talk to directly,” Regal wrote.
“Over 32 years in the US and Japan showing people how to be safer if they wanted to know or listen without ever asking for a thank you. I’ll quote my dear friend of 26 year Samoa Joe and say “ it’s a laundry list” of people. I will ask this though. If you’ve made 1 cent of using my name in 2025, please send that money to the official organizations who care for my friends [@otani_shinjiro] and [@Takayamado]. Press the anonymous button as it’s not a tax right off for you or you to try and look like nice people. It’s the right thing to do. To everyone else, best wishes for 2026.”
Japanese pro-wrestling and mixed martial arts legend Takayama injured himself after landing on his head while performing a sunset flip. He was immediately rushed to the hospital, where he was diagnosed with a “cervical spinal cord injury due to degenerative cervical spondylosis.” After months of being bedridden, Takayama was reportedly announced paralyzed from the neck down, ending his pro wrestling career.
Meanwhile, Otani became unresponsive after taking a German suplex on the turnbuckles during his bout against Takashi Sugiura for Zero1’s World Heavyweight Championship at Zero1’s anniversary event. Once he woke up at the hospital, he was unable to move his limbs. Later underwent surgery, Otani is currently recovering from the life-threatening injury.
Wrestling Observer Live with Bryan Alvarez and Lance Storm is back with tons to talk about including more on William Regal’s tweet about wrestler safety, Kenny Omega and Jeff Jarrett respond, the WWE shareholder lawsuit, Vince McMahon, the RAW report from Monday night, and tons more! A fun show as always so check it out~!
AEW star Kenny Omega appreciates the message William Regal sent out regarding the need for wrestlers to protect their health.
Last night, Regal posted a tweet urging today’s generation of wrestlers to think about their long-term future and stop doing “stupid” moves where they land on their heads. The message has mostly been well-received, but it has inspired some tribalism on social media among fans who think Regal — who works behind the scenes in WWE — was publicly calling out an AEW spot when he would not have done so for something that happened in his own company. Though Regal did not mention him by name, it’s believed that the spot where Kyle Fletcher landed on his neck at Worlds End inspired Regal to post what he did.
Omega responded by thanking Regal and calling his comments “great food for thought.” Omega believes safety is something wrestlers should always be cognizant of — and tribalism should not come into play.
Regardless of timing or perceived intent, the general message from Mr. Regal remains a positive one. Tribalism, whataboutism, and other ‘isms’ aren’t needed here.
Safety often takes a back seat when a wrestler is locked in and actively chasing the dragon. We all sometimes need…
Regardless of timing or perceived intent, the general message from Mr. Regal remains a positive one. Tribalism, whataboutism, and other ‘isms’ aren’t needed here.
Safety often takes a back seat when a wrestler is locked in and actively chasing the dragon. We all sometimes need a voice from afar to tether us back to reality and to tell us that the risks have consequences. The odds aren’t in our favor and none of us will walk away unscathed.
This isn’t company vs company or wrestler vs wrestler. This is about a general awareness and a knowing that the cost of what we do is directly related to the amount and severity of risk(s) that we take.
Keeping that in mind, as athletes, we aren’t all created equally. As responsible adults, we need to be realistic and know our own physical limits. I’d have to give my head a shake if I wanted to try a twisting shooting star, but I’d never say a word to Pac.
I look at this all as great food for thought. Something to always be cognizant of. It shouldn’t be about making it a competition.
Thank you, Mr. Regal.
WWE’s Piper Niven and Ivar — who have both battled serious neck issues — are among the other wrestlers who have responded to Regal’s comments with support.
The spot from Worlds End happened in a match where Fletcher lost to Jon Moxley in the Continental Classic semifinals. Fletcher is believed to be doing fine despite how scary the spot looked.
Piper Niven — who is currently battling a serious neck injury of her own — hopes that wrestlers listen to William Regal’s health advice.
On Sunday night, Regal sent out a tweet warning wrestlers against doing “stupid” moves where they get dropped on their heads. Regal detailed the consequences that he and others like Bryan Danielson are dealing with from the damage they suffered in their careers — and he pleaded with the younger generation to stop doing moves that carry such great risk toward their future quality of life.
Niven responded by backing up Regal’s advice and asking other wrestlers to heed his warning. She said there’s a very fine line between feeling fine and not being able to feel okay.
The line between
“But I feel fine!”
And
“I just want to feel ok again”
Is horrifically thin and you have zero idea how close you are teetering on the edge of it.
“The line between ‘But I feel fine!’ And ‘I just want to feel ok again’ Is horrifically thin and you have zero idea how close you are teetering on the edge of it,” she wrote. “Please take heed my darlings.”
Though Regal did not state this in his tweet, most fans assumed he was responding to the spot from AEW Worlds End where Kyle Fletcher landed on his neck while taking a top rope dragon suplex from Jon Moxley. Regal previously worked for AEW before returning to WWE in 2023.
Niven responded to a fan on X who thought Regal was being hypocritical for indirectly criticizing an AEW spot when he hasn’t done so for WWE.
Or perhaps it’s just a great way of getting solid advice to people he doesn’t have a direct line of communication with or see at work to tell them in person. https://t.co/8Mwv2mZQvF
“Or perhaps it’s just a great way of getting solid advice to people he doesn’t have a direct line of communication with or see at work to tell them in person,” she wrote.
Niven is a member of the WWE SmackDown roster but has not wrestled since August due to a neck injury that could be career-threatening.
William Regal is sharing his thoughts on neck spots.
Regal, who now serves as the Vice President of Global Talent Development in WWE, posted his thoughts regarding neck spots on social media, sharing his own history of neck issues.
“I stay off here but was alerted to something to day that has alarmed me. I don’t read any comments so don’t waste your time trying to argue or justify your very wrong opinions on this,” he wrote. I broke my neck twice,9/93 in ring and a car wreck in ‘97 and stupidly never told anyone. And I was taught properly how to bridge and not land on the top of my head. It’s a skill that maybe 99.9 % of people don’t know or will ever learn anymore. I kept going somehow but knew all the tricks that again people don’t learn now and watch film and just copy.”
Regal rejected the idea that landing on your neck “doesn’t hurt,” noting that taking these type of bumps now aren’t worth it later in life. He cited the death of Mitsuharu Misawa, who died during a match back in 2009 after suffering a neck injury that was caused by years of wear and tear.
“After Misawa San passed from his neck problems I thought it would stop this nonsense but it’s got worse and whenever I talk to people about them doing it it’s “well it doesn’t hurt….” Believe me it will,” he said. “I have people close to me now, Bryan being one, who is suffering daily like myself from his neck. It’s a daily misery and sleep and every other aspect of your life is more than hard. Although people use the term tough about me you’ll never hear me say that as I’m not and don’t think I am or have ever been. Money and whatever nonsense fame is supposed to be is not worth the pain or supposed two evening glory you get from these ridiculous moves dropping yourself on your head. The vast majority of fans don’t know the difference between a vertical suplex and a brainbuster and that’s a far tamer move than many I see now.”
“I’m 57 and become less relevant every day but fame has never been my thing so most of you doing this STUPID stuff are not going to listen to me but hopefully a few do,” he continued. “Stop it now if you want a decent quality of life after Wrestling because that part of your life will be over before you know it and wrestling done right is hard enough but broken necks or death are not something you should think is tough or cool. It’s idiotic thinking.”
Regal retired from in-ring competition in 2013 and later became the NXT General Manager before being released from WWE in 2022, later forming the Blackpool Combat Club in AEW. When Triple H regained power in WWE, Regal left AEW to return to WWE.
When he was starting out in pro wrestling, Ludwig Kaiser never thought a WWE career would be possible for him.
Kaiser signed with WWE in 2017 and has gained momentum as a singles competitor on the Raw roster over the past year. While appearing on a new episode of Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Kaiser explained how he ended up being offered a WWE contract. He credited William Regal for helping to make it happen.
“The story that I’ve heard is that WWE was looking for a German wrestler, and they scheduled a tour through Germany to look at talent and go through all the different wrestling schools and stuff,” Kaiser said. “Apparently, Mr. William Regal — who I’m always going to be grateful for that — saw my name on the list and he knew my dad [the late Axel Dieter]. And they saw my picture, they saw everything, and he pointed on me and said like, ‘Cancel the tour, we’ll take him.’ I was one of the guys actually that never had to do a tryout. Because I was supposed to do one, but two weeks, three weeks before — I blew my knee out. I’m not sure if I’m supposed to say that, I’m not sure if I ever said that [laughs]. But, yeah, I got injured and I had to cancel the tryout. So, obviously, right in the match already I thought, ‘Oh my god, this is over.’
“Because when I first started this I never thought I would go to WWE. It was not like my big goal to be like, ‘Gotta go to WWE or otherwise this is all for nothing.’ No, I wanted to do my dad proud. I wanted to be a professional wrestler. I wanted to see the world. I wanted to do all of that, you know? But now when you’ve got the chance, you want to do it.”
Kaiser said WWE wasn’t his goal because he never saw it as a realistic possibility, but Paul “Triple H” Levesque has opened the door for Kaiser and other wrestlers like him to succeed in the company.
“Back in the day when I first grew up in wrestling, it was very, very tough. Honestly, before Hunter had that vision and opened up that door for us, none of us — not Gunther, not myself, not Pete Dunne, all those guys, Finn Balor, I don’t think we would be here today,” Kaiser said. “So without Hunter, without men like William Regal, men like Dave Taylor, Robbie Brookside, Fit Finlay, all those guys who paved that way for us European talent. I’ll always be grateful for that, definitely. Because without them, I don’t think we would be here.”
The 34-year-old Kaiser is currently feuding with Penta and Pete Dunne as his singles push continues. Last night, Penta defeated Dunne in a singles match where Kaiser attempted to interfere. A brawl between the three then took place with Penta standing tall.
This upcoming Tuesday’s Halloween Havoc fallout edition of WWE NXT will be a loaded one following some key additions made during Sunday’s PLE.
After making her on-screen debut this past Tuesday, Zaria will make her in-ring debut against an opponent to be named. Following Fallon Henley’s women’s North American title win, Zaria appeared behind the entire Fatal Influence faction and laid all three women out. It was her second appearance of the night as she stared down Giulia, Stephanie Vaquer, Cora Jade and Roxanne Perez following their tag team match.
Tatum Paxley will face Wendy Choo in a casket match. Paxley appeared on the set during Sunday’s show when NXT general manager Ava came out and said she needed medical attention after she was stuffed into a box by Choo this past Tuesday. Paxley demanded a match for Tuesday and spun the wheel on the set to “make it more interesting,” landing on the Halloween-esque stipulation
William Regal will make an appearance in an unusual way: cornering Lexis King as he takes on his son Charlie Dempsey for the Heritage Cup. As King was lamenting about how it was hard for him to find a cornerman, Regal walked up and said he would do it, saying he understood how the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree with second generation wrestlers.
Adriana Rizzo will call out her attacker from last week after saying she knows who she is.
The additions and adjustments join the already announced NXT Tag Team title match between champions Axiom & Nathan Frazer against Je’Von Evans & Cedric Alexander.
Here’s the current card for Tuesday on The CW:
Heritage Cup Champion Charlie Dempsey defends against Lexis King (w/ William Regal)
WWE NXT Tag Team Champions Axiom & Nathan Frazer defend against Je’Von Evans & Cedric Alexander
William Regal is rejecting claims about his time in AEW.
Regal went on X to praise NXT as their show is set to move from the USA Network to The CW next week. After someone thanked him both for his work in NXT and “snaking out the competition”, referring to AEW, Regal responded back rejecting those claims in a lengthy post.
“FYI. Although it serves some people’s agenda, and having a massive amount of people who work in AEW that can only back me up, I went to AEW to help because Bryan Danielson asked me to,” he wrote. “Please find me one person who can say otherwise. I arrived at 10 am until 6.15 pm ( est) to train anyone who wanted to come, apart from going to the rest room and refilling my water container, I never attended a single production meeting (as I knew, if I were to stay there) I needed people to realize I was only there to help. Nor did I ask a single question about anybody that works there’s contract status.”
“I helped at the ring with what any of the talent needed. I showered and got into a suit by 6.30 then watched he monitor with everyone else,” he added. “I’m giving you the right to ask anyone who works backstage or talent the right to ask them if I did anything but help with no agenda. Feel free.”
Regal also denied that he called Tony Khan to not extend his contract while Khan’s mother was recovering from a stroke, saying Khan called him. Regal ended the call as soon as he realized what was going on and instead talked to Khan two weeks later. He finished off by saying that he remains friendly with the majority of the AEW roster.
”I also didn’t call Tony when his Mom was ill. He called me and as soon as he told me where he was I ended the phone call and we spoke 2 weeks later. FYI, my deal was up in December ‘28. That’s when I left. These are all facts I can prove. Anyone trying to twist this has the right to check this out. I am friendly with 60% + of the talent and backstage crew. Feel free to do some real research.”
After his contract with AEW expired, Regal returned to WWE in January of 2023 as Vice President of Global Talent Development. His son, Charlie Dempsey, wrestles on NXT.
