AEW's Will Ospreay Responds To Hayabusa's Family On Forbidden Door Ring Gear Homage

By Sam Palmer
Will Ospreay in Hayabusa-inspired gear NJPW

In the spirit of Forbidden Door bringing the best of both AEW and NJPW together, Will Ospreay channeled the spirit of a Japanese legend with his entrance at the event. Ospreay paid tribute to the late Hayabusa, a pioneer of the high-flying style as the ace of FMW, who also made guest appearances for NJPW, AJPW, and even ECW in the United States. However, his career would be cut short during a match in October 2001 when a botched springboard moonsault left Hayabusa paralyzed from the neck down due to breaking two vertebrae.

Before Forbidden Door, AEW's Japanese X account revealed that they had received a letter from Takanori Ezaki, the younger brother of Hayabusa which read "Our family and I are very happy that Ospreay will be making his entrance into the ring wearing a Hayabusa costume and playing the theme song. Although more than 20 years have passed since Hayabusa was injured in 2001, we are truly grateful that you continue to respect Hayabusa from across the ocean. To all the wrestlers, please take care to avoid injuries and continue to do your best. We wish AEW every success and continued success."

Hayabusa's daughter also thanked Ospreay for adorning the gear at Forbidden Door, something he had done once before at an NJPW event in 2022 after receiving her blessing to do so. Following Forbidden Door, Ospreay again thanked Hayabusa's family on social media, writing "I cannot tell you enough how grateful I am to you & your families kindness for allowing me to share the love I have for your father's contributions towards wrestling to an audience that would show their love and respect back. Thank you so much for such a special moment."

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