"The next logical step" - Ex-WWE star knew he had to follow Adam Cole and Bobby Fish to AEW
After Bobby Fish and Adam Cole signed with AEW, former NXT Tag Team Champion Kyle O'Reilly knew that joining the company once his WWE contract expired was the right move. In doing so, O'Reilly would reunite with two of his former Undisputed ERA stablemates.
O'Reilly made his AEW debut on the "Holiday Bash" edition of AEW Dynamite, where he helped Adam Cole defeat Orange Cassidy. The company then confirmed his signing shortly after the match.
During an appearance on the "Talk Is Jericho" podcast, Kyle O'Reilly explained that his choice move to Tony Khan's promotion was both simple and logical.
"Seeing Bobby come here and seeing Adam come here, how could you not want to be back with these guys and part of a group like AEW," said Kyle O'Reilly. "Every week it’s like a TakeOver crowd, just on regular TV. Like we talk about the natural progression in one's career, and it felt like the next logical step for me."
Life is crazy and I’m very grateful that my professional wrestling abilities have taken me to a new frontier in which to explore my ass-kicking ways. Proud to be apart of @AEW and thanks to @TonyKhan for the opportunity.
O'Reilly won his first match in AEW on the "New Year's Smash" edition of AEW Dynamite. There, he teamed up with Cole and Fish to defeat Orange Cassidy, Trent Beretta and Chuck Taylor.
Kyle O'Reilly's partner Bobby Fish knew the move to AEW was also right for him
When Kyle O'Reilly showed up in AEW, many fans hoped to see him reunite with Bobby Fish. The latter signed with AEW in October after he debuted in a high-profile match.
In Fish's first bout in an AEW ring, he unsuccessfully challenged Sammy Guevara for the TNT Championship on AEW Dynamite.
Welcome to the team…
@TheBobbyFish is #AllElite https://t.co/7CI57sYakw
In the same interview, Fish acknowledged that signing with Tony Khan's promotion was also a logical step for his career. That being said, he felt like someone within AEW was a little too eager to make him "All Elite." Here's how Fish's first interaction with AEW went down.
“The first week, there was an email that came out about medical, you guys [AEW] were in Rochester, and it was as if I was meant to be in Rochester," said Bobby Fish. "I was like, ‘Wait a second, I haven’t even discussed anything with anyone.’ And then I had a few people egging me like, ‘Hey, are you here?’ And I ignored them."
Fish wound up speaking with Khan and agreeing to compete on AEW Dynamite. He then signed with the company, and the rest is history.
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Please credit Talk Is Jericho and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use the quotes from this article.