Will Ospreay Says Kenny Omega Lacks The 'Mental Strength' To Accomplish What He Did

As Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega get ready to throw down this Wednesday at New Japan Pro-Wrestling's Wrestle Kingdom 17, they've been keeping the heat on each other via social media and the wrestling media. The two have traded several barbs with Omega, in particular, suggesting NJPW business had flattened with Ospreay as a top star.

Ospreay disagrees, citing the COVID-19 pandemic and a lack of crowd heat behind issues the promotion has had since Omega left in 2019. And while Ospreay touched upon those issues in an interview with "WrestleBinge by Sportskeeda," he reiterated why working under those conditions has given him an advantage over Omega, and left the former AEW World Champion in a vulnerable state.

"Kenny obviously came up in the golden age, when it was red hot," Ospreay said. "Everyone loved golden age Kenny Omega in New Japan, even myself. But Kenny doesn't have the mental strength that it took to do pandemic New Japan wrestling. The mental toll that it took on, not just on all the wrestlers there, but mainly the gaijin wrestlers, having to stay in those hotels, having to be away from family, not knowing when you're coming back, it took a mental strain on so many of us.

"I can happily say that Kenny Omega would not last in a pandemic New Japan. He should be grateful that all of us were able to keep it afloat, all the way from Okada to Tanahashi to Shingo, all those guys. We kept it afloat, so be grateful that we did that because now Kenny can come take a break from AEW and playing kids games, and come play with real men."

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