Adam Copeland made his AEW debut last night at WrestleDream 2023, saving Sting and Darby Allin from an assault by Christian Cage, Nick Wayne and Luchasaurus.
Formerly known as “Edge” in the WWE, the 49-year-old WWE Hall of Famer is one of the biggest signings ever made by WWE, and joins an already stacked roster of former World Champions and young, hungry talent. He also joins his long-time friend and former partner Christian Cage, who wrestled in the main event of the pay per view.
After his incredible debut at WrestleDream, Adam Copeland joined Tony Khan at the AEW WrestleDream post-show media scrum, and spoke about his goals and ambitions for AEW. Copeland claimed he was “driven by challenges”, and listed Samoa Joe, Sting and Nick Wayne as people he was excited to share a ring with.
“Thanks for having me. Part of coming here is that I wanted to contribute,” Adam Copeland said. “I wanted to help, and I just felt like here, I’d really be able to do that and have the opportunity to do that. I look at an entire fresh roster of faces and so many talent that I’ve never laid hands on before. That to me, as a person who’s driven by challenges, that for me was the biggest thing.
“I’ve been in the ring with Samoa Joe.” He said, before adding, “I’ve never stood in a ring with Sting before tonight. After 31 years in the industry, that’s never happened. Then I see a guy like Nick Wayne, or I see Swerve. There’s just so many possibilities here. For me, at this stage in my career, that is so enticing. That is so exciting.”
A reporter then asked Copeland what he was “excited to do” in AEW, as he was now wrestling outside of the WWE for the first time in 25-years. The Canadian star then rattled off a list of more AEW talent that would love to work with in the future.
“Just in looking a the roster very quickly, there’s 14 names.” the former “Edge” said, before continuing. “I mean, that’s from a quick cursory glance, that’s really cool. I’ve never faced Samoa Joe. That’s really exciting to me. I’ve never faced – or been in the same ring with – Jon Moxley. That’s very interesting to me. Claudio – neevr been in the ring”
“There’s so many different talent here, that I have a lot of respect for, and I’d really like to know what that is. Kenny Omega. That’s never happened. I just met him. We’ve never met before. There’s a lot here to see and to challenge myself with, and again, my entire life has been built on challenges. To look at that, a guy like me – that’s a steak dinner waiting to be eaten.
Adam Copeland will wrestle his first match for AEW on “Title Tuesday”, a special Tuesday night edition of AEW Dynamite that will take place on October 10 2023. He will also appear on AEW Dynamite and Collision on a full-time basis going forward.