Gabe Kidd is not trying to play nice after joining AEW, and he definitely is not apologizing to anyone calling him a hypocrite.
Kidd caught heat from fans after he linked up with David Finlay and Clark Connors in AEW as The Dogs, especially because he had spent plenty of time waving the NJPW flag and claiming New Japan was the best company in the world. Now, while speaking to NJPW, Kidd fired back hard and made it clear his loyalty has changed.
“Anybody who wants to say NJPW is the best in the world, because it’s not. AEW is where the best wrestle. That’s proven. So anyone who wants to rep the Lion Mark is a fucking idiot. ‘Do the hard work and your chance will come’ Fuck that. I’m doing what I want, making my money and fucking dipping.”
Kidd said people always expected him to leave eventually, and now he has done exactly that. He made it clear he is following the money and the opportunity, not waiting around for NJPW to decide his future.
“They just said, oh he’s going to leave one day, well guess what, I fucking did. Shit changes. I go where it takes me. It took me to Ryogoku and beating the shit out of Yota Tsuji, wearing an AEW T-shirt.”
That is a pretty wild switch after AEW officially introduced The Dogs on the March 4, 2026 episode of Dynamite. David Finlay shocked fans by attacking Darby Allin and Orange Cassidy after their win over Kidd and Connors, and Tony Khan later confirmed that Finlay, Kidd, and Connors were officially All Elite. Kidd did not stop at defending the move either. He took a direct shot at NJPW’s current state, saying the company is not the best and blaming its own failures for talent leaving.
“You think I want to be in Japan? In Fukuoka, or wherever the fuck else? I don’t give a fuck. I’m here to raise the bar. In no world is New Japan the best. It had potential to be, sure. It could have been, but their own incompetence made it so people just upped and left. You think I’m going to make time to come here to be on the same show as fucking Master Wato and Dick Togo? Piss off.”
So, Kidd is not exactly leaving quietly. He went from waving the NJPW flag to ripping the company, its fans, and the idea that loyalty should matter more than money or opportunity. The Dogs are now part of AEW, and Kidd clearly wants everyone to know he has no regrets. If fans want to call him a hypocrite, he seems more than happy to throw it right back in their faces.
Do you think Gabe Kidd is right to chase the money in AEW, or did he turn his back on NJPW too harshly? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comments below.
