AEW Original ‘The Bastard’ Passes Away at 40
Wrestling fans around the world were shocked to see AEW announce the death of AEW original PAC. PAC just wrestled at this weekend’s All Out pay-per-view. ‘The Bastard’ challenged National Champion Andrade El Ídolo; the challenger would fall short in his conquest for the title. This news came out of nowhere since he’s been a major part of AEW television since its inception. His passing has truly broken the hearts of wrestling fans around the world. He was only 40 years old.
PAC started wrestling in the independent scene around 2004. ‘The Bastard’ would wrestle around various British indie promotions up to 2007, where he began wrestling in various promotions like TNA, Dragon Gate and Dragon Gate USA, ROH, and NJPW. He would get signed by WWE in 2012 in the early NXT days under the name Adrian Neville. Fans quickly admired the Englishman’s high-flying moveset and athleticism. This allowed him to become an immediate fan favorite among fans of the black and gold brand. ‘The Man That Gravity Forgot’ would end his time in the developmental brand by being a two-time NXT Tag Team Champion and an NXT Champion.
Neville was officially called up in 2015. He would drop his first name and just go by Neville for the remainder of his time in WWE. ‘The Man Gravity Forgot’ challenged for the United States Championship and even the World Heavyweight Championship early in his main roster run, giving fans hope that WWE was willing to push another smaller wrestler in a time when giants were favored by then-owner Vince McMahon. He would never win either title. Main roster fans who didn’t watch NXT now understood the hype around Neville, and he became a big fan favorite. He garnered so much support and was pushed to the point that he won the 2015 Slammy Award for Breakout Star of the Year.
Neville would be featured consistently on WWE television, but the momentum slowly began to die down. That all changed in 2017. Shortly after the reintroduction of the Cruiserweight Division to WWE television, “The Man That Gravity Forgot” turned heel after losing a championship match against Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann. The Englishman would embrace the heel path as ‘The King of the Cruiserweights,’ implementing a hard-hitting, grapple-heavy offense meant to break bones rather than showcasing his high-flying athleticism. He would remain a heel until his departure from the company. Neville would end his tenure with WWE as a two-time Cruiserweight Champion.
Neville would transition back to PAC, briefly returning to Dragon’s Gate before signing to a new promotion called AEW. He would debut in the promotion to take on Kenny Omega at the promotion’s first edition of All Out, and beat him; he appeared on the first episode of Dynamite. ‘The Bastard’ would be in the show’s inaugural main event against Adam Page, where the Englishman came out on top once again. ‘The Bastard’ would be on his own before forming Death Triangle alongside The Lucha Brothers’ Pentagon Jr. and Rey Fénix in 2020. The trio would become the second-ever AEW Trios Champions after the belts were vacated. The trio would remain together before dissolving in 2024. PAC would team with Wheeler Yuta and Claudio Castagnoli, even winning another set of Trios Championships with them. “The Bastard” would not join another faction until he helped the Blackpool Combat Club’s Jon Moxley and Castagnoli kick Bryan Danielson out of the faction to form The Death Riders by holding Yuta away from the attack.
PAC would remain an integral member of The Death Riders until his sudden passing. ‘The Bastard’ ended his career in AEW as a two-time World Trios Champion and an All-Atlantic Champion. The internet wrestling community continues to show its love towards one of the most underrated and underappreciated wrestlers in modern wrestling. AEW is expected to have a show or pay-per-view dedicated to him in his memory, similar to how they did their tribute for The Butcher. He is survived by his wife, Natalie.
