AEW Forbidden Door Update: Will Ospreay Confirms Serious Neck Injury — Unsanctioned Cage Details
Will Ospreay delivered heartbreaking news on the August 20th edition of AEW Dynamite, confirming that he is dealing with a severe neck injury that will require surgery. Speaking candidly to Tony Schiavone and the fans in Glasgow, Scotland, Ospreay admitted this Sunday’s match at Forbidden Door may be his last for a long while.
In an emotional promo, the “Aerial Assassin” explained that he’s been quietly battling neck issues for nearly ten months. After the brutal beatdown at All In: Texas, he was rushed to the ER, where an MRI revealed two herniated discs (C2 and C6) pressing against his spinal cord. Ospreay told the crowd he will undergo surgery but vowed to wrestle one last time before going under the knife:
“If I’m going to have a scalpel open me up after the match, I want to take a piece of Jon Moxley with me.” - Ospreay said.
Because of the legitimate injury, AEW has not medically cleared Ospreay. To get around this, his 10-man tag bout has been rebranded as an unsanctioned Lights Out Steel Cage Match — meaning AEW assumes no liability, and the outcome will not count in the official record books.
A Career Built on Risk
Ospreay’s style has always walked the fine line between brilliance and danger. Known for his dazzling arsenal of aerial moves like the Stormbreaker and OsCutter, his neck has absorbed years of punishment. Fans have long admired his fearlessness while quietly worrying about the toll on his body — those fears have now become reality.
The storyline ties back to Claudio Castagnoli’s vicious chair stomp at All In, an angle that doubled as a write-off for Ospreay while giving kayfabe context to his real-life condition. Now, with surgery looming, Ospreay will step into the cage with Jon Moxley and the Death Riders, knowing full well it could be his last match for the foreseeable future.
Wrestling.news | Backstage Take
This is bigger than just another injury angle — this is the kind of career-altering moment that changes AEW’s landscape. Ospreay has been positioned as one of the pillars of AEW’s international expansion, and losing him, even temporarily, is a massive blow. The decision to make the match “unsanctioned” isn’t just a storyline twist; it’s AEW’s way of letting Ospreay go out on his own terms.
Whether this turns into a triumphant comeback story or a heartbreaking what-if depends entirely on how his recovery unfolds. But one thing’s for certain: Will Ospreay is putting everything on the line at Forbidden Door.
