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The Swirl’s Lee Johnson Warns AEW’s Tag Team Division About When They Return to the US: ‘We Are the Story’

October 31, 2026 | Posted by Jeffrey Harris
NJPW Road to Power Struggle The Swirl Lee Johnson and Blake Christian Image Credit: NJPW

As previously reported, The Swirl (Lee Johnson & Blake Christian) were victorious in their B Block bout for the NJPW Super Jr. Tag League Tournament at yesterday’s Road to Power Struggle Night Five show. They beat HOUSE OF TORTURE (Dick Togo & SHO) to tie up first place in B Block, and they are now going to the semifinals.

After the match, Johnson and Christian held their backstage press conference, where Johnson warned the AEW tag team division and put them on notice, saying that all the teams in AEW are “royally ****ed.”

Lee Johnson stated, “First New Japan tour. Oh my gosh. When Blake and I get back to AEW, all of you teams, you are ****ed, and not only are you ****ed, you are royally ****ed. Because Blake and I have not only gotten a whole lot better, but we have gained a whole lot of confidence. And with that said, we don’t care if it’s Edge [Adam Copeland] and Christian. We don’t care if it’s your Young Bucks. We don’t care if it’s FTR. When we get back, you are royally ****ed because we are not just a part of your story. We are the damn story.”

Blake Christian added, “I hope the Young Bucks win cuz I would royally love to take those titles from them. But our mindset is on this IWGP tournament, winning those championships. That’s our current mindset.”

The Swirl’s Lee Johnson & Blake Christian Prep for a Huge Matchup This Weekend

The Swirl currently holds the ROH Six-Man Tag Team Titles with Jay Lethal. If they manage to win the Super Jr. Tag League this year, they will earn shots at the IWGP Junior Heavyweight Tag Team Titles.

The Swirl face United Empire’s Jakob Austin Young and Francesco Akira in the B Block finals at tomorrow’s NJPW Road to Power Struggle event. It will stream live on NJPW World. You can also see video of The Swirl’s post-match comments below: