Will Ospreay

Will Ospreay: 2023 Biography, Net Worth, Family, Income

Will Ospreay is a professional wrestler currently signed to New Japan Pro-Wrestling. Born in Havering, England, he got his start in wrestling after training at Lucha Britannia’s London School of Lucha Libre in London.

He made his debut under the name “Jason Artem” on March 12th, 2011, in a losing effort to Ryan O’Reilly at BWE’s Divide & Conquer event. Later, in 2012, he changed his moniker to “Dark Britannico” as he wrestled on Lucha Britannia shows.

From 2012 until 2016, the would-be star appeared in several UK independent promotions, including PROGRESS, IPW:UK and Revolution Pro. During his time at PROGRESS, Ospreay captured the PROGRESS World Championship from Jimmy Havoc on July 26th, 2015. This was a massive win for Ospreay. Not only did he win the promotion’s world title, but he also ended Havoc’s 609-day reign, a record which was not beaten until Cara Noir’s 2020-2022 reign.

Ospreay’s stint at Revolution Pro has been ongoing since 2013. Ospreay has previously stated his loyalty to Rev Pro, announcing in 2022 “if there is ever any danger to Rev Pro, I’m always gonna be ready to step up.” On August 12th, 2016, Will Ospreay famously took on Vader at a Rev Pro event, one of the wrestling legend’s final matches before his death two years later. Their match was fuelled by an online feud between the two. The spat started with Vader referring to a bout between Ospreay and Ricochet as “a gymnastics routine.” Vader won the match with Ospreay after interference from Pete Dunne.

Will Ospreay captured Rev Pro’s Undisputed Heavyweight Championship from Zack Sabre Jr on February 14th, 2020. He defended the title against a wide variety of names in wrestling, such as Doug Williams, Shota Umino, and Michael Oku. Ospreay held the title for 919 days before his loss to Ricky Knight Jr. on August 21st, 2022.

On the other side of the Atlantic, Will Ospreay signed a contract for Ring of Honor in 2016. He had a brief two-year stint for the promotion, wrestling in twenty-three matches and winning the ROH World Television Title once.

It is in New Japan Pro-Wrestling where Will Ospreay’s superstardom fully expanded. Ospreay was announced as the newest member of Kazuchika Okada‘s CHAOS faction on March 3rd, 2016. Following a match with Kushida for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship next month, Ospreay accepted an NJPW contract, officially signing for the promotion.

His first NJPW success came in 2016’s Best of the Super Juniors tournament. In the tournament, he defeated names such as Ricochet, Jushin “Thunder” Liger and Volador Jr. These victories led him to the finals, where he defeated Ryusuke Taguchi in 22 minutes to win the tournament. His triumph at Best of the Super Juniors earned him another shot at Kushida’s IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship at Dominion 2016. However, he would lose again.

Ospreay’s bad luck against Kushida wouldn’t end there. In 2017, he again entered the Best of the Super Juniors tournament. He put in another fantastic performance, making his way to the tournament finals. This time though, he would meet Kushida in the final and lose to him again.

At King of Pro-Wrestling 2017, Will Ospreay finally defeated Kushida, taking the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship in the process. Ospreay lost the title after 27 days to Marty Scurll at Power Struggle 2017 but would win it back in two months at Wrestle Kingdom 12 in 2018. While holding the Junior Heavyweight Championship, he entered the 2018 Best of the Super Juniors. However, he was less successful than his previous two entries, as he did not reach the finals this time.

The tournament’s eventual winner, Hiromu Takahashi, faced Ospreay at Dominion 2018, successfully defeating him for the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship. Ospreay’s second reign with the title lasted 156 days.

In December 2018, Will Ospreay beat Taichi to become the #1 contender for the NEVER Openweight Champion. This led to a match against champion Kota Ibushi at 2019’s Wrestle Kingdom 13. Ospreay defeated Ibushi in 18 minutes, claiming the NEVER Openweight Championship for the first time. At the 2019 G1 Supercard in April, a co-promoted show between NJPW and Ring of Honor, Ospreay lost his championship to Jeff Cobb. The match was a “winner takes all” affair, meaning Cobb left with the NEVER Openweight Championship and the ROH Television Championship.

Will Ospreay bounced back strong, winning the 2019 Best of the Super Juniors by defeating Shingo Takagi in the final. This was his second time winning the tournament, and as is customary, landed him in an IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship match at Dominion 2019. At the show, Ospreay defeated champion Dragon Lee to lift the Junior Heavyweight Championship for the third time in his career.

After adding extra muscle to his physique, therefore increasing his weight, Will Ospreay entered the 2019 G1 Climax, a tournament for heavyweight wrestlers. Unfortunately, Ospreay suffered an injury during the G1 Climax, meaning he could not continue after defeating SANADA and Bad Luck Fale in his block.

His lousy fortune continued at Wrestle Kingdom 14 in 2020 when he lost his IWGP Junior Heavyweight Championship to Hiromu Takahashi.

In February 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the suspension of all NJPW events. Travel limitations meant that Ospreay was unable to fly to Japan, though he eventually made his return in September 2020 to compete in another G1 Climax. Despite victories over established heavyweights such as Minoru Suzuki, Kazuchika Okada and Tomohiro Ishii, Ospreay was unsuccessful in making it to the tournament finals.

Following his triumph over Kazuchika Okada (with help from Bea Priestly and Great-O-Khan), Ospreay turned heel by attacking Okada post-match. He formed The Empire faction, which was soon renamed The United Empire. Kazuchika Okada gained his revenge on Will Ospreay after defeating him at 2021’s Wrestle Kingdom 15.

The New Japan Cup was Will Ospreay’s next port of call. His wins over Hiroyoshi Tenzan, Zack Sabre Jr., SANADA and David Finlay led him to the cup finals. In the finals, he defeated Shingo Takagi after a half-hour bout, capturing the New Japan cup for the first time. This win allowed Ospreay to challenge for New Japan Pro-Wrestling’s top championship: the IWGP World Heavyweight Title.

Ospreay faced champion Kota Ibushi at Sakura Genesis 2021. He was victorious in the match, becoming the first British holder of the IWGP World Heavyweight Title. His reign was cut short, however, after suffering a neck injury. The injury forced him to vacate the title on May 20th, 2021, after 46 days as champion.

Due to his forced relinquishment of the title, Ospreay was granted a match at 2022’s Wrestle Kingdom 16 to determine the undisputed IWGP World Heavyweight Champion. On night one of Wrestle Kingdom 16, Kazuchika Okada defeated Shingo Takagi for the championship, confirming Okada vs Ospreay for night two. On Wrestle Kingdom’s second night, Ospreay lost to Okada in 32 minutes, making Okada the undisputed champion.

At Dominion 2022, Ospreay saw success once again, defeating SANADA for the vacant IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship. His first title defence was at the AEW/NJPW co-promoted event Forbidden Door 2022. Ospreay faced Orange Cassidy at the show, successfully retaining his United States Heavyweight Championship.

On his return to Japan, he entered the 2022 G1 Climax, making it to the finals before falling to Kazuchika Okada. After the loss, Ospreay has focused on defending his IWGP United States Heavyweight Title. Since the G1, he has retained the championship against David Finlay, Shota Umino and Tetsuya Naito.

At Historic X-Over, following Ospreay’s defence against Shota Umino, AEW’s Kenny Omega appeared via video to name himself as the next challenger. Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega are set to compete for the IWGP United States Heavyweight Championship at Wrestle Kingdom 17 on January 4th, 2023.

Net Worth

No data is currently available for Will Ospreay’s net worth.

Family

Will Ospreay was previously in a relationship with Bea Priestly (known in WWE as Blair Davenport). They dated from 2017 up until their separation in 2021.

Income

No data is currently available for Will Ospreay’s income.

Record

According to Cagematch.net, throughout his 11-year career so far, Will Ospreay has competed in 976 matches. He has won 560, lost 408 and drawn 8, putting his winning percentage at 57.4%.

Figures are correct as of January 1st, 2023.

NJPW Career

• IWGP World Heavyweight Champion -1 time
• IWGP United States Heavyweight Champion – 1 time
• IWGP Junior Heavyweight Champion – 3 times
• NEVER Openweight Champion – 1 time
• New Japan Cup Winner – 2021
• Best of the Super Juniors Winner – 2016, 2019

Rev Pro Career

• Undisputed British Heavyweight Champion – 1 time
• British Cruiserweight Champion – 2 times
• Undisputed British Tag Team Champion – 1 time

ROH Career

• ROH World Television Champion – 1 time

Charity

In January 2022, Will Ospreay announced that he would donate a portion of his wages to Samaritans. This UK charity provides free 24/7 emotional support to anyone in emotional distress, struggling to cope or at risk of suicide. Ospreay still keeps the URL for Samaritans on his Twitter profile to this day.