Major star expected to be replaced in AEW Continental Classic due to injury - Reports
The second AEW Continental Classic is officially underway. C2 kicked off on the Thanksgiving Eve Dynamite and will wrap at the second annual Worlds End PPV on December 28. Sources have revealed a major AEW injury update and expected a change in upcoming plans.
C2 opened last week on Dynamite with Blue League action which saw Shelton Benjamin defeat Mark Briscoe, Kyle Fletcher defeat The Beast Mortos, while Continental Champion Kazuchika Okada and TNT Champion Daniel Garcia fought to a time-limit draw. Gold League openers saw Claudio Castagnoli defeat Ricochet, Brody King defeat Darby Allin, and Will Ospreay defeat Juice Robinson in a match that saw Juice suffer an injury.
Rock Hard came up short against The Aerial Assassin in a near-13-minute Gold League bout for the Continental Classic on Collision, taped on November 27. Robinson was reportedly seen leaving the Wintrust Arena in Chicago on crutches later that night.
It's now confirmed that Robinson is suffering from an injury. The 35-year-old was present for the big WrestleCade convention in North Carolina this past week, and Fightful Select reports that the 4-time NJPW champion confirmed he was hurt during the match with Ospreay.
The Stray Bullet was still using crutches to get around the convention, and his ankle was wrapped up. However, it was noted that The Bang Bang Gang member was talking with people and was in good spirits, all things considered.
AEW has not announced Robinson's next match in the Continental Classic. It was noted that the former WWE NXT Superstar will likely be replaced. There's no word yet on who might replace Juice in the C2 but stablemate Jay White is healthy, as is Colten Gunn, but Austin Gunn is also hurt right now.
AEW Continental Classic update for Worlds End
AEW Worlds End on December 28 in Orlando will be highlighted by the end of the second Continental Classic. The tournament will play out over Dynamite and Collision.
Worlds End will feature the first-place Blue League talent vs. the second-place Gold League competitor in the first C2 League Finals. The second C2 League Finals bout will feature the Gold League first-place competitor vs. the second-place wrestler from the Blue League. These two winners will collide for the Continental Championship that same night in the Championship Finals.
Shelton Benjamin, Claudio Castagnoli, Kyle Fletcher, Brody King, and Will Ospreay all have three points going into this week, while Daniel Garcia and Kazuchika Okada have one point each. Darby Allin, Mark Briscoe, Juice Robinson, The Beast Mortos, and Ricochet are at zero.
This week's Dynamite will feature Gold League action with Castagnoli vs. King, plus Benjamin vs. Fletcher for the Blue League. Castagnoli vs. Ospreay and King vs. Ricochet are confirmed for Winter Is Coming on December 11, and Ospreay vs. Allin is official for Holiday Bash on December 18.