The future of Clockwork Carnage after AEW WrestleDream

Published: 14 minutes ago by Dave Adamson | Last Updated: 13 hours ago by Dave Adamson

Dave has been a website writer for WrestleTalk since October 2022, having previously written for Den of Geek, among a number of wrestling, movie and television-related sites. Dave has been around the independent wrestling scene for more than a decade, including behind-the-scenes.

The future of Clockwork Carnage after AEW WrestleDream

The first-ever Clockwork Carnage match is in the history books after AEW WrestleDream, and it is unlikely to be a one-and-done.

Pitched by Will Ospreay, Clockwork Carnage brings together the Casino Gauntlet and an Iron Man match, with the star himself citing them as inspiration

Speaking in the AEW WrestleDream post-show media scrum, Ospreay reflected on the success of the match and its many moving parts, saying:

“I always feel like there should be obstacles to overcome. It shouldn’t be easy anymore. The moment that you take your foot off the gas brake and stop trying to be creative, we might as well just say this is stagnant.”

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When it comes to the future of the match, it could be the pay-per-view equivalent of the Casino Gauntlet, according to Tony Khan:

What Tony Khan said:

Introduced in 2024, Will Ospreay was the first winner of the Casino Gauntlet match, describing it as a “fantastic match”, with the Aerial Assassin winning the second iteration, too.

Reflecting on Clockwork Carnage, Khan praised Ospreay for the vision he brought to WrestleDream, going on to share a tantilizing tease for its future, saying:

“I invented (Casino Gauntlet) as a TV match; it’s become a very successful television match, and I think one of the more successful, innovative matches in recent years.

“Working from that concept, what you brought me here is very exciting, and I do think this would make a great pay-per-view main event concept. This has been a hugely successful pilot program.”

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With its first year’s success, Ospreay would also share a hope that it would become an annual fixture on AEW programming.

The future for Clockwork Carnage

Alongside the Casino Gauntlet, AEW has a number of signature matches, including Blood & Guts, that have become staples of its programming.

With Clockwork Carnage seeing a series of qualifying matches in the run-up to AEW WrestleDream, it’s not difficult to see it as a fixture at the pay-per-view every year.

Ospreay noted that a strength of the match was giving stars who may not otherwise have crossed paths to engage with each other in the match, citing Cope and Okada as an example.

Under the stewardship of Ospreay, Clockwork Carnage brought together the broad church of AEW talent into a single match, something that deserves to be revisited in the future, whether it features the World Champion or not.

A feud emerges from Clockwork Carnage

It could have been a rivalry that was triggered elsewhere, whether that be at WrestleDream or on Dynamite, but it looks like fans will be seeing Cope target Ospreay and the AEW World Championship in the future.

This is a program being built out of Clockwork Carnage and around Adam Copeland’s retirement year, with Ospreay calling the WWE Hall of Famer’s presence in the match a “dream come true” in comments shared on X.

There are no doubt opportunities for other feuds, beyond any World Championship ambition, to emerge from Clockwork Carnage, making it more than just another title match.

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