Eddie Kingston: Fifteen Months Was A Long, Hard Journey, And Without People Like HOOK I Wouldn’t Be Here Today, Still Fighting

Eddie Kingston reflects on his journey back to the squared circle.

At AEW All Out 2025 on September 20th, Eddie Kingston would make his return to All Elite Wrestling to take on and defeat Big Bill in singles competition. After the bout, Bill and Bryan Keith would beat down Kingston until a fellow New Yorker in HOOK would make the save.

While speaking in a digital exclusive posted to AEW’s social media platforms, Eddie Kingston, joined by HOOK, would comment on his recovery and the events of AEW All Out 2025.

“So about, what, a month ago I’d say, I think a month ago, things weren’t really going too great on a mental level. I’m not gonna get too deep into it, you know what I mean? Not now. I got one phone- well, two phone calls. I can’t forget Ortiz, you know what I mean? My man monkey, I can’t lie about that, you know what I’m saying? But the second phone call I got was from you, from HOOK, and now, you know what I mean, my man don’t talk a lot. You know, you didn’t talk a lot on the phone that day. You just said ‘what are you’re doing?’ And for some reason, I just spilt my guts out to you, and all you said back to me is, ‘so what you gonna do about it?’ I remember hanging up the phone. I remember, man, let me get up and go. I went out, ran. It’s about 3 o’clock in the morning. I went out and ran. Came back home. Went to the gym in the garage. Started working out again. Started watching All Japan again. Started seeing Kawada and everybody all over again. Then more and more and more and more of the feeling of the love for this sport came back. I don’t hate Bill. It’s not that I don’t like Bill. Bill called me out. I had to do my job. I won. Then your boy (Bryan) Keith comes out. Hey, thank you for doing that. Thank you. Thank you. Look who came. Look who came to help me, man. Let’s be real. I know why you’re mad. I get it. I’m the first guy that’s better looking than you. You got it, right? Bro, come on. The eyebrows and everything. You can’t play with me, dog. Look, this is real. Just like what I speak and say to you guys is real. 15 months was a long, hard journey and without people like HOOK, without people like Ortiz, without people like my mentor Homicide, and others, I’m not going to mention all of y’all because, you know. But without them, I wouldn’t be here today. I wouldn’t be here still fighting, still living the dream of a nine year old kid from Yonkers, New York. But now, here’s the other problem for everyone else. I got this man with me now. My dude Youngblood’s ready to go. Youngblood is ready to go. Queens, Yakuza, 730 type shit right here, baby. Everyone is in trouble.”

"Fifteen months was a long, hard journey. And without people like HOOK … I wouldn't be here today, still fighting."

Eddie Kingston opens up on how his alliance with fellow New York native @730hook came to be.#AEWAllOut pic.twitter.com/des3STkLHx

— All Elite Wrestling (@AEW) September 22, 2025

Elsewhere in a mini-doc chronicling his return to All Elite Wrestling, Kingston had praise for Bill. You can read more about that here.

For more details on Eddie’s return bout at AEW All Out, you can read more about that here.

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