AEW International Champion Roderick Strong Stirs The Pot With Will Ospreay
While Roderick Strong has faced some formidable opponents as AEW International Champion, including long-time friend Kyle O'Reilly at AEW Dynasty, nothing may quite compare to his next challenger, Will Ospreay, who will challenge Strong in a week and a half at AEW Double or Nothing. Ospreay will come into the match undefeated so far during his AEW stay, having just picked up a huge win over Bryan Danielson, which is why Strong may be looking for any edge he can get, mentally or physically.
Taking to X on Tuesday evening, Strong continued to opt for the former strategy, posting about how great it was to see Ospreay this past Saturday on "AEW Collision." Strong then included a photo of himself and Undisputed Kingdom teammates Matt Taven and Mike Bennett standing over a fallen Ospreay, after the "Aerial Assassin" had been laid out by Shane Taylor following a victory over Taylor's STP stablemate, Lee Moriarty.
Good to see you, Will! #UndisputedKingdom #AEWInternationalChampion pic.twitter.com/XCC8iUv8JV
— Roderick Strong (@roderickstrong) May 15, 2024
The interaction between Strong and the unconscious Ospreay has been one of the few moments the two have interacted since Ospreay secured his title shot on "Dynamite" at the end of April. Strong has instead attempted to wage psychological warfare against Ospreay from afar, cutting promos on the former IWGP World Heavyweight Champion where he has vowed to target Ospreay's back.
Strong will have to change things up to some extent tonight, as he and Ospreay are scheduled to have a face to face meeting on "Dynamite." The segment will be the start of a busy week for Ospreay, who will seek revenge against Taylor in singles action Saturday on "Collision," a match Strong will surely be watching closely.