Few wrestlers in AEW are as over as Orange Cassidy, but fans still seem surprised when he manages to put on an outstanding match. To some degree, that comes with the territory of his gimmick. He is, after all, a wrestler who works most of his bouts with his hands in his pockets. He's not for everyone, but for All Elite fans, he's typically one of the highlights of weekly television.
He recently returned from an injury that kept him on the shelf for quite some time. The response Cassidy received upon returning was enormous, and he found his way onto the highly competitive AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door card. On a night that saw more than a dozen of the best professional wrestlers in the world compete in the squared circle, Orange and Will Ospreay put on arguably the best match of the night. Many felt that Dave Meltzer robbed him of his first five-star match, as the Wrestling Observer gave the bout a 4.75.
Speaking on the Absolute Geek podcast, Cassidy opened up about how he believes he sort of gets slept on as a wrestler: "Well, I was hurt for a very long time. I had a type III AC separation in my left shoulder, and it hurt real bad, so I couldn’t really wrestle for a while... I decided to come back and wrestle Will Ospreay." Leaning into his gimmick a little, Orange continued, saying that "I tried a little harder than I usually do in that match, especially because I, I don’t know. I don’t need to prove anything to anybody, but I know I can. Every now and then, I like to show everybody and remind everybody what I can do when I feel like it." He then gives some interesting insight into the flexibility his character provides. "I have that luxury to just turn it on when I want to. I think I’m the only person that’s like 16 breakout matches because I get that every single time I have a wrestling match. It’s like people forgot, so I just wanted to remind everybody this is who Orange Cassidy was, and I think I was able to do that. I would have liked to win, but he’s pretty good." (h/t to Fightful.com for the transcription)
Some interesting insight into Orange Cassidy's mind and approach to professional wrestling here. He is obviously aware of his perception from some corners of the wrestling community, but there's also no denying that when he turns the afterburners on, he's capable of putting on some bangers.
There will always be detractors, but Cassidy supporters and AEW fans will always be able to show the Forbidden Door bout as proof that Freshly Squeezed can go. He seems poised to get involved in the trios titles picture along with the Best Friends. Those matches should be stellar, and will give Cassidy more opportunities to get that five-star match feather to stick in his cap.
Source: Absolute Geek, Fightful.com