NJPW Event in US will Force Will Ospreay to Miss PROGRESS Wembley Show

[Big Red Machine]

[cero2k]

Such is life, NJPW had him booked since December last year and it's not like the Havoc vs Ospreay is a current program, it's the Raven vs Dreamer feud of PROGRESS. Glenn should ask Papa Hunter for a replacement

[Big Red Machine]

Such is life, NJPW had him booked since December last year and it's not like the Havoc vs Ospreay is a current program, it's the Raven vs Dreamer feud of PROGRESS. Glenn should ask Papa Hunter for a replacement

He should definitely ask for someone. And while you're right that it's not not a currently active program and they can go back to it whenever they need to, this was pretty clearly intended to be on of the top matches on their most ambitious show yet and biggest show of the year. I can definitely see this hurting the show. No one is wrong in this situation (although New Japan probably could have very reasonably let Ospreay work his agreed-to date unless they have some MAJOR plan for him on this show that can't be put off until KOPW the next week), but that doesn't mean it doesn't suck for PROGRESS.

[cero2k]

after thinking about it a bit more, this all sounds like PROGRESS making up bullshit. if Ospreay is booked with NJPW since December for those dates, why run the progress angle in May? or at least, why say Wembley? Their last match was a loser leaves town match, it's not like they've been building it since last year. Why run the angle and this video if you KNOW Ospreay is booked on that date, so they either know that he can be at Wembley and are trying to make unnecessary drama, or they're just literally creating unnecessary drama making NJPW seem like the bad guy. This is all probably Hunter's idea.

i don't think this match wouldn't have sold a lot more to be honest, i haven't watched progress in a while, but the real money match for Havoc is still Haskins/Havoc/Webster vs British Strong Style, put a crazy stipulation to it and that's a huge match for wembley that would definitely sell more tickets.

If you ask me, now that Ospreay lost the jr title and feels the spotlight is off him, I can see him politicking himself into becoming a heavyweight or going to WWE (rumor is Bea Priestley is getting a UK contract).

[Big Red Machine]

after thinking about it a bit more, this all sounds like PROGRESS making up bullshit. if Ospreay is booked with NJPW since December for those dates, why run the progress angle in May? or at least, why say Wembley? Their last match was a loser leaves town match, it's not like they've been building it since last year. Why run the angle and this video if you KNOW Ospreay is booked on that date, so they either know that he can be at Wembley and are trying to make unnecessary drama, or they're just literally creating unnecessary drama making NJPW seem like the bad guy. This is all probably Hunter's idea.

Ospreay actually said that when he got his schedule in December, NJPW had no shows booked on the dates in question. This show is a new thing.


As for something like that being Hunter's idea... do you really think that? Really?

i don't think this match wouldn't have sold a lot more to be honest, i haven't watched progress in a while, but the real money match for Havoc is still Haskins/Havoc/Webster vs British Strong Style, put a crazy stipulation to it and that's a huge match for wembley that would definitely sell more tickets.

PROGRESS clearly doesn't think that way, as Dunne vs. Dragunov is the only thing that has been announced for Wembley.

If you ask me, now that Ospreay lost the jr title and feels the spotlight is off him, I can see him politicking himself into becoming a heavyweight or going to WWE (rumor is Bea Priestley is getting a UK contract).

No way he's leaving New Japan. He wants to work in Australia so much that he's planning to move there and NJPW is the best place to make money while doing that. And there is no way he becomes a heavyweight. What's going to do? Be CHAOS' fourth banana? Why do that when he can be CHAOS' top Jr. Heavyweight at a time when the belt probably means more than it ever has before?

[cero2k]

Ospreay actually said that when he got his schedule in December, NJPW had no shows booked on the dates in question. This show is a new thing.
ok, when i heard that i kinda took it as NJPW had a cluster of days that they needed him and that was the same date as Wembley

As for something like that being Hunter's idea... do you really think that? Really?
no, but I wouldn't put it past them and their dirty ways of making deals.

PROGRESS clearly doesn't think that way, as Dunne vs. Dragunov is the only thing that has been announced for Wembley.
makes sense if they had already thought of Havoc vs Ospreay, that they would find stuff to do with their precious BSS


No way he's leaving New Japan. He wants to work in Australia so much that he's planning to move there and NJPW is the best place to make money while doing that. And there is no way he becomes a heavyweight. What's going to do? Be CHAOS' fourth banana? Why do that when he can be CHAOS' top Jr. Heavyweight at a time when the belt probably means more than it ever has before?
he said in this interview that Bea apparently bought a house outside of Essex, so they would likely stay in England after all. Ospreay is definitely a guy that is super over with himself, and seeing his career in NJPW, he has nothing left to do in the Jr division, he already had a lengthy title run, so he's not likely to get the title again soon. He already won BOSJ. He's like Ricochet, he wants to be a superstar and i'm sure he realizes that he already hit his peak in the Jr. At this point what else can NJPW offer him? He's talented enough that he could break away from CHAOS and make his own team or something, he could be the new ace of Bullet Club if Kenny Omega breaks away with the Golden Elite. I don't know when his contract is coming up, but i'm sure that just like Ricochet, if he doesn't go Heavyweight, he's definitely leaving. I'm sure hunter is gonna throw bags and bags of money at his feet anyway.

[Big Red Machine]

PROGRESS clearly doesn't think that way, as Dunne vs. Dragunov is the only thing that has been announced for Wembley.
makes sense if they had already thought of Havoc vs Ospreay, that they would find stuff to do with their precious BSS
If I remember correctly, BSS vs. Havoc/Haskins/Wesbter was supposed to happen on one of the more recent shows but someone (Seven?) was injured.

No way he's leaving New Japan. He wants to work in Australia so much that he's planning to move there and NJPW is the best place to make money while doing that. And there is no way he becomes a heavyweight. What's going to do? Be CHAOS' fourth banana? Why do that when he can be CHAOS' top Jr. Heavyweight at a time when the belt probably means more than it ever has before?
he said in this interview that Bea apparently bought a house outside of Essex, so they would likely stay in England after all. Ospreay is definitely a guy that is super over with himself, and seeing his career in NJPW, he has nothing left to do in the Jr division, he already had a lengthy title run, so he's not likely to get the title again soon. He already won BOSJ. He's like Ricochet, he wants to be a superstar and i'm sure he realizes that he already hit his peak in the Jr. At this point what else can NJPW offer him? He's talented enough that he could break away from CHAOS and make his own team or something, he could be the new ace of Bullet Club if Kenny Omega breaks away with the Golden Elite. I don't know when his contract is coming up, but i'm sure that just like Ricochet, if he doesn't go Heavyweight, he's definitely leaving. I'm sure hunter is gonna throw bags and bags of money at his feet anyway.
Lengthy? It was six months! If they were going to break someone away from CHAOS they would have done it with Ishii or Goto already. Hell, they would have done it when CHAOS had both Okada and Nakamura (and Ishii was also super-over). What's wrong with being a Jr. Heavyweight at this point? You get to main event shows, you've got BOSJ, and what's wrong with being the next Liger-style guy who becomes the Jr. Heavyweight legend?
If he wants to be the tippy-top guy in a company then the move that makes the most sense for him is to work ROH and RevPro or maybe take a chance going to MLW (or an eventual ITV World of Sport) and trying to be the game-changer franchise star there. Or WWE UK, I guess, if he thinks they won't reign in his style as much.

[cero2k]

Lengthy? It was six months! If they were going to break someone away from CHAOS they would have done it with Ishii or Goto already. Hell, they would have done it when CHAOS had both Okada and Nakamura (and Ishii was also super-over). What's wrong with being a Jr. Heavyweight at this point? You get to main event shows, you've got BOSJ, and what's wrong with being the next Liger-style guy who becomes the Jr. Heavyweight legend?
If he wants to be the tippy-top guy in a company then the move that makes the most sense for him is to work ROH and RevPro or maybe take a chance going to MLW (or an eventual ITV World of Sport) and trying to be the game-changer franchise star there. Or WWE UK, I guess, if he thinks they won't reign in his style as much.

i'd say lengthy for a Jr now a days, but anyway. I don't think there's anything wrong with being a jr, and realistically, sooner or later he would go heavyweight, Ishii and Yano won't last forever, but like I said, Ospreay is of the Ricochet cut that they're high up their own asses and do want to be the 'star' not just of the company, but the business itself. He most likely believes that if he goes to WWE, he could main event too. And if anything else fails, hunter will still give him tons of money.

[Big Red Machine]

Lengthy? It was six months! If they were going to break someone away from CHAOS they would have done it with Ishii or Goto already. Hell, they would have done it when CHAOS had both Okada and Nakamura (and Ishii was also super-over). What's wrong with being a Jr. Heavyweight at this point? You get to main event shows, you've got BOSJ, and what's wrong with being the next Liger-style guy who becomes the Jr. Heavyweight legend?
If he wants to be the tippy-top guy in a company then the move that makes the most sense for him is to work ROH and RevPro or maybe take a chance going to MLW (or an eventual ITV World of Sport) and trying to be the game-changer franchise star there. Or WWE UK, I guess, if he thinks they won't reign in his style as much.

i'd say lengthy for a Jr now a days, but anyway. I don't think there's anything wrong with being a jr, and realistically, sooner or later he would go heavyweight, Ishii and Yano won't last forever, but like I said, Ospreay is of the Ricochet cut that they're high up their own asses and do want to be the 'star' not just of the company, but the business itself. He most likely believes that if he goes to WWE, he could main event too. And if anything else fails, hunter will still give him tons of money.

I read Ospreay and Ricochet differently. I see Ricochet as more of an egotist in the usual pro wrestling sense. I see Ospreay as an egotist in the critical acclaim type of way. He wants to be the top guy in as many places as possible and get the praise for it. I think a good chunk of his recent Australia bent is the idea that he wants get credit for being the guy who put Australian wrestling on the map in the modern era (as opposed to sharing that credit with Scurll and Zack for the UK in this generation). But I don't see him as the "go to WWE" type. If he just wanted the money and to be a top guy, he would have stuck working just NJPW and ROH rather than leaving ROH to work as many places as possible.