WWE is being staged at the York Barbican this weekend, with the event NXT UK coming to the city for the first time.

The brand is in York for two nights, with one being staged on Friday night and the latter taking place this evening.

Tag team pairing Fabian Aichner and Marcel Barthel, of the Imperium stable, are just two two of the superstars that will be taking to the ring for the show.

Earlier this month, the duo were involved in a match for NXT UK's tag titles in Blackpool.

While moments away from winning, Aichner was speared through a ladder and Barthel thrown off the top of a ladder.

While they hope to be the ones on the winning side this time, such thrilling action is to be expected once again.

“Like always you can expect the best action from NXT UK and our biggest stars," stated Barthel.

“Everybody is here. The ring general, WALTER, is going to be there, the NXT UK champion.

“THE NXT tag team champions Gallus are going to be there and we’ve got a bone to pick with them."

The tag team's visit to York is just one of several contests which take place around the world. Since the start of the year, the pair have already competed in Florida, London and Blackpool, with a trip to Houston in place after their stay in York comes to an end.

“Travelling really is part of the job when you decide to become a wrestler," says Barthel.

“I don’t mind it at all, we’ve seen some great places all over the world.

“We went to Philadelphia to see the Rocky steps, which was a childhood dream of mine.

“I never even imagined that I’d get to see those things in person when I first started!

“Our job takes us to great places - I’m very grateful of that - and it doesn’t really bother us."

Their stay in York may be short, but they're looking to make the most of it.

"It’s the first time for the both of us being here in York," says Aichner.

“We’re excited to get go to the York Barbican because we’ve heard that it’s a very cool venue. It’s a cool little city and I’m looking forward to getting in the ring."

Aichner and Barthel currently live in Florida, though their backgrounds are on the other side of the Atlantic - the former was born in Italy and the latter in Germany.

After trying his hand at football, tennis and skiing, Aichner settled on wrestling as his desired occupation after watching a WWE on TV.

He had to travel four hours every day to work with his current coach Steve Wright.

Barthel's background contrasts as his father, Axel Dieter, wrestled professionally for over 30 years.

“I grew up with wrestling," explains Barthel.

"My first memories are of watching tapes of my dad wrestling.

“At the time, wrestling wasn’t allowed (to be watched) for kids, so I remember being smuggled into the locker room to watch my dad’s last ever match.

“It was awesome and I still remember stepping into that locker room for the first time.

“I was five or six at the time and I was surrounded by these huge charismatic men.

“Since then, I was hooked and I always wanted to do what my dad used to do.

“A couple of years ago, I couldn’t have imagined that I’d have signed with the WWE. Now we’re here and it’s pretty surreal."

Thrash talking is a key component of WWE and so learning English fluently was essential for the pair in order to fulfill their ambitions.

Aichner recalls: “English wasn’t my best topic in school, but as soon as I came across WWE, I always wanted to know what the wrestlers were saying.

“I started switching to English language when I was watching the movies. The more you practise it, the better you get at it. It’s natural to me now."

Imperium came together in 2019 and have promised that this year would be their time to be in the spotlight.

“We were in Blackpool last weekend and we came within inches of winning the Tag Team titles, so that’s one to check off the list in 2020," says Aicher.

“We also got cowardly attacked by the Undisputed Era and we’ve got a bone to pick them. We’re going to pay them back for what they did to us."

Barthel added: “2020 is going to be the year of Imperium."