AEW’s Will Ospreay Reacts To Jeff Cobb Attacking United Empire’s Callum Newman During NJPW Return

AEW

AEW star Will Ospreay has reacted to Jeff Cobb turning on the United Empire during his return to NJPW following his WWE departure.

With “JC Mateo” let go by WWE in May, Jeff Cobb made his NJPW comeback during the August 16 G1 Climax event.

Cobb turned his back on his former faction and teammate during this appearance, attacking the United Empire’s Callum Newman and siding with Unbound Co.

Will Ospreay has now taken to Twitter to react to NJPW World’s video clip of Cobb dropping Newman with a shoulder block.

The former leader of the United Empire wrote:

Seems you’ve got a big problem on your hands @PrinceofpaceCN

Seems you’ve got a big problem on your hands @PrinceofpaceCN https://t.co/qlG8r1CX2M

— Will Ospreay • ウィル・オスプレイ (@WillOspreay) August 16, 2026

Jeff Cobb was one of the earliest members of the United Empire faction, joining Will Ospreay, Great-O-Khan and Bea Priestley in November 2020, following Ospreay first joining forces with Great-O-Khan one month prior.

Callum Newman joined the stable in June 2023, ahead of Will Ospreay officially joining the AEW roster in February 2024.

Cobb and Newman notably won the IWGP Tag Team Championship together in April 2025. The title was vacated nine days into the reign after NJPW announced Cobb’s departure.

Jeff Cobb went on to make his WWE debut as “JC Mateo” that May, and was let go by the company almost exactly one year later.

Newman had something of a meteoric rise following Cobb’s departure, notably winning the 2026 New Japan Cup and becoming the youngest ever IWGP Heavyweight Champion this past April.

Jeff Cobb addressed his return backstage following the G1 Climax 36 final event, referencing Will Ospreay’s exit and Callum Newman’s leadership as reasons for him turning his back on the United Empire.

You can read Cobb’s full comments right here. 

Callum Newman – who finished as a semifinalist in the G1 Climax 36 tournament – will be Cobb’s opponent for his NJPW singles return, with the duo to face off at the September 27 Destruction in Kobe event.

The two stars will face off in tag-team action at the preceding Road To Destruction events, starting in early September.

While Cobb insisted during his backstage comments that he didn’t ever leave NJPW and that it was just a hiatus, he recently shared his honest thoughts on his year-long run with WWE.

Cobb stated that while things could’ve went better for him on SmackDown, he was grateful for his time with the company, and for the friends he met and reconnected with while there.

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• jeff cobb
• Callum Newman
• AEW
• NJPW
• Will Ospreay

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