Adam Copeland expects to finish full-time profession with AEW, says retirement was a ‘actual choice’ after final match

The Adam Copeland expertise in AEW is each a dash and a victory lap. It is a concentrated effort to high quality, creatively fulfilling work along with his greatest good friend. Edge and Christian can relaxation on their WWE laurels, however Copeland and Christian Cage are about to prepare dinner.

Copeland made his All Elite Wrestling debut at AEW WrestleDream in Seattle on Sunday to oppose Cage and his pupils. The video of Copeland’s debut drew practically 7 million mixed views on Twitter and YouTube within the first 24 hours. The acquainted notes of Alter Bridge’s “Metalingus” not solely signaled Copeland’s arrival but in addition his ultimate rally. He wrestled his ultimate match for WWE in August the place many thought he would stroll away from the ring for good.

However skilled wrestling retirements not often stick. Nonetheless, Copeland is pretty assured that his run with AEW can be his final as a full-time performer.

“I feel that is a really secure factor to say as a result of I understand how a lot work it may take to have the ability to pull it off,” Copeland advised CBS Sports activities. “I do know that. I am not in any means attempting to idiot myself into considering I am simply going to trot by this entire factor. 

“It will be laborious. It will be a number of laborious work. I take pleasure in laborious work. I all the time have. It is how I am wired. It is what I used to be born with. It is in my DNA. In order that’s tremendous enjoyable. However I am additionally a realist and I perceive that I am not going to have the ability to preserve it for a tremendous very long time.”

Copeland wrestled his final WWE match on Aug. 18 in a first-time encounter with Sheamus. The match passed off on an episode of SmackDown in entrance of Copeland’s household and his billed hometown Toronto crowd. Copeland teased retirement on the time, saying, “I do not suppose I could make it one other full run to get right here once more for a match” but in addition steered a brand new “major residence,” fuelling hypothesis of a transfer to AEW. Copeland insists that he genuinely grappled with the concept of retiring after his final match.

“As I obtained nearer to the finish of the deal, retirement was a really, very actual choice. It was not off the desk…” Copeland stated. “I actually sat with the concept of retirement as a result of I really thought like, ‘Man, WWE gave me that evening. I do not know the way that will get topped.’ And that is nonetheless in my mind. 

“However I suppose now it is like, ‘OK, how can I try to prime it in this new surroundings.’ Actually, that Toronto present was a send-off of that character and it was the proper means for that character to exit. Wrestling a man that I’ve by no means wrestled that I all the time wished to. It was simply a lot enjoyable in there. That evening, I am going to always remember it. I am going to all the time have that evening with me. I advised Sheamus that too. That can be probably the most particular nights in my profession, all the time.”

It is simple to change into jaded if you’ve achieved every thing that Copeland has: 11 world championships, two Royal Rumble wins, King of the Ring, Cash within the Financial institution and a WWE Corridor of Fame ring to accompany dozens of different titles. There have been two issues — secondary to the help from his household — that pushed Copeland over the sting to get again within the ring: a lifelong friendship and a inventive palette cleanse.

“If we might finish this collectively, that is the dream,” Copeland stated of working with Cage, actual title Jay Reso. “I sat down with my ladies and I am like, ‘OK, so what does dad do, ladies?’ What do I do? And I laid out the eventualities for them. Lyric stated it after which Ruby agreed, ‘Go be with Uncle Jay and have enjoyable.’ And that does not imply that I am not having enjoyable in different places, however they know essentially the most enjoyable I’ll have is with my greatest good friend of the final 40 years.”

Hypothesis ran rampant for months that Copeland would be part of AEW, however he says the deal got here collectively lower than two weeks earlier than his debut. Copeland’s spouse, fellow WWE Corridor of Famer Beth Phoenix, was one other key participant in his choice to make the swap.

“It wasn’t till my contract was up on [Sept. 21]. It wasn’t till then,” Copeland stated. “So it was actually, actually fast to get every thing achieved and get every thing dialed in. Determining so many issues like getting with Alter Bridge and getting the music and doing all of these issues. There have been 9 or 10 days.

“I did not know instantly, however I believed that is the place I wished to go. I actually thought that working with Jay once more was what I wished to do and how I pictured it in an ideal world. Beth stated, ‘What’s your excellent world? ‘I used to be like, ‘My excellent world is that I finish my profession with Jay.’ So all of a sudden that excellent world regarded prefer it could possibly be there. It is robust to move that up.”

Copeland was pressured to retire in 2011 attributable to extreme points stemming from previous neck accidents. Cage retired in 2014 attributable to concussion points. Each wrestlers made exceptional comebacks and are nonetheless acting at an elite stage weeks from age 50. The lifelong associates have had uniquely entwined careers even once they have been aside. Cage is arguably doing a number of the greatest work of his profession as TNT champion. Copeland definitely observed that whereas affected by author’s block in WWE.

“I sort of obtained the sense there wasn’t actually a plan [for me in WWE]. I get it as a result of what else can we do? What else is there to do? And after 25 years I’ve actually achieved every thing there. So what can we do? It wasn’t anyone’s fault,” Copeland stated. “I used to be arising towards inventive partitions too. I used to be having a tough time arising with concepts and that is not often the case. I feel they have been too.

“There was additionally the conundrum that I used to be contracted for 10 matches a yr. I supplied to do extra, however to their level, it would not really feel fairly as particular, which I understood too… It simply felt like neither one among us actually had any concepts and that is by no means been the case earlier than. So if you take a look at that after which I take a look at my greatest good friend over there having the time of his life, at a sure level, as soon as I believed, ‘You recognize what, I nonetheless have a window right here the place I can do that and I do not really feel like I am maximizing that.’ I feel that was actually what it boiled all the way down to. 

AEW president Tony Khan revealed on the WrestleDream post-show press convention that Copeland can be showing in an everyday capability for the promotion. Copeland will seem on Wednesday’s episode of “AEW Dynamite” and Saturday’s “AEW Collision” forward of his first official AEW match on Oct. 10. Copeland is keenly conscious the clock is ticking and he is not shying from it.

“I wish to try to maximize what I nonetheless have left,” Copeland stated. “If that is one yr, if that is two years, I wish to do it as a lot as I can whereas I nonetheless really feel like I can. I know that is going to be laborious and I do know that is going to take a number of work bodily. I do know there is a completely different fallout now, however I do know all of these issues and I actually simply wish to weigh the glory of this factor as a lot as I can.”