Kyle Fletcher Reflects On Will Ospreay Helping Make Him A Star In AEW (Exclusive)

Kyle Fletcher has been waiting more than a decade for his moment, and he's getting closer with every match he has in AEW.

The AEW TNT Champion is set to face Mark Briscoe at AEW Full Gear this weekend, a No Disqualification match that, if Briscoe loses, will force him to become a member of the Don Callis family. While Fletcher is looking ahead to the match, he's also reflecting on one from last year that put him in this position in the first place.

Speaking with The Takedown on SI, Fletcher opened up honestly about his show-stealing match with Will Ospreay from AEW Full Gear last year, which ended up being one of Fletcher's first major singles wins in the company.

"I think that was kind of really the first time that I had this real-life evidence that I was the wrestler or the person that I felt like I always was meant to be," Fletcher told The Takedown.

"I've always kind of had this feeling that, oh, I'm meant to be a great wrestler. I'm meant to have success in this business. But you never really know what that looks like. I think that match and that night was kind of the first time I looked around, and the reaction and everything that happened, and I was just like, oh man, this is real, and this is happening."

Fletcher would beat Ospreay at the Prudential Center in a near-25-minute affair, fresh off the heels of a gimmick repackaging that would see him evolve into "The Protostar." He said that a lot of people backstage and in the locker room took notice of what the Ospreay did for his stock.

"I think that kind of is how everyone felt. They kind of all had that same feeling. It was like that was kind of my coming-out party, really," he said. "And then from there, that was the first piece of evidence. And then it was just being presented with those opportunities after that, and they snowballed pretty quickly."

Ospreay and Fletcher's History

Will Ospreay in a neck brace at Forbidden Door — Will Ospreay was stretchered out of the O2 Arena following a ruthless attack from the Death Riders at the conclusion of Forbidden Door. | All Elite Wrestling

Fletcher and Ospreay go back several years, with the 26-year-old coming up through the former AEW International Champion's tutelage.

Mark Davis and Fletcher, together known as Aussie Open, backed Ospreay initially in AEW as members of the United Empire stable. However, with Davis suffering injuries, Fletcher would get a chance to showcase his singles skill set more since starting with AEW.

MORE: How Tony Khan Changed Kyle Fletcher's AEW Career (Exclusive)

Ospreay and Fletcher would go on to trade wins in 2024, with the 32-year-old Ospreay ultimately coming out on top with a win in a brutal cage match earlier this year at AEW Revolution. Ospreay, however, has been out of action since the end of the summer with a neck injury.

During an interview with Ariel Helwani, AEW founder Tony Khan said he anticipates Ospreay back at some point next year.

If you use any quotes from this article, please H/T The Takedown on SI.

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