During the post-AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door 2024 media scrum, Swerve Strickland commented on his win over Will Ospreay and his desire to face off against Bryan Danielson.
You can check out some highlights from the post-show media scrum below:
On how he’s feeling after the match: “It’s humbling, but at the same time it’s like me proving to everybody that I was right again. It’s one of those things I’ve got to constantly go out there and fight for every day. This man [Tony Khan] once said, being part of AEW is constantly, you’re always fighting, always defending. And I relate to that so much because I’ve been doing all my whole career. People think I’m good to a certain level, or the expectations on me are always getting lower and lower until I break through and they gotta create another ceiling.
“And so like, I think me and Will, we had a chip on our shoulder to constantly prove why this place is special. And we are so competitive in every aspect of this game. And that’s why I’ve always respected him; I still respected him all the way up into this match. I have my methods, I get into people’s heads. And that’s kind of like my boxer mentality, I want to get in your head, and I’ll poke at every part of you until I get you where I need you to be. And that’s what got me the win tonight. But definitely, I feel like I silenced a lot of critics. And I’m going to have to do more, because there’s going to be more questions. Probably tomorrow, and then by Dynamite on Wednesday, and by All In in Wembley.”
On wanting to face Bryan Danielson at All In: “I think he’s at the position to fun for me now, especially after tonight. But I still want that win back so bad. That’s something that still irks me to this day, that loss from Bryan. Because he’s someone I idolize and look up to, especially coming from the Pacific Northwest. We both share the Seattle-Tacoma native background. And from his career for the last 10, 15 years I’ve been watching and studying that man. And getting in the ring with him, feeling how special he is? That’s a win that I need to mark off of my list. And I don’t have a long list really, it’s very small. But definitely, Bryan Danielson’s at the top of it.”
Also at the post-AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door 2024 media scrum, Zack Sabre Jr. commented on the main event of the show, possibly facing off against Bryan Danielson again, and more.
You can check out some highlights from the post-show media scrum below:
On the main event and Forbidden Door as a concept: “The main event tonight — like, I said this to other people. The expectation of Will vs. Swerve from naive people would be like, ‘Oh, these guys are going to have a crazy match.’ The match wasn’t special because it was a crazy match. The match was special because people were completely invested in both their characters and how much depth they have. And it’s almost a bonus that they are so immensely skilled.
“So I think — like I’m so motivated as a British wrestler now because now, it’s unparallelled. LIke, Forbidden Door at first was somewhat forbidden. Now it’s slightly naughty. But what’s special about this year is that we have STARDOM and CMLL involved. And I think it’s somewhat unparallelled that we have four global companies completely intertwined… what’s going to change the industry or at least progress it further is those four companies completely intertwined, and I want to be as much involved in that as possible.
On another possible match with Danielson: “Our first match was in England. We had a rematch in Germany that’s somewhat forgotten, and then we had the match at WrestleDream in Japan. I know that Bryan says he’s winding it down, but he’s a pervert so I can’t imagine. In a wrestling sense, that’s not against his character. We at least have to have one more match in England.”
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