Steve Maclin has revealed that he broke his fibula roughly 10 weeks before his main event showdown with Adam Copeland at MLP Northern Rising, and that his first fear was losing the match entirely.
Maclin shared the story on the Boots to Boots podcast, which he hosts with his wife, Deonna Purrazzo. He said the injury hit just two days after he was told he would be facing Copeland.
“First thing I thought I might lose was my match with Adam Copeland at Northern Rising,” Maclin said.
He said the show was set to be one of the biggest pay-per-views in Canadian history, especially with the event taking place at Maple Leaf Gardens. For Maclin, the booking felt like proof that “finally good things are starting to happen” for him, which made the timing of the injury hurt even more.
“To lose that, it sucks,” Maclin added.
Maclin made it to the ring anyway. At Northern Rising on October 3, he and Copeland met in a Street Fight in front of a sold-out crowd at the arena now known as the Mattamy Athletic Centre. It was Copeland’s first match outside WWE or AEW since 2001, and his first inside the building where he watched his first pro wrestling show.
The match featured a goalie mask, tables and ladders. Maclin hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle and an AA but only got a one count. Purrazzo pepper-sprayed the referee and Copeland, but Rhino made the save, and Copeland finished it with back-to-back spears.
The match was also a major spotlight for Maclin after his time in TNA. He has said he would love a shot in AEW, where Purrazzo is signed and where his best friend Josh Alexander works. Copeland had publicly challenged Maclin to the match last month.
Northern Rising will air as a three-part special on TSN, MyAEW and Fight Nation, starting Wednesday, October 14.
