London born pro wrestler Will Ospreay is returning to his hometown on August 29 to challenge for the AEW World Championship at \u201cAll In\u201d 2026, and with his highly anticipated match with Kenny Omega just days away, the unfiltered star opens up to M&F<\/em> on a range of important topics, sharing his battles with body dysmorphia and ADHD, and explaining why negative voices on social media once had him in fear of the gym.<\/p>\n It\u2019s crazy to think that Will Ospreay\u2019s father, who introduced his son to the art of pro wrestling by channel surfing one evening, will now take his seat to watch the gifted grappler main event Wembley Stadium. \u201cI think he was, like, flicking between a Chelsea game and maybe Star Trek,<\/em>\u201d recalls the future fighter. \u201cAnd, I just got fascinated by it, and just kept tuning in.\u201d<\/p>\n As a kid, Ospreay first found the spotlight by attending his mother\u2019s drama academy. \u201cShe would bring in dance teachers, so I got a sense of rhythm straight away,\u201d he tells M&F. \u201cI understood how to time things.\u201d This sense of timing would be met with a natural flair for agility, setting the foundations for Ospreay\u2019s wrestling toolset, before even stepping foot into the ring. But as a wrestling fan, Ospreay had spent hours watching his favorite aerial specialists on screen. \u201cWatching WCW, and seeing Billy Kidman do a shooting star press, I\u2019d pause it, rewind it,\u201d he recalls. \u201cWhere do his arms go? I broke down little bits about it, and then I would just go into my garden and try it on the trampoline.\u201d<\/p>\n When Mom saw her son doing backflips in the yard, she steered him toward an organized trampoline class, but the skills that he had already taught himself made the class redundant. \u201cI was there for one day, and then I passed,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n While in high school, Ospreay was peer pressured into demonstrating his agility on a solid floor. \u201cThank God they did,\u201d he reflects. \u201cBecause all the things that I could do with springs, I can do without them now.\u201d But while the young upstart was certainly honing his skills, this risk heavy approach would not be welcomed at his first wrestling school. In fact, Ospreay shares that he was kicked out of the Dropkixx Wrestling academy in London, \u201cBecause I was doing some backyard wrestling outside the facility while they were training,\u201d explains Ospreay. \u201cHonestly, looking back now, I would have kicked me out too.\u201d<\/p>\n At age 17, Ospreay would take a more professional approach to his second opportunity to learn the ropes, joining the London School of Lucha Libra, and the high-flying Mexican style of wrestling would prove to build his toolset even further. Traditionally, Mexican wrestler\u2019s work each other from the right-hand side, whereas other regions like the U.S., U.K., and Japan attack each other from the left. While Ospreay\u2019s school predominantly taught the left-handed approach, they also brought in some big names to teach the right-handed style. \u201cWe had Lucha Libre stars come over, like Cassandro and Juventud Guerrera,\u201d he recalls.<\/p>\n As Ospreay\u2019s skills evolved, he went from wearing a mask in his debut, to getting his face recognized across the U.K. independent wrestling scene and was even recommended by the legendary A.J. Styles as a potential fit for Japan. Already a fan of the Japanese style, particularly the fast-paced Super Junior weight class, Ospreay became an international superstar in New Japan Pro Wrestling<\/a>, winning his first \u201cBest of Super Juniors\u201d title in 2016. But while 2017 brought Ospreay the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, the increasing attention around him would prove to be a significant challenge outside of the ring.<\/p>\n \u201cI first discovered my body dysmorphia, and I won the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship, in October of 2017,\u201d recalls of Ospreay of a time that brought both darkness and light. \u201cAnd I remember one tweet was saying \u2018he is in the worst shape,\u2019 and they were right,\u201d says the wrestler. \u201cI didn\u2019t understand working out, why you do sets, and why you focus on one body part, and macro counting. I would go to the gym, but I really didn\u2019t know what I was doing, I\u2019ll be honest, and I was so embarrassed to ask the boys, they\u2019re all jacked, I felt like such an idiot, to try and (ask) \u2018could I workout with you?\u2019 so I never went to the gym\u201d<\/p>\n Fortunately, while wrestling in New Zealand, Ospreay discovered MusclePharm\u2019s weekly workouts<\/a>. \u201cI just said, alright, I\u2019m gonna do these for the next six weeks,\u201d he explains. \u201cWithin four weeks, I packed on so much muscle mass, and I started to understand how it worked. And then I invested in a personal trainer, his name is Iestyn Ress<\/a>, and he really broke down macro counting, and how to count my calories, and why I do a push day and a pull day. It was so simple, but I just never had the courage to ask for help. And I always tell people now, the people in the gym, they\u2019re fighting the same demons that you\u2019re probably fighting.\u201d<\/p>\n Will Ospreay is one of those authentic pro wrestlers whose on-screen persona comes very close to the man himself. This athlete is the first to admit that he\u2019s often found himself embroiled in online spats and is working hard to resist burner accounts that are set up to trigger celebrities into getting wound up. Of course, having a thick skin or scrolling past the trolls is easier said and done, but Ospreay has also learned that ADHD plays both a positive and negative role in his life. The positives come from his hyper focus around wrestling, but his ability to filter himself is still a work in progress.<\/p>\n \u201cI was on the spectrum for autism, but I didn\u2019t find out I had ADHD until I was 27,\u201d he explains. \u201cI was like, five years into Japan, I had already made a bunch of mistakes, like a lot of issues going on. At first, they thought it was depression. They thought I had insomnia because I couldn\u2019t sleep. (The ADHD diagnosis) opened my eyes and gave me a lot of insight into why I\u2019ve been making these mistakes and how I could mitigate them. I still have triggers, I had one a little while ago on Twitter (X), where I just went back at somebody, and I wish I didn\u2019t do that, but on the positive side, wrestling is something that I have been able to lock in and focus on.\u201d<\/p>\n While Ospreay\u2019s mental health has become a clearer picture for the star, a serious neck injury in 2025 required major surgery, and threatened the grappler on a physical level. Fortunately, AEW, the major U.S. promotion that he signed with in 2022, was of huge support, paying for the scintillating star\u2019s surgery, and helping him to make a triumphant return just six months later. \u201cFive months removed from surgery, and I was able to do a 440-pound (200kg) deadlift,\u201d shares Ospreay. \u201cI think my weight was sitting at 202 pounds (92kg) at the time, so for me, that was a huge lift.\u201d<\/p>\n Of course, the next thing that Will Ospreay is hoping to lift is the AEW World Championship, and he\u2019ll be facing another international superstar, Kenny Omega<\/a>\u00a0for this dream match in London. And, true to form, the Brit has long studied his Canadian opponent with serious intent.<\/p>\n \u201cWatching his timing, his pacing, was so inspiring,\u201d Ospreay tells M&F.<\/em> \u201cThe stakes cannot be any bigger for me. It\u2019s one of the most important moments, not only of my career, but of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n Will Ospreay challenges Kenny Omega for the AEW World Championship, live on pay-per-view, at \u201cAll In\u201d on Sunday, Aug. 30, at London\u2019s Wembley Stadium. For ticket information, click here.<\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n To follow Will Ospreay on Instagram, click here.<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\nWill Ospreay Was Kicked Out of His First Wrestling School<\/h2>\n
Will Ospreay Developed Body Dysmorphia and Feared the Gym<\/h2>\n
Will Ospreay Now Harnesses ADHD as a Wrestling Superpower<\/h2>\n
![\"AEW](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.muscleandfitness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AEW-promotional-poster-of-All-In.jpg?quality=86&strip=all\")
<\/div>Will Ospreay Has Built Back Stronger for AEW All in 2026<\/h2>\n