Will Ospreay reveals odd jobs before AEW fame; personal upset during AJ Styles feud

Will Ospreay is one of AEW's top stars, currently, and a global fan favorite. The Aerial Assassin recently opened up on the early chapters of his career, and even revealed one of his former occupations.

Ospreay is only one step away from securing an AEW World Championship match at the promotion's upcoming stadium show, All In: Texas. To earn his shot, the Englishman will have to defeat former world champion Hangman Page in their Owen Cup finals showdown at Double or Nothing 2025 this month.

The former International Champion recently talked about his tenure in Revolution Pro Wrestling during the early stages of his career. Speaking to Q101, Will Ospreay shed light on his stint at a mastic firm during the weekdays and wrestling during the weekends around nine years ago. He also reflected on facing Matt Sydal and AJ Styles in RevPro as a rising star.

"I was a 22-year-old boy who was working at a mastic firm," Ospreay said. "If you don't know what mastic is, it's the rubber seals by your bathrooms and your windows. I would do that Monday to Friday, and then from Friday to Sunday, I'd be a professional wrestler. I didn't have enough money to even afford a gym membership. I struggled so hard with imposter syndrome because a lot of the times, I would be the chosen guy to wrestle a lot of these imports [in RevPro]. I wrestled Matt Sydal and AJ Styles, and I struggled understanding who I was."

Ospreay further spoke about NJPW officials inviting him to participate in the 2016 Best of the Super Juniors tournament in light of his performance against Kazuchika Okada at RevPro Global Wars UK in 2015.

"And as soon as that match was done, I had the New Japan guys and the office all come up to me and said 'We're going to bring you in for the Super Juniors.' I always wanted to do the Super Juniors. It was like a mad crazy thing," Ospreay said. (H/T Wrestling Inc)

Although The Commonwealth Kingpin has not wrestled The Phenomenal One since 2015, his rivalry with The Rainmaker blossomed in New Japan and has now spilled over into AEW.

AEW star Will Ospreay's 2025 Owen Hart Tournament run

Will Ospreay's 2025 Owen Cup journey began at Dynasty 2025, where he defeated All Elite newcomer Kevin Knight in the first round. He secured his place in the finals by beating former Don Callis Family stablemate Konosuke Takeshita at Dynamite: Spring BreakThru.

On the other leg of the tournament, Adam Page overcame mystery wild card entry Josh Alexander in the quarterfinals, and then Kyle Fletcher in the semifinals this Wednesday on Dynamite.

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It remains to be seen whether The Cowboy can defeat Ospreay in their highly anticipated match at AEW Double or Nothing 2025.

About the author

Anurag is an AEW writer for Sportskeeda Wrestling. He holds a BA and MA degree in English along with a TEFL certification to teach English. Before Sportskeeda, he worked as a Content and Correspondence writer at Nayabad Titas, a theater group. He has also worked as a English language tutor.

To ensure complete accuracy, he uses internet resources, social media platforms, and especially pieces composed by his peers to find solid, verified information that he presents as objectively as possible. Thanks to his academic background, he can research different subjects thoroughly.

Anurag's interest in wrestling began as a child. He watched RAW and Smackdown frequently from age 10 or 11 and was officially hooked by the YES Movement story in WWE heading into WrestleMania 30.

As a lifelong wrestling fan and lover of stories, Anurag would read news, articles, and other content about the talent and events he enjoyed watching. His understanding of the business continued to grow with time, and his interest in the art and sport of wrestling led him to pursue a career as a writer.

Apart from writing, he loves to read books, watch movies and television programs, play and listen to music, and write poetry and fiction.

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Edited by Anurag Mukherjee