Swerve Strickland Shares High Praise For Injured AEW Star; It’s Not Will Ospreay

Swerve Strickland is awaiting the return of an injured AEW star.

Buddy Matthews, who has been on the shelf since his last appearance at the 2025 Grand Slam Australia, is dearly missed by Strickland.

Matthews hurt his ankle while making his entrance for his scheduled match against Kazuchika Okada. Not willing to disappoint his home crowd, he proceeded to compete, gritting through the pain for over 13 minutes.

The 37-year-old, who is married to WWE superstar Rhea Ripley, was initially diagnosed with a partial ligament tear and cartilage damage.

Since undergoing surgery to repair the damage, he has been dealing with lingering nerve issues and numbness.

Buddy Matthews Has A Lot To Offer To Wrestling, Says Swerve Strickland

Swerve Strickland recently turned heel when he viciously attacked and took out Kenny Omega after their singles match on the February 18 episode of AEW Dynamite.

With Omega on the sidelines, he has been involved in a feud with Brody King, whom he will face at Revolution on March 15.

The 35-year-old AEW star dropped his heel persona during an interview with Battleground Podcast, where he praised Buddy Matthews, claiming that he has more to offer to the wrestling world.

Honestly, I’m waiting for probably one of the best talents, like, all around in the business to come back. Hopefully he’s healthy and hopefully he can do even better than what he was giving before — Buddy Matthews, shout out to him.

He’s one of those guys that’s just like a dawg in the ring. I think me and him could do some great work, and I look forward to seeing him back doing his own thing.

I think he has a lot to offer in the wrestling world, and I would like to see him back healthy again. [H/T: WrestlingNews.co]

Also read: Stephanie McMahon Saved Swerve Strickland’s WWE Push After Triple H Ignored Him