"You're going to watch someone die right in front of your eyes, I guarantee it" - WWE legend shares biggest fear for AEW
AEW and WWE stars put their bodies on the line every night they go out to entertain the fans. The in-ring action can sometimes be concerning, while botches make for hot topics among fans, and now a former WWE champion has just made an unfortunate prediction.
Al Snow has been successful in numerous promotions since 1982, including WWE, ECW, and TNA, and has held various backstage roles. The J.O.B Squad leader recently joined Vince Russo on the Lions, Tigers, Bears & Disco podcast to watch recent AEW and ROH clips - Konosuke Takeshita dropping Will Ospreay into the turnbuckles, Roderick Strong launching Orange Cassidy into the turnbuckles, Deonna Purrazzo slamming Madison Rayne on her head, and Dalton Castle hitting Johnny TV.
Snow made a very unfortunate prediction for AEW and the rest of the industry after Russo mentioned how unbelievable it is that there are so many botch clips each week, claiming that years ago, there may have been one or two botches a week.
"You're going to have those that are going to defend it, and they're going to get upset and take the... that I've got an axe to grind, and that I'm bitter, and I'm not. At all. [I'm] satisfied with everything. I watch this, and I watch the escalation continue all the time. The reason I took up the cause I took up years ago when I ended up buying OVW, ribbing myself, was because I went to the wrestling commissions insisting on standards of training and standards of, you know, activity in the ring," Snow said.
He continued by saying he was inspired to encourage better in-ring standards after a young rookie died while taking a Spinebuster at an indie show in Oklahoma.
"I promise you there are more accidents that have happened, and are occurring, like that, and what it's going to take, quite honestly, and we're en route, and when this happens, I want everyone to go, 'Al was right!' OK? Because everyone's going to deny it. At some point, especially, the likelihood is it definitely going to occur on a show on AEW... and it's going to be on national television, and you're going to watch someone die right in front of your eyes," Snow added.
The veteran then mentioned Ospreay vs. Takeshita and Strong vs. Cassidy and once again insisted that a competitor would die in the ring.
"We now have escalated to where we watched Will Ospreay go up into a vertical suplex with the guy standing on the second rope and drop straight on his head. We watched Orange Cassidy get dropped bodily on the top rope and could almost be cut in half. OK? How much exponentially has the scale went up, that we're going to watch someone die? Meaning... legitimately, they're going to die right in front of your eyes in a match," he said. [From 9:15 - 12:50]
Snow bought former WWE developmental territory OVW in 2018 and now runs the daily operations as co-owner. The former Tough Enough coach also runs The Al Snow Wrestling Academy as a wrestling vocational school formally accredited by the Kentucky Department of Education.
AEW to present inaugural Dynasty event
The inaugural AEW Dynasty pay-per-view will take place on Sunday, April 21. The show will air live from Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis, Missouri.
Dynasty will mark the first All Elite pay-per-view to be held in the state of Missouri. Full Gear 2021 was originally set to be the first AEW PPV in Missouri at the same venue, but that event was re-located and re-scheduled to avoid competition from UFC 268.
Will Ospreay vs. Bryan Danielson is currently the only match confirmed for AEW Dynasty. The promotional material teases multiple title matches featuring several AEW champions - Christian Cage, Toni Storm, Billy Gunn and The Acclaimed, Julia Hart, Roderick Strong, Eddie Kingston, and Samoa Joe.
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