The main event of AEW’s Forbidden Door pay-per-view on Sunday night closed with a shocking post-match assault on Will Ospreay, a storyline designed to write him off television as he prepares to undergo neck surgery.
The show’s headline bout saw Ospreay team with Darby Allin, Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi, and Hiroshi Tanahashi in a 10-man Lights Out Steel Cage Match against Jon Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli, The Young Bucks, and Gabe Kidd. After a wild 32-minute war filled with ladders, tables, and barbed wire, Tanahashi scored the pinfall on Matt Jackson in what was billed as his final match in England.
As Ospreay remained in the cage to soak in the crowd’s ovation, he was blindsided by Claudio Castagnoli. Locking the door behind him, Castagnoli and Jon Moxley brutalized Ospreay, hitting DDTs and wrapping a chair around his neck. Moxley then stomped the chair, deliberately targeting Ospreay’s real-life injury.
The Death Riders are trying to take @WillOspreay out for good!
Watch #ForbiddenDoor on PPV right now!https://t.co/JlBXZPLNGj pic.twitter.com/4D5IE3sldW
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) August 24, 2025
The angle was designed to explain Ospreay’s absence, as he recently revealed he is dealing with two herniated discs pressing against his spinal cord and will soon undergo surgery. Trainers and wrestlers rushed to the ring to check on him as the broadcast went off the air.
By tying Ospreay’s legitimate medical situation into an on-screen assault, AEW has given “The Aerial Assassin” a clear storyline reason for his hiatus, and a ready-made grudge against the Death Riders for when he eventually returns.
For those who missed it, you can check out our full AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door: London results.
EXCLUSIVE: After AEW x NJPW #ForbiddenDoor went off the air, medical personnel tended to @WillOspreay. pic.twitter.com/5Bx6HVDOiC
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) August 24, 2025
