Buddy Matthews withdraws from WSW MegaMania Tour due to scheduling conflicts

2 sources • 2 min read • Latest: Oct 26, 2026, 4:49 PM

Last updated Oct 26, 2026

Buddy Matthews withdraws from WSW MegaMania Tour due to scheduling conflicts
Summary

Buddy Matthews will not be appearing on the World Series Wrestling (WSW) MegaMania Tour due to scheduling conflicts. The announcement came from WSW on October 25, just days before the tour begins on October 29. Matthews, who has been sidelined with an ankle injury since February 2025, had previously hinted at a return after appearing at an independent show in May. His wife, WWE's Rhea Ripley, is also currently injured. Further details on the scheduling conflict have not been disclosed.

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Status Watch
  • •Matthews injured his ankle in February 2025.
  • •WSW notified fans of his withdrawal on October 25.
  • •The MegaMania Tour runs from October 29 to November 2.
  • •Matthews had previously signaled he was cleared to return.
  • •His wife, Rhea Ripley, is also dealing with an injury.
Latest Updates
  • 4:49 PMWrestling Inc — AEW Star Buddy Matthews Pulled From Australian Indie Tour Due To Scheduling Conflicts
  • 3:40 PMCageside Seats — ‘Scheduling conflicts’ pull AEW’s Buddy Matthews from indie comeback
What they're saying
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Aussie Buddy Matthews injured his ankle at AEW Grand Slam Australia in February of 2025, and hasn’t wrestled since. He did make a surprise appearance in his home country this May at an independent show, which set up his planned October return to that promotion (World Series Wrestling or WSW). In July, Matthews seemed to indicate he’d finally been cleared by doctors. But the 38-year-old from Melbourne hasn’t wrestled — and now that planned October return to WSW is off. It posted the following on Instagram yesterday (Oct. 25): We have just learnt, that due to scheduling conflicts, Buddy Matthews will no longer be appearing on the WSW MEGAMANIA Tour. We’re really disappointed that Buddy won’t be joining us this time around, but we completely understand that schedules can change. We hope to welcome Buddy Matthews back to World Series Wrestling on a future tour! 🇦🇺🔥 Thank you for your understanding and continued support. View this post on Instagram It’s not clear what the conflict is. WSW’s MegaMania tour begins this Thursday (Oct. 29) and runs through Monday, Nov. 2. AEW’s is in St. Louis, Missouri for a live Dynamite on Wednesday; it will tape next Saturday’s Collision afterwards. Matthews’ wife, WWE’s Rhea Ripley, is also currently sidelined with an injury. We’ll likely learn eventually if there’s anything deeper going on here. In the meantime, we’ll just hope this announcement doesn’t mean Matthews or anyone close to him are facing new challenges.

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Buddy Matthews hasn't appeared in AEW since February 2025 after injuring his ankle during his entrance. He was cleared to wrestle last August.

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