Adam Copeland has acknowledged that the end of his professional wrestling career is approaching, although the AEW star has stopped short of setting a retirement date.
At 52 years old, Adam Copeland is increasingly aware that every major appearance could be among the last of a career that has already been interrupted by serious neck problems.
Speaking with Forbes, Copeland was asked whether having wrestling taken away from him in the past had changed the way he approaches major moments at this stage of his career.
Copeland admitted that he now makes a conscious effort to appreciate those experiences, particularly because he knows there will not be an unlimited number of them remaining.
“Yeah, I think so,” Copeland said. “I think having lost this once and coming back, and I think you can also see me doing it every time, I make a point to try and soak in that experience.”
The former WWE Champion explained that his perspective has changed considerably from earlier in his career, when retirement seemed too distant to seriously consider.
Adam Copeland Aware Wrestling Career Is Nearing Its End
“When you’re in your 20s and 30s, you just don’t think about the end,” Adam Copeland said. “That’s a ways off. But now you have to think about that, and because of that, I think it’s caused me to really just be in the moment and not be anxious about this, that or the other.”
Rather than letting the approaching end of his career create additional pressure, Copeland said he is using it as motivation to appreciate the time he still has in the ring.
“I just want to go out and have fun doing the only thing I ever wanted to do.”
Copeland was forced to retire from professional wrestling in 2011 because of cervical spinal stenosis, bringing his first WWE run to an abrupt end.
At the time, it appeared his in-ring career was permanently over. However, Copeland made a remarkable return nine years later and resumed wrestling after receiving medical clearance. His second run has not been without setbacks, with further injuries resulting in additional periods away from the ring.
Those experiences have shaped how Copeland now approaches his career. Having already experienced wrestling being taken away from him once, he is making an effort to appreciate each remaining match and opportunity rather than focusing on when his career will eventually end.
Adam Copeland has not announced a retirement date or indicated exactly how much longer he intends to continue wrestling. However, his comments make clear that retirement is something he now considers in a way he did not earlier in his career, with his focus instead on enjoying whatever time he has remaining as an active professional wrestler.
