AEW’s Kyle Fletcher Ready To Go All In At Wembley Stadium (Exclusive)

Propelled into singles action after his tag team partner, Mark Davis, sustained an unexpected injury, Kyle Fletcher captured the moment rather than letting it slip, capturing multiple singles championships, and has positioned himself as one of the top bright young singles stars of AEW. Fletcher now finds himself in a unique position of defending his AEW International Championship against two of the greatest wrestlers in their classes, Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita, at AEW All In this weekend.

In what’s sure to be the earliest contender for Match of the Night even before the bell rings, Okada’s methodic vivisection of his opponents in the ring will be tested under enormous pressure from two separate ends: Fletcher’s heavy-hitting blunt force and Takeshita’s explosive, dominating violence. The Protostar says the magnitude of the moment hasn’t quite sunk in yet, but if he dwells too long on it, it might psych him out.

“You start getting nervous,” Fletcher tells me. “Two weeks in advance, and that’s not ideal.”

Although Takeshita is an elite level performer in his own right, he’s spent most of his career playing second fiddle to Okada, considered by many to be one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. No matter how hard Takeshita tries, The Rainmaker has refused to go down quietly, and after his excommunication from the Don Callis Family, The Alpha wants revenge on, and the gold from, the man who betrayed him while showing Okada he continues to underestimate him.

Fletcher says that the intersection of their stories, as a trio and against one another, presents a unique position for him in his approach to the defense, his fourth since beating Takeshita for the championship at Double or Nothing in May. With each vying for a return to, or retention of, AEW gold, Fletcher says the combination of emotions will be combustible, and it’s very difficult for him to predict the outcome.

“We can come in with a plan, we can come in with an idea of what’s going to happen, but the chances of that happening [are] slim, I’m sure.”

Fletcher’s defenses have been masterful, including his highly received match against ROH Champion Bandido at Redemption. Fletcher says matches like his one against Bandido are his favorite because his opponents are forcing him to bring his best, with no opportunity to breathe.

“The matches that I love the most personally are the ones where I put a lot of pressure on myself, and then I go out there, and it exceeds my own very high standards, or at least comes close to them. I feel like that one was one where I walked away from it going, ‘Yeah, that felt pretty good, that was fun.’ The reaction and response from fans loving it, too, is just a cherry on top type of thing.”

As the International Champion, Fletcher isn’t just focused on the inner walls of AEW. He’s bringing his blunt force energy to House of Glory against another generational talent, Amazing Red, at Fallout on September 4th. He calls the moment exciting, and another opportunity to stand toe to toe with a wrestling legend he studied and admired before he even laced up.

“I’m very excited to test myself against someone from a different era, from a different generation. I’m sure his experience in wrestling is so very different to mine, and I’m just looking to see how those styles clash, and I think it’ll be a lot of fun for me.”

I asked Fletcher about another surprise opponent that might make his way into his vision, an unexpected opponent from his past, Ilja Dragunov, whose news of his contract ending in WWE broke shortly before our recording. Fletcher posted a cryptic post on X (formerly Twitter) with him and Dragunov in their PROGRESS Wrestling match from 2019, and while he tells me he’s excited about the idea of a rematch, he thinks it’s too early to speculate on what may or may not happen.

“It feels way too early to speculate. For me, I think Ilja is incredible. He brings this raw passion that you don’t get very often in pro wrestling. It’s something that I feel I have now gotten to a point where when I’m in the ring, I feel that passion, and when I get in there with someone else who has that same passion for pro wrestling, that’s where magic happens. There’s been many people I’ve gotten in the ring that have that feeling, and I know that Ilja is one of those people, and the thought of another match between us after everything that’s happened excites me very much.”

At 27 years old, Fletcher has done more than enough to earn the respect of his peers and colleagues in AEW and beyond, including “Speedball” Mike Bailey, who called him one of the best professional wrestlers in the world in a recent interview. Fletcher responds to the acclaim with a measured diplomacy mixed with profound self-awareness, giving insight to his mentality and what he calls some bad habits. He acknowledges the adulation while feeling like he can be better, and at All In, he has the chance to tap into that energy and bring out the best in himself against two titans of the industry in a way few have done before him.

“It’s reaffirming to hear it from people, because then my thought process is, ‘Well, if I know that I’m not even 50% of the way to my full capabilities, and people are saying this at this point, that’s just exciting.’ That is so exciting because if people feel that way now, imagine in five years, imagine in 10 years, and it just makes me excited for the future, and I can’t wait to get there.”

Kyle Fletcher defends his AEW International Championship against Kazuchika Okada and Konosuke Takeshita at AEW AIl In, live from Wembley Stadium on Sunday, August 30th. The event begins at 11:30am ET/8:30am PT and can be streamed on HBO Max and Amazon Prime. Check your local listings for start times in your area.