In March 2021, English wrestler Will Ospreay won the New Japan cup and earned himself a shot at the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship, then held by Kota Ibushi. He was quickly rising the ranks of New Japan Pro Wrestling, especially with the help of his faction, United Empire.
However, after the match he attacked Bea Priestly, his girlfriend and valet, hitting her with his patented OsCutter move and laying her out cold in the middle of the ring. This signified the end of her career in Japan before she signed a contract with the WWE, being rebranded as Blair Davenport.
The move was highly controversial to the Japanese fans. Wrestling over there is segregated strictly by gender, with New Japan not having a women’s division at all. To see male-on-female violence was horrific for them to see and helped establish Ospreay as a hated heel in the top division. However, his skills in the ring were so good that he could not be booed for long.
However, it later came out that the idea was not Ospreay’s at all – but Bea Priestly’s.
Speaking on the Two Men Power Trip podcast, Ospreay revealed that the idea to have him hit her with the Oscutter was actually her idea and it was her way of writing her off TV so she could sign for the WWE. Thinking that the spot would make Ospreay look “desperate” and make him a bigger heel than ever, she devised taking the deadly move on the way out of New Japan Pro Wrestling.
He also revealed that, despite the attack, the pair were still together and remain a couple.
“I understand the triggering that can have with a lot of people, but people need to realize that me and Bea are still together. Everyone realizes this, right? She’s just gone home. She realized she was done and going home. Her idea is, ‘what better way to send a message than driving home the fact that you will do anything to take (the IWGP World Heavyweight Title)?’
“It was her idea to take the Oscutter. She put herself forward for that. She’s a pro wrestler and a very very good pro wrestler. The fact that she was willing to take a bullet for me, I can’t say enough good things about her. A lot of people were obviously annoyed by it, but people need to remember that there is talking between us and nothing is done without the other person knowing.”
The pair did not break up after the attack. Despite living in different countries, Will Ospreay and Bea Priestly are still dating and are very happy together. They have been dating since 2017 and met during their time on the British independent wrestling scene.
She now wrestles in NXT under the name Blair Davenport. She was brought in to wrestle for NXT UK, but when the promotion was closed down to make way for NXT Europe, she was transferred to the NXT USA brand where, where she wrestles to this day.
Meanwhile, Will Ospreay continues to wrestle for NJPW and appears intermittently for All Elite Wrestling in the United States. He is rumoured to wrestle Kenny Omega at Wrestle Kingdom 17.
The way it sounds to me is that she was selfish and only did what benefited her even though it made her man look like crap.
You’re an ignoramus.