Inside The Ropes

06/09/2026

THE BUTCHER ANDY WILLIAMS DIES AGED 48

The wrestling world is mourning the loss of Andy Williams, best known to wrestling fans as The Butcher, who has sadly died at the age of 48.

Williams suffered a medical emergency following his match at Enjoy Wrestling's Five-Year Anniversary event in Pittsburgh on Saturday night. He had teamed with The Blade against TME when he collapsed at the end of the match.

Enjoy Wrestling confirmed that its doctors immediately rushed to Williams' aid and performed CPR until an ambulance arrived. The remainder of the event was cancelled as Williams was taken to hospital.

Sadly, TMZ has now confirmed that Williams has passed away, with the Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office confirming his death.

Outside of wrestling, Williams was also a hugely respected musician and was the guitarist for the metalcore band Every Time I Die.

For wrestling fans, however, he will forever be remembered as The Butcher, one half of the brutal tag team alongside The Blade. The duo became synonymous with AEW after joining the promotion in its early years.

🙏 Rest in peace, Andy Williams.

Our thoughts are with his family, friends, former bandmates, The Blade, and everyone who knew and loved him.

03/09/2026

WWE may already be having second thoughts about allowing Kofi Kingston and Austin Creed, formerly known as The New Day, to leave the company.

The duo made their surprise AEW debut at All In 2026, teaming with Swerve Strickland in the Trios Roulette match, and immediately captured the AEW World Trios Championships. Their rapid success has reportedly led to some within WWE questioning how their departures were handled.

According to WrestleVotes via Fightful Select, a WWE source believes this is the first time there has been genuine regret within the company over allowing the pair to leave.

“I did meet up with a source in WWE. He told me that this is the first time he thinks there is regret on WWE’s side of things for not having them come back. This is the first time there is a disconnect between TKO and WWE.”

The source claimed that WWE personnel were particularly disappointed to lose the pair, suggesting that TKO and WWE may not have been completely aligned on the situation.

“The person I spoke to today said, ‘You know what? Maybe TKO mismanaged this one.’ People in WWE never wanted to see them leave. A lot of people in that company had a lot of interaction with Kofi and Austin, and they loved them. They were beloved in that organisation. Everyone in that office in Stamford, a lot of those guys who worked with them, felt that was a big loss. It was a morale loss to have those guys depart.”

After more than a decade together as The New Day, Kofi and Creed walked away from WWE earlier this year. Just months later, they're AEW champions and have already made it clear that the AEW World Tag Team Championships are among their ambitions.

And there's another interesting twist, the pair have revealed that their AEW contracts allow them to work for other wrestling promotions around the world, giving them considerably more freedom than they had in WWE.

🔥 From WWE departures to AEW championship gold in a matter of months... perhaps WWE really does regret letting them go.

💬 Did WWE make a huge mistake by letting Kofi Kingston & Austin Creed leave?

31/08/2026

Ric Flair has announced he will be seeking legal action against individuals selling his robes that have seemingly been stolen.

In a post on X, Flair said that had been made aware of people selling his iconic robes without proper documentation and will be issuing legal action via his attorney if sellers cannot prove they legally own the robe.

The Nature Boy specifically called out Tiffany VanDemark who he claims "stole" five of his robes and will be taking action against them.

"I can’t imagine why anybody would steal anything that I worked so hard for. Not cool and I’m coming for you. Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but as I get older, I understand the importance of having some of my memorabilia."

31/08/2026

Issue 72 of Inside The Ropes Magazine is OUT NOW featuring first-time cover star Oba Femi!

FEATURING
🙌 Lesnar passes the torch to Femi!
🏅 A look at Kurt Angle's SHOCKING TNA debut 20 years later!
🎙️ Dark Side of the Ring's Evan Husney on TNA special, Dixie Carter opting out & more!

Get your copy now 👇👇

29/08/2026

Some BIG NAMES are coming to Glasgow, Newcastle and London next month and beyond!

💋 BILLY GUNN - Glasgow, Sept 14 • Newcastle, Sept 15 • London, Sept 16
🇺🇸 JAKE HAGER - Glasgow, Sept 26
🏅 KURT ANGLE - Glasgow, Sept 28 • London, Sept 29
🇬🇧 LUKE MENZIES - Glasgow, Oct 8

Plus we’ve got another Intimate Evening show to be revealed very soon! Give us your best guess at the guest below 👀👇

27/08/2026

🚨 KURT ANGLE LONDON UPDATE 🚨

Due to high demand, we've moved our show with Kurt Angle to the main room at The Dome and released a second batch of VIP and General Admission tickets!

This show WILL sell out so grab your tickets now! 👇👇

26/08/2026

25/08/2026

We are LIVE in London with Diamond Dallas Page! 💎💥

📸 Innes McVey

25/08/2026

💥 DDP LONDON TIMES 💥

VIP Doors: 16:45
VIP Meet & Greet: 16:45 - 18:45 (last entry 18:00)
GA Doors: 18:45
Show Start: 19:15

24/08/2026

🚨 DDP LONDON TICKET UPDATE 🚨

We've released a final batch of General Admission tickets for Diamond Dallas Page in London tomorrow!

Remaining tickets are extremely limited and once they're gone, we'll be SOLD OUT! Don't miss out on an unforgettable evening with DDP, grab yours now! 👇👇