Sabre made his wrestling debut on 20 April 2004.[1] On 22 October 2005, Sabre won the NWA United Kingdom Junior Heavyweight Championship and held the title until 1 June 2008 when it wasvacated.[7]
International Pro Wrestling: United Kingdom (2006–2012)
Sabre made two appearances for Glasgow'sInsane Championship Wrestling promotion.[15] At their premiere annual eventICW: Fear & Loathing 4 on 23 October 2011, Sabre entered an elimination triple threat match with Liam Thomson and his former trainee Andy Wild,[16][17] which was won by Wild.[18][19][20]
In 2015, Sabre took part in the first ever Progress Wrestling Super Strong Style 16 tournament, competing in four matches over the weekend – defeatingZack Gibson,[22]Tommaso Ciampa and Scurll before losing toWill Ospreay in the final.[23] Sabre had a rematch with Ciampa in November at the first ever Manchester Progress show, which Ciampa won.[24] In March 2016, Sabre and Ciampa teamed up to face The Origin (El Ligero and Nathan Cruz) for the Progress Tag Team Championships but failed to capture the titles.[25] Following the loss, Ciampa beat down Sabre. The two faced each other at Progress' biggest show to date, held at theBrixton Academy inLondon, in a Two Out of Three falls match which Sabre won.[26]
At Chapter 40, Sabre unsuccessfully challengedPete Dunne for the Progress World Championship.[27] He then entered the Super Strong Style 16 defeatingDavid Starr in the first round and Jack Sexsmith in the second round, before losing toTravis Banks in the semi-final. Sabre entered the Super Strong Style 16 2018, defeating Chuck Mambo in the first round, Starr in the second round,Keith Lee in the semi-final andKassius Ohno in the final, thus winning the tournament for the first time in his career.[28] At Chapter 77, Sabre was defeated by Walter, his former wXw tag team partner, for the Progress World Championship.[29]
In April 2015, he returned to the promotion, answering the challenge fromPWG World ChampionRoderick Strong in a title match atDon't Sweat the Technique in a losing effort.[30] He then entered the 2015 Battle of Los Angeles which he eventually won.[31]
On Night 2 ofAll Star Weekend 12, Sabre defeated Strong to win the PWG title for the first time.[32] He entered his third Battle of Los Angeles tournament in September 2016, losing toWill Ospreay in the quarterfinals.[33] On 7 July 2017, Sabre lost the PWG World Championship toChuck Taylor.[34] In September, Sabre entered the2017 Battle of Los Angeles tournament, where he was eliminated byRey Fenix in the quarter-finals.[35]
On 31 March 2016, Sabre was announced as a participant inWWE's upcoming Global Cruiserweight Series tournament,[36] which was later renamed the "Cruiserweight Classic".[37] His name was taken down shortly after as he would have a qualifying match atProgress Wrestling's Chapter 29 event in London to earn his spot, where he defeatedFlash Morgan Webster. On 23 June, Sabre defeatedTyson Dux in his first round match.[38] On 14 July, Sabre defeatedDrew Gulak in his second round match.[39] On 26 August, Sabre defeatedNoam Dar to advance to the semifinals of the tournament,[40] where he was defeated on 14 September byGran Metalik.[41] Afterwards, it was reported that Sabre's loss was due to him not agreeing to a contract with WWE unlike the two tournament finalists.[42] He later revealed he turned down the WWE contract to sign for New Japan Pro Wrestling instead.[43]
On 28 February 2018, Sabre was announced as one of the competitors in the2018 New Japan Cup.[54] Sabre defeatedTetsuya Naito in the first round,Kota Ibushi in the second round andSanada in the semi-finals, on his way to the final.[55][56][57] On 21 March, Sabre defeated Tanahashi in the final, becoming the secondgaijin to win the tournament afterGiant Bernard in 2006. After the match, he challengedIWGP Heavyweight ChampionKazuchika Okada for a title shot atSakura Genesis on 1 April.[58] At the event, Okada defeated Sabre to retain the title.[59] Sabre competed in the2018 G1 Climax where he finished with 12 points, failing to advance due to his losses against Ibushi andKenny Omega.
AtWrestle Kingdom 13, he defeated Ishii to regain the British Heavyweight Championship. In March 2019, Sabre entered to the2019 New Japan Cup, defeatingEvil in the first round, Ibushi in the second round but losing to Tanahashi in the quarter-final. AtG1 Supercard, Sabre defeated Tanahashi to retain the British Heavyweight Championship.[60] Sabre was announced as a participant of the2019 G1 Climax.[61] He walked away with 8 points after winning four matches, beatingBad Luck Fale,Will Ospreay, fellow Suzuki-gun stablemateLance Archer, andKenta, whilst suffering losses to Okada, Sanada, Tanahashi, Ibushi, and Evil. AtRoyal Quest, Sabre lost the British Heavyweight Championship to Tanahashi. AtDestruction in Beppu, Sabre pinned Tanahashi to regain the British Heavyweight Championship for the fourth time.
After retaining against Sanada atWrestle Kingdom 14, and Ospreay atThe New Beginning in Sapporo, Sabre lost the title to Ospreay on 14 February at an RPW event. Afterwards, he began teaming up with fellow Suzuki-gun stablemateTaichi in pursuit of theIWGP Tag Team Championship, held by Ibushi and Tanahashi. In the2020 New Japan Cup, Sabre was eliminated in the first round by Ibushi. His partner Taichi, however, eliminated both Tanahashi and Ibushi from the tournament before being eliminated himself by Sanada. On 12 July, atDominion, Sabre and Taichi defeated Tanahashi and Ibushi to win their tag titles, marking Sabre's first title win in NJPW. They retained the championship in a match against the former champions atSummer Struggle in Jingu. After one more successful defense, they lost the titles toG.O.D. atWrestle Kingdom 15. However, on 1 June he and Taichi regained the IWGP Tag Team Championship. They would lose them toWorld Tag League winners Hirooki Goto andYoshi-Hashi atWrestle Kingdom 16 Night 1.[62] On Night 2, Suzuki-gun lost toLos Ingobernables de Japon, in an 8-man tag team match.[63] On Night 3, Sabre and fellow Suzuki-gun stablemateYoshinobu Kanemaru lost toPro Wrestling Noah'sNaomichi Marufuji andYoshinari Ogawa.[64]
In March, Sabre participated in theNew Japan Cup, he defeatedRyohei Oiwa in the first round and fellow Suzuki-gun stablemateDouki in the second round. He defeatedGreat-O-Khan in round 3 and Ospreay in the quarter-finals.[65] Sabre then defeatedShingo Takagi in the semi-finals to advance to the finals, where he defeated Naito in the tournament finals, to win his second New Japan Cup.[66] Due to winning the tournament, Sabre earned anIWGP World Heavyweight Championship match. AtHyper Battle, Sabre lost to Okada.[67]
In December, at theWorld Tag League andBest of the Super Juniors finals, Suzuki announced the disbandment of Suzuki-gun by the end of the year.[74] The final match between the faction took place on 23 December, where the team of Taichi, Sabre, Kanemaru and Douki defeated Suzuki, Archer, Desperado andTaka Michinoku. After the match, each of the Suzuki-gun members spoke about their memories as a part of the group and thanked leader Suzuki. The night ended with all members posing with the Suzuki-gun flag, only to be interrupted by former memberTakashi Iizuka, causing all nine men to pose in the ring, behind the Suzuki-gun flag, which was raised by Michinoku.[75]
AtWrestle Kingdom 17, Sabre defeatedRen Narita to become the inauguralNJPW World Television Champion.[76] After the match, Sabre was approached byMikey Nicholls andShane Haste, who offered him aTMDK t-shirt. Sabre accepted the shirt and embraced the two men, joining the stable.[77] Since Sabre was being friendly towards young lionKosei Fujita, he too joined the stable the next day by the request of Sabre. He made his first title defence, successfully defeatingTomohiro Ishii in February.[78] On 18 February, atBattle in the Valley, Sabre made his first title defence in the United States, defeatingClark Connors to retain the title once again.[79] In March, Sabre took part in theNew Japan Cup, where he was eliminated in the second round toShota Umino. This led to a rematch on 8 April atSakura Genesis, where Sabre defeated Umino to make his fourth successful title defense.[80] Seven days later, atCapital Collision, Sabre made his fifth title defense againstTom Lawlor.[81] On 3 May atWrestling Dontaku, Sabre facedJeff Cobb in a time limit draw, successfully defending his title for the sixth time.[82][83] Due to his match against Cobb finishing in a draw, on 4 June atDominion 6.4 in Osaka-jo Hall, Sabre defeated Cobb in a rematch to make his tenth title defense.[84]
In July, Sabre entered theG1 Climax tournament, where he would compete in the D Block.[85] Sabre finished joint top of his block with 10 points, allowing him to advance to the quarterfinal round.[86] In the quarterfinal round, Sabre lost toKazuchika Okada, eliminating him from the tournament.[86]
The following day atNew Year Dash!!, TMDK facedBryan Danielson,Jon Moxley, Okada and Ishii in a winning effort. Afterwards, Sabre challenged Danielson to a rematch, after Danielson had previously defeated him at AEW's WrestleDream on 1 October 2023 by knockout blow, leading Sabre to maintain that Danielson was unable to tap him out and he was the best technical wrestler in the world.[92] Sabre defeated Danielson, on 11 February atThe New Beginning in Osaka.[93][94] On 12 April atWindy City Riot, Sabre defeatedMatt Riddle to regain the World Television Championship for the second time.[95] On 3 May atWrestling Dontaku, Sabre lost the championship to Cobb, ending his second reign at 21 days.[96] Sabre would enter the2024 G1 Climax, winning seven of his nine A Block matches and ending as the top seed for that block. He would defeatShingo Takagi in the semi-finals on 17 August, and thenYota Tsuji in the finals on 18 August, to win the tournament for the first time. He also became the secondgaijin to win the tournament afterKenny Omega in 2016. Following his win, he would announce his plans to challenge for the IWGP World Heavyweight Championship on 14 October atKing of Pro-Wrestling rather than at Wrestle Kingdom, and he successfully did so by defeatingTetsuya Naito for the title. On 4 November at Power Struggle, he successfully defended the title against Takagi.
On 4 January 2025, atWrestle Kingdom 19, Sabre successfully defended the title against Shota Umino in the main event. The next night atWrestle Dynasty, he successfully defended it again againstRicochet. On 11 February atThe New Beginning in Osaka, Sabre lost the title toHirooki Goto, ending his reign at 120 days. At Tanahashi Jam on June 29, Sabre regained the title by defeating Goto by referee's decision.[97] From July 19 and August 13, Sabre took part in the2025 G1 Climax, where he won his block with a record of six wins and two losses, advancing to the semifinals of the tournament. On August 16, Sabre was defeated by eventual tournament winnerKonosuke Takeshita in the semifinals.[98] He would lose the title to Takeshita atKing of Pro-Wrestling on October 13, ending his second reign at 106 days.
Sabre returned to ROH on 25 February 2023, on the first episode of Ring of Honor, sinceTony Khan's purchase of the company. At the event, he successfully defended theNJPW World Television Championship againstBlake Christian.[101] Sabre returned on 18 May, defending his title once more againstAR Fox. After the match Sabre claimed to be the best television champion in all of professional wrestling, causing theROH World Television Champion,Samoa Joe to confront Sabre. As Joe questioned Sabre's earlier statement,Christopher Daniels andMatt Sydal interrupted the duo, as Sydal sought a title shot at either the television championship. Sabre proposed a tag-team match between himself and Joe and Sydal and Daniels, where if the latter won, Sydal would earn a title future television title shot.[102] The following week, Sabre and Samoa Joe defeated Sydal and Daniels.[103] On 1 June, Sabre defeatedRocky Romero to retain his NJPW World Television Championship.[104]
Since the announcement ofForbidden Door, Sabre had consistently called out "The American Dragon", hinting to challengingBryan Danielson to a match at Forbidden Door.[105] This led to, on the 22 June episode ofDynamite, Danielson acknowledging Sabre's challenge, however he also announced that he was injured and not medically cleared to compete at Forbidden Door, due to his loss atDouble or Nothing in theAnarchy in the Arena match.[106] However, Danielson announced amystery opponent for Sabre, who he claimed was the "one person" he trusted to take his place at the PPV and at the subsequent special episode ofDynamite,AEW Blood and Guts. This led to Sabre, making hisAEW debut by staring down Danielson.[107] On 26 June at the event, the mystery opponent was revealed to beClaudio Castagnoli, who defeated Sabre.[108]
Sabre made his televised AEW return on the 2 June 2023 episode ofRampage, defeatingAction Andretti to retain hisNJPW World Television Championship.[109] Due to being called out byOrange Cassidy, Sabre attempted to get a match for Cassidy'sAEW International Championship. On the 21 June episode ofDynamite, Sabre teamed withDaniel Garcia to defeat Cassidy andKatsuyori Shibata, after which a four-way match was set up for the upcomingForbidden Door PPV. At the event, Cassidy retained his championship.[110] On the 9 September episode ofCollision, Danielson said that with his career winding down, the next person he wanted to face was Sabre. Later, a match between the two was officially announced forAEW WrestleDream.[111] At the event, Sabre was defeated by Danielson.[112]
On the 8 June 2024 episode ofCollision, Sabre would release a video challenging Cassidy to a match atForbidden Door, citing unfinished business from the four-way match the year prior.[113] At the event, Sabre would defeat Cassidy. On 25 August, atAll In, Sabre was a surprise entrant in the Casino Gauntlet match.[114]
Eatwell is outspoken about his political views; he is asocialist, a supporter of theLabour Party, and a staunch opponent of theConservative Party.[117] In 2019, following the news that child poverty in the UK had reached record highs under the Conservatives, he began selling a custom anti-Conservative T-shirt with a percentage of the profits going to theTrussell Trust.[118] After he was eliminated from that year'sG1 Climax tournament, he performed an in-character rant blaming his loss on being distracted by the news that the next UK Prime Minister would beBoris Johnson, whom he called "BoristoffingEaton [sic] wanker Johnson".[117] During his entrance atWrestle Kingdom 17 in 2023, he addressed Prime MinisterRishi Sunak and thehealthcare worker strikes that began in 2022 by shouting into the camera, "Rishi Sunak – pay nurses, dickhead! Pay nurses a living wage!"[119]
^Renamed from "Best Technical Wrestler" to "Bryan Danielson Award (Best Technical Wrestler)" in the 15 February 2016 issue of theWrestling Observer Newsletter, between his third and fourth wins.
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