Two former WWE NXT stars are making their way to AEW.
First appearing in WWE in 2017, James Drake and Zack Gibson found success as the Grizzled Young Veterans, even winning the NXT UK Tag Team Championships. They made their way to the United States version of NXT in 2020, but in 2022, they were repackaged as Rip Fowler and Jagger Reid, aligning with Joe Gacy as The Dyad.
Back in April of 2023, the duo revealed on social media that they’d requested their releases from the company, but that request was denied. Their contracts expired in September, and in October, the GYV announced their return to independent wrestling while blasting WWE for their overproduction.
On April 25th, Lexy Nair conducted an exclusive interview with the GYV on AEW’s social media, revealing that the duo will be debuting on the April 27th episode of Collision. Zack Gibson took the microphone to introduce himself and his partner, saying:
“I am Liverpool’s #1 Zack Gibson. This man is James Drake. Together we are the Grizzled Young Veterans. For the past 18 years we have traveled the world, living the pirate life, honing our craft and establishing ourselves as the premiere team anywhere in this industry.”
James Drake spoke up next, saying:
“AEW is where the best wrestle, and to be the best you need to fight the best. So this Saturday live on Collision, the GYV make their AEW debut, and we’re coming to make a statement.”
The Grizzled Young Veterans Will Face The Acclaimed On AEW Collision
Zack Gibson then called out The Acclaimed, taking them to task for not being serious enough.
“Acclaimed, you two have been on our radar for a few years now. Two lads with unrivaled potential, but how you choose to use that potential, that doesn’t sit right with us. Too caught up making your funny little jokes, too busy scissoring each other. You two are an embarrassment to this job that we love.”
James Drake concluded the segment with a warning to The Acclaimed:
“So this Saturday on Collision, you two lads are gonna learn a very, very important lesson from the veterans. So remember this: when you see the GYV coming, grit your teeth.”
EXCLUSIVE! @Lexynair stands by with a WORLD-RENOWNED tag team set to DEBUT on #AEWCollision… 👀👀👀@ZackGibsonGYV | @JamesDrakePropic.twitter.com/tsXWiXKcwX
— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) April 25, 2024
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