David Finlay apparently wanted to bring Bullet Club to an end shortly after taking over the longtime NJPW faction.
Finlay became the leader of Bullet Club in March 2023, eventually putting together the Bullet Club War Dogs alongside Gabe Kidd, Clark Connors, Alex Coughlin and Drilla Moloney.
While appearing on Talk Is Jericho, Finlay revealed that his original plan was actually to kill off Bullet Club altogether. NJPW had other ideas due to the money the brand continued to generate.
“I became the Bullet Club leader and then I immediately wanted to kill it, but they were like, ‘No, it makes money.’ So, the compromise was we formed Bullet Club War Dogs, which is where the dogs come from.”
Finlay explained that the original War Dogs lineup was largely built around members of the LA Dojo who weren’t being utilized at the time.
“It was me and a bunch of the LA Dojo guys that weren’t getting used. I was the leader, and Gabe Kidd, Alex Coughlin, who had to retire for medical reasons, Clark Connors and Drilla Moloney were the core of that group.”
Although the faction expanded over time, Finlay remains particularly proud of what the original group created. That has carried over to AEW, where Finlay, Kidd and Connors have been able to adapt the concept as “The Dogs.”
“As time went on, it expanded, as groups do, but those are my boys. It’s cool that me, Gabe and Clark can kind of tweak the act but transplant the act into another company. There’s a sense of pride that comes with that.”
Finlay joined AEW in March 2026, with Kidd and Connors eventually joining him in reforming The Dogs. The trio is currently involved in a program featuring several other former Bullet Club members.
Jay White, Juice Robinson and Ace Austin have aligned with Austin and Colten Gunn as the Bang Bang Gang, creating a rivalry with plenty of Bullet Club history on both sides.
