Injuries and wrestling go hand-in-hand. Sometimes they come from high-flying moves, landing wrong, or stepping down the wrong way. In the case of AEW’s Buddy Matthews, he injured his ankle during his entrance when he jumped from the top rope into the ring and landed awkwardly. He was able to continue his match against Kazuchika Okada at Grand Slam Australia in February 2025.
On Thursday, Matthews shared an important update to his Instagram. The video begins with lights being turned on in a gym before cutting to Matthews sitting against the turnbuckle. A voiceover from Matthews says, “It’s been 18 months. 18 months is a long time, especially when you’re taken away from something you’ve loved doing and that has been a dream of yours since you were seven years old. I had a setback, I went through some dark times. I hurt my ankle pretty bad, opted for the surgery; full scope, cartilage removal, scar tissue removal, and I had a cartilage donor. I had to learn how to walk again.” Matthews revealed that he has been cleared to compete and has 18 months of rage and anger to get out. The video ends with him stating, “I’ve been cleared. And you should be scared.”
In May, Matthews made a surprise appearance at Australia’s World Series Wrestling where he attacked Donovan Dijak. Following the attack, he grabbed a mic to say he wasn’t cleared yet, but would be by October and implied he’d be back at WSW to challenge for gold.
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