Tony Schiavone has placed Kenny Omega and Will Ospreay’s latest singles match in exceptionally rare company.
Speaking on the Battleground Podcast, the longtime AEW commentator compared the atmosphere and standard of Omega vs. Ospreay at AEW All In: London to the celebrated series between Ric Flair and Ricky Steamboat. Flair and Steamboat produced one of professional wrestling’s defining rivalries in 1989, and Schiavone said the Wembley Stadium meeting between Omega and Ospreay carried parallels to those historic encounters.
“I think, in many ways, the match that Will Ospreay had with Kenny Omega, recently at Wembley, to me goes down with almost parallel with the great matches Ric Flair had with Ricky Steamboat,” Schiavone said on the Battleground Podcast.
That is a substantial comparison from Schiavone, whose career has given him a front-row seat for major matches across several generations. Flair vs. Steamboat remains a measuring stick for fans and performers discussing in-ring chemistry, sustained rivalry, championship stakes, and the ability of two wrestlers to create a distinct experience each time they meet.
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A rivalry that has reached major stages
Omega and Ospreay have now faced one another in singles competition four times across three promotions. Their first meeting took place in PWG in 2015. They later wrestled twice in NJPW during 2023 before bringing the rivalry to AEW for the All In: London event at Wembley Stadium.
The series is currently even, with Omega and Ospreay standing at two wins apiece. That split adds another compelling layer to Schiavone’s comparison. Rather than a rivalry defined by one wrestler consistently having the other’s number, Omega and Ospreay have traded victories and presented their matches as pivotal occasions. Each encounter has arrived with its own setting, circumstances, and expectations while still building on what came before.
The Wembley match carried special significance simply because of its stage. AEW All In: London placed two of the most acclaimed wrestlers of their era inside Wembley Stadium, in front of an audience that understood the history between them. Omega and Ospreay did not enter the bout as strangers attempting to establish a first impression. Their prior PWG and NJPW matches had already created a foundation for the crowd to follow, debate, and revisit.
For Schiavone, that ongoing story appears to be an important part of why the bout invites comparison to Flair and Steamboat. Great wrestling rivalries are not only collections of highly rated matches. They develop an identity. Audiences recognize the competitors’ contrasting strengths, understand why another meeting matters, and arrive prepared to see how the wrestlers will evolve their work without abandoning the elements that made the rivalry special in the first place.
Why Flair and Steamboat remain a benchmark
Flair and Steamboat’s 1989 program has endured for nearly four decades because it gave wrestling audiences a trilogy of major championship encounters that is still discussed as one of the era’s finest achievements. The rivalry stretched across the opening months of that year, with its most famous pay-per-view chapter running from January through May.
Steamboat won the first two main-event matches in the series. One of those victories came in a two-out-of-three falls match in April, an encounter that further established the depth and durability of their rivalry. Flair eventually regained the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship at WrestleWar, ensuring the program did not end as a simple run of victories for the challenger.
The lasting appeal of Flair vs. Steamboat rests in more than the title changes. The matches were connected by a clear competitive logic. Steamboat was presented as an ideal heroic opponent for Flair, while Flair’s championship pedigree and willingness to test every opening made him the perfect adversary. Their styles meshed in a way that allowed each match to feel urgent without making the prior bouts irrelevant.
Flair himself has continued to speak warmly about Steamboat and has called him the greatest babyface of all time. That admiration reflects the level of trust and compatibility needed to create a rivalry that survives long after the original events. Their matches became part of wrestling’s shared vocabulary: when a modern series reaches a particularly high standard, comparisons to Flair and Steamboat are inevitable.
Schiavone’s remarks do not suggest that Omega and Ospreay are replicas of Flair and Steamboat. They are performers from different eras, working different styles and appearing in a wrestling landscape changed by global access to promotions, expanded video libraries, and audiences accustomed to faster, more athletic action. The parallel is instead rooted in the feeling that a rivalry can generate when two elite wrestlers repeatedly meet and continually deliver matches with major-event importance.
Omega and Ospreay have earned the discussion
Omega and Ospreay each arrived at their rivalry with established reputations as world-class singles wrestlers. Their contests have attracted attention because they bring together two competitors known for ambition, precision, athleticism, and an ability to make a large match feel consequential. By the time they reached Wembley, the audience had years of history to consider.
That background distinguishes the AEW meeting from a one-off dream match. The PWG bout in 2015 is part of the rivalry’s record, while the two NJPW matches in 2023 elevated the series on a larger international level. The AEW chapter added another promotion and another enormous platform, reinforcing the unusual breadth of their history together.
At 2-2, neither man has established permanent control over the other. The score keeps the door open for future debate and, potentially, future matches. It also means every new meeting can be framed as more than a rematch. A fifth encounter would carry the straightforward question of which wrestler can finally move ahead in a series that has remained deadlocked across more than a decade.
There is no need to force a conclusion about where the rivalry will ultimately rank. Flair and Steamboat’s place in history was earned over time, and their 1989 matches have had decades to be studied and celebrated. Omega and Ospreay’s series has its own path, and its evaluation will continue to develop as fans revisit the bouts and assess whether the competitors add further chapters.
Still, Schiavone’s comments illustrate the level of impact the Wembley match made on those who watched it. When a commentator with his history invokes Flair and Steamboat, it speaks to the perceived significance of the performance as well as the quality of the match itself.
Respect from ringside
Schiavone was not alone within AEW in praising the Omega-Ospreay match. The Young Bucks also spoke about watching the contest from ringside and ranked it at the top among the matches they have had the opportunity to witness live.
That reaction carries its own weight. The Young Bucks have competed in and observed major matches throughout their careers, including bouts across the independent scene, NJPW, and AEW. Their ringside perspective on Omega vs. Ospreay underlines how the performance connected not only with the Wembley crowd but also with wrestlers who understand the physical and creative demands of delivering on that scale.
For AEW, Schiavone’s Flair-Steamboat comparison highlights the value of bringing together rivalries that have history beyond a single promotion. Omega and Ospreay’s path ran through PWG and NJPW before reaching Wembley, allowing AEW to present a match enriched by years of prior competition. It was a modern example of how wrestling’s increasingly interconnected landscape can give major matches a deeper foundation.
Whether Omega and Ospreay wrestle again remains to be seen. What is certain is that their All In: London contest has already taken its place in an ongoing conversation about their rivalry. With the series tied at two wins each and Schiavone invoking one of wrestling’s most revered pairings, the standard for any next chapter could hardly be higher.
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Darryl Polo
Darryl Polo is a passionate wrestling fan covering WWE, AEW, TNA and beyond. He loves great rivalries, breakout stars and the moments that keep fans talking long after the bell. How we work.