Speedball Mike Bailey has reflected on an emotional week for the AEW roster.
AEW held its special “Rebel Heart” edition of Dynamite last Wednesday in honor of Tanea “Rebel” Brooks, who is battling ALS. Days later, Saturday’s Collision featured a tribute to Andy “The Butcher” Williams following his passing.
Speaking on his latest vlog (see video below), Bailey discussed the AEW roster gathering on stage at the end of Collision as the company paid tribute to Williams.
“So after the show ended, or at the end of Collision, everyone… went out on the stage as they played a tribute to Andy Williams, and it was such a great moment for all of us to be going through this together,” Bailey said. “Because, friends, it has been a very, very difficult week for all of us.”
Bailey noted that while he did not know Williams particularly well, the loss was still felt throughout the wrestling community.
“You know, I say this as someone who did not spend a lot of time with Andy, I only met him here and there, but I say this very often. The professional wrestling world is a community, right?” he said. “So anytime there’s any kind of tragedy that happens, we all feel it and we all have to and want to be there for each other.”
Bailey added that having the roster together on stage provided a meaningful moment during an otherwise difficult time.
“Everyone being together on that stage felt really good. You know, even though we’re all experiencing very, very big sadness because of this. This felt like a nice moment of togetherness.”
