Claudio Castagnoli Was "Close" To NJPW & G1 Climax Before Signing With AEW

Claudio Castagnoli recently competed in the first ever AEW Continental Classic, competing against names such as Bryan Danielson, Eddie Kingston, Brody King, Daniel Garcia, and Andrade El Idolo, which was a round robin tournament which was comparable to NJPW’s iconic G1 Climax.

In an interview with Denise Salcedo, Castagnoli was asked on his reaction to competing in a tournament like the Continental Classic, and he responded by revealing that he was actually very close to competing in the G1 Climax before he came to a deal to sign with AEW.

“I was very excited. [Laughs] Right before I joined AEW, I was extremely close, probably a couple days away before doing the G1 for New Japan. I always want to do the G1, and I still owe them one, I feel like. So to do the Continental Classic, I was super excited.”

Castagnoli would debut at the AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door event in June of 2022, which took place a matter of weeks before the 2022 edition of the G1 Climax began. 

H/T Fightful