Which Shoot Interview Should be Reviewed Next?

This week, I have selected three recently released interviews from Highspots that involve multiple people. Here are your three choices:


Developmentally Speaking 2: Hosted by Brian Myers (Curt Hawkins) with Luke Gallows, Mica (Camacho), and Brad Attitude



Bullet Club Party: Luke Gallows, Karl Anderson, Tama Tonga, Brian Myers, Brad Attitude



Best Friends with Teddy Hart: Hosted by Chuck Taylor and Trent Baretta



Those are your three choices. Vote by clicking on the link below. Voting ends Saturday at noon.


Highspots Presents: Developmentally Speaking with Brian Myers (Curt Hawkins)

This was released on May 5th, 2015

The interview was conducted with Brian Myers and the guests are Tomasso Ciampa, Colt Cabana, and Chris Hero

It runs for one hour and fifty minutes long

Just to give you all a quick rundown of the concept, this features guys who worked in the WWE Developmental System as they all talk about their experiences and how they got hired.

The interview starts with Myers asking the guys about their experiences as extras on WWE television. He starts off by saying he got called to show up to Madison Square Garden with his partner, Zach Ryder, to work as extras for a RAW/Smackdown super show. Cabana joked about having around 15 matches on Velocity and Heat before getting signed. Hero then asked him about the wackiest experience he had as Cabana talks about wrestling Big Vito, who was wearing a dress at the time. At first, the match was going to be 60/40 in Vito’s favor then that changed to him getting completely squashed, which Cabana said should have been the original plan to begin with. Myers goes back to his story and how Zach and himself had no idea there was a separate dressing room for the extras so they sat in the regular locker room and saw Bob Holly staring them down looking pissed off then luckily for them Johnny Nitro came in and told them were to change as they also had to change in their too as MNM just debuted and despite being the Tag Champs, still had not earned the right to change in the regular locker room.

Hero then talks about his first experience at a WWE event. It was in 2004 as we was with Zach Gowen, Alex Shelley, Nate Webb, Jimmy Jacobs, and Truth Martini. They went into the ring before the show and chained wrestled with each other for like an hour without any supervision from the office. Hero said this was the night that Brock Lesnar threw Zach Gowan into the post and he bled like crazy. Hero then tells a story about how Arn Anderson went up to Gowan and asked him about “getting color” for the first time but Gowan was paying attention to the dark match on the monitor as it featured his trainer, Truth Martini. Gowan told Arn he was paying when in reality he was not so Gowan made himself a blade that was way too sharp and big and that was why he bled the way he did.

Ciampa now talks about his first experience as an extra. He was booked to face Jamie Noble, who just returned from Ring of Honor, and was told they want Noble to be extra aggressive as Cabana laughing about how they wanted Ciampa to get the shit kicked out of him. He then tells another stotry about teaming with Kofi Kingston (they both were wrestling in the New England Independent Scene) against Cade & Murdoch. Ciampa took their High/Low finisher but got his legs taken out first then got clotheslined and took a horrific bump on his neck and said that he felt a tingling for a minute then walked backstage, where Shawn Michaels ran up to him. Shawn first asked Ciampa if he was okay then told him he needed to be honest with him as they were going into a program with them and needed to know that they were safe workers. Ciampa told Shawn they were and once he got into the extras room, Ciampa told Kofi that he felt like he broke his neck and wonders if he should tell Shawn. After a debate on whether for not to tell him, Ciampa left the room to look for Shawn. He ended up running into Mick Foley, who told him that bump was the worst he has ever seen so after that, Ciampa decided just to pretend that he was fine and never tell anyone.

We get another story from Ciampa as he was selected to be the lawyer for Mohammed Hassan on a segment that aired on Smackdown. He talks about having to read lines in Vince’s office as HHH was making Vince a “Muscle Milk Shake.” Myers chimes in on how they no longer have indy wrestlers play those roles today as they hire actors.

The interview now moves on to when they all got signed. Myers starts by saying how its a lot easier to get signed today as they want to fill up the Performance Center but it makes it even harder to get to the main roster. Cabana speaks about being in Developmental when the company started FCW and how they had three rings at the time as the company started to hire as many guys as possible as they wanted to fill the place with bodies.

Cabana then tells the story of how he got hired by the WWE. He wrestled Eugene and they had an entertaining match. Jimmy Yang went up to him afterwards and said that he could not believe he did not get a contract offer after that. After that, John Laurinaitis looked him up and down and asked him how long he had been wrestling for but nothing happened. Cabana then said that CM Punk, William Regal, Ken Anderson, and Shawn Daivari among others kept going to bat for him to get signed but Laurinaitis kept saying no. One day, Cabana got a special tryout in a  Detroit and was supposed to get watched by Finlay, who ended up getting drunk with Dean Malenko instead. Cabana said he waited in the ring for three hours and no one came so Daivari kept on texting Laurinaitis, who was also getting drunk at the bar, then they finally got a hold of him as he spoke with Cabana and offered him a job for $750 a week, because he had a bit of a name on the Independents. Cabana said he made to sure to call him the next day and confirm that this was legit and it was. Cabana then talked about how Laurinaitis told him he was going to sign Matt Sydal (Evan Bourne) and Claudio Castagnoli (Cesaro) next. He also said he was given the choice to go to OVW or Deep South and chose OVW because of the horror stories he heard about that place. Cabana said that OVW was also not that bad of a drive from his house and talks about how he got $2,000 to move and only spent about $50 as he got furniture from guys who moved.

Hero talks about getting signed. He was with Castagnoli and their contracts were expiring. They had tryout matches against the Usos before the show s Myers talks about how its the shittiest experience ever to wrestle in front of no crowd. Hero also said that Tony Nese and Papadon were with them. They wrestled both heel and face then HHH pulled them aside and told them they would be signed as individual talents as that is what Vince wants.

Myers talks about his first tryout. He was there with 13 guys and only five were trained wrestlers. He said just a few of them got matches while the rest watched. He said that he wrestled Tim Arson, the ECW Zombie, in a terrible match while Zack Ryder wrestled Mason Rage. Myers said that Jerk Jackson (Bobby Fish) blew everyone away but never got signed, even after Dreamer said that if anyone got signed it would be him. Myers said that the only reason he can come up with for how Zack and him got signed were because they looked together. Myers said he got signed but had to finish up his semester at college so basically partied while getting paid by the WWE. He then tells a funny story of how when they first reported to Deep South, Laurinaitis was there and put over new signees Kenny Omega and Chris Rombola then went over to both of them and saw there hair was no longer blond and yelled at him “why the fuck isn’t your hair blond, change that shit.”

Ciampa then talks about how he believes it is much easier for a wrestler just starting out to sign a Developmental Deal with the WWE than someone who has been wrestling on the indies for a few years and has an attitude that he should get signed because he is a good wrestler. Ciampa said he went to a bunch of tryout camps shortly after starting wrestling school and kept taking their advice and that was how he got signed. He viewed this as “college assignments” and did not have an attitude about anything. He talks about being in the same camps as Kofi Kingston, Damien Sandow, Chad Wicks, and Palmer Canon.

Hero talks about Ciampa’s point a bit and says the WWE loves “hunks of clay” that they can carve out and mold into what they want as Cabana jokes about how they emphasize on the “hunk” part. Hero then says that the company believes they can get 10 starts out of 100 guys they bring into developmental and how that does not always work that way as Cabana disagrees and thinks it does. Myers gives an example of Titus O’Neill, someone with hands-on WWE training only since 2009 and how he still sucks while Cabana says that WWE fans think he is a star. Myers says he doesnt believe the fans think he is good and knows the office does not think they are while Cabana says is barking act is over with the crowd.

Myers stays on this subject and says how the WWE gets these freak athletes who have no experience and pick up wrestling easily and how they think it can happen to anyone but that is not the case. Hero then talks about wrestling in developmental and how “green” guys can have an awful match but get applauded for not hurting anyone but guys with experience like himself would get yelled at for any little thing. Cabana then tells a story about Afa Jr. (Manu) and how he went for a tryout and acted like he did not know how to wrestle, despite wrestling since age 14. Myers then talks about Afa’s first day in Deep South when he got into the ring and busted out a Blue Thunder Driver on Zack.

Myers talks about going down to NXT and how he wrestled against Rusev at a live event and that Bill DeMott was on a headset basically calling the match and dictating when they could get heat as Myers said it was confusing and that the referees would usually get chewed out if things didnt go a certain way. Hero said they would first only do that at the FCW building but then started to do that at live events and would even do commercial break spots in matches to get the guys used to that before making it to TV.

Cabana talks about his time in OVW and how there was no curriculum or communication from the office and that Al Snow taught everyone how he thought they should be trained and thought he knew more than everyone. Ciampa then talks about a class Snow did as he would tell the talent to not do anything unless he told them too and the whole match was wrestled like that as Ciampa questioned what was there to benefit from this. Hero says that this might be the product of these guys getting trained in the territory system and not having a structured environment. Cabana also talks about how Developmental should be getting guys in shape for TV and cannot believe that the WWE does not have a sponsorship with a protein company as it would give them enough free product to give the guys in Developmental, who typically do not have much money. Hero also talks about how the trainers would contradict each other, making it confusing.

They now discuss the guest trainers. Myers talks about Greg Gagne and how he probably had not watched wrestling since 1989 and showed them stuff that no one does in wrestling anymore. Then after hours of training with Gagne, DeMott came out of the office and told them all to disregard everything they just learned. Cabana says that Brian Blair came down and told them they would learn stuff they had never seen before then proceed to show them all how to skin-the-cat as Cabana thinks that in Blair’s mind, he had to teach them something that he thought no one else was showing them. Hero takes it a step further and talks about how everyone learns through different ways and by teaching 30 people to do something one way, some people get lost in the shuffle. However, if you give more individual attention, you have a better chance at teaching as some people respond to tough love while others need to be spoon-fed.

Cabana then asks everyone who helped them out the most. He said it was Norman Smiley for himself, who always told him that he was better than he was. Myers said he got the sense from DeMott and Snow that they wanted to be wrestling and not training guys while Tom Prichard was really helpful. Hero said that some of the trainers would hold the fact that they have all of these resources in the Performance Center against them because they did not have those same things when they were breaking into the business.

Ciampa and Cabana talk about having to do a book quiz on Dr. Death. Myers said that heard Dr. Death practically called Nova up crying that no one read his book as Cabana tells the story. He said they were given copies of the book but never told they had to read it then got quizzed. Ciampa talks about the questions and remembers one of them was who did he have for a roommate in his Sophomore year at college as they laughed at the ridiculousness of the question, which was fill in the blank and not multiple choice. Cabana said everyone got yelled at and threatened to get fired so the next day he stayed up all night reading, thinking there would be another quiz but there was not as they all talk about the book for a minute.

Myers talks about the “Make a Deal” Friday they had in Deep South where they came up with some wacky idea to prevent them from having to practice. He then tells a story about one time when they raced shopping carts, Deep South was in a shopping center, and his teammate was Brooke Adams (Miss Tessmacher) and remembers this because they had to pick up quarters with their butt (as he says she has the best butt in wrestling) and walk with them and try to drop it in a solo cup that was on the ground. The others couldnt believe they did this stuff as Cabana asked them if the training was so hard they’d rather to that as Myers talks about how it was brutally humid there and everyone got shitfaced Thursday nights and come in the next morning for tape review. And instead of practicing hungover, they came up with ideas to get out of practice, which were all ways to humiliate each other. Later on, Myers learned that DeMott would bury them behind their backs to the guest trainers for doing anything it took to get out of practice, adding that the whole idea was DeMott’s.

They talk about the trainers as all the guys who had Steve Keirn talk positively about him. Myers said that Ricky Steamboat was very long-winded when giving feedback as Hero agrees. Cabana goes into it further how they trained all day and while the love and appreciate wrestling, they wanted to go home at the end of the day but Steamboat would go into 1.5 hour-long speeches. Myers then said he saw Steamboat at an Independent show and asked how his son was doing and he talked for so long that Myers’s entrance music started playing. Hero said you don’t mind those speeches at the beginning of the day though.

Hero talks about his time in NXT and how there were two classes: morning and afternoon. He was in the afternoon class, which had all of the diva’s and the second generation talent along with a few other guys. He said the more experienced talent was in the morning class. He thought it was cool as he got to know people he never met before and went in with an optimistic attitude but after that Terry Taylor came in and there wasnt much of a direction. Cabana adds to this and how the system will never be perfect and how they (besides Myers) never got called up might sound bitter and say it didnt work while those who made it would say it was great. Myers and Hero talk about how they would write up report cards on the talent yet never tell them what they need to improve on or what they are doing wrong as they think it is fucking stupid. Hero said he heard agents yell about guys doing stuff wrong while the person doing it thinks they are supposed to be performing it that way because they are never told the correct way.

Now, Hero talks about how he sat down with Bill DeMott one day, who had him run a class as they were busy. Hero said he had no idea how to run a class and after that guys would gravitate to him for pointers so he would help them out but after that got knocked by the office for teaching guys and that he needed work in other areas so he shouldn’t be passing on any bad habits.

Myers asks them who was the one guy in developmental they were sure would make it to the main roster but never did. Myers said it was Mike Kruel, as he was a focal point of some of the TV’s and Cabana said Laurinaitis came down one day and said he would put Kruel on TV right now but he ended up getting sent to FCW and buried until he was released. Cabana said it was Jacob Duncan (Ryan Wilson or Trytan in TNA) as he was a big guy with a great look who loved wrestling and thought if he couldnt make it to the main roster then he certainly could not make it himself. Hero said it was Briley Pierce (Dolph Ziggler’s brother) as he improved, had an amateur background, and also came up with a million ideas. Cabana said that before he was let go he had a show on WWE.com and was doing commentary and while he came up with a lot of ideas, the top officials never liked them as he suggested that Kevin Dunn didnt like him for being “chubby.”

The guys talk some more about the guest trainers. Hero loved Perry Saturn, saying that he told a ton of funny and crazy stories but also taught them a lot of technical wrestling as well. Cabana said that he loved Pat Patterson, as he would tell them to have fun, unlike Jim Ross who they all said was a downer. Ciampa talks about how easy it is to fall in the hole of hating wrestling when trainers constantly knock you and tell you that you are shit.

Hero talks some more about disagreements he has with the Developmental philosophy as you have to figure stuff out on your own and guys are only doing stuff because they are told to instead of incorporating what you learned into different situations. Hero said you cannot be good just by trying to copy Ricky Steamboat in the ring, which Myers comments that was basically how Steamboat himself acted as a trainer, as what works for Steamboat will not work for everyone. Myers said when he was a white-meat babyface throwing armdrags, Steamboat loved him but when they became heels, Steamboat did not care and never taught them anything.

We get another story from Hero when Vader was a guest trainer. Leakee (Roman Reigns) and Leo Kruger (Adam Rose) were wrestling in the ring. They both had long black hair at the time with similar builds. Hero was near Vader at the monitor and heard him say “Why the fuck is Sika’s kid doing an African Hunter gimmick?,” which was the gimmick that Kruger had at the time as Vader could not tell the two guys apart.

They talk about guys who spent a long time in developmental like Kruger, Damien Sandow, Konnor, and Viktor. Cabana talks about how they need experienced guys in Developmental as two “green” guys will not learn from wrestling each other and having veterans to work with them constantly and put them over, giving Chad Collyer as an example, will help them get better. Cabana says those guys are in their 30’s and about to quit wrestling because they cannot find work so hire them for the sole purpose of working in Developmental to put guys over and guide them through matches at house shows.

Hero talks about how one of the diva’s at the Performance Center ended up hurting herself while training in the ring unsupervised and after that there was a new rule that stated no one could be in the ring unless a trainer was supervising them. Hero said he understands that from a liability stand point but it hinders progress as you can learn in the ring with each other and sometimes trainers would say they were busy when asked if thy could watch them for a minute.

Myers asks them all if the Performance Center is for the best. Hero said it is in most ways as you have a million resources and can watch your own promos and easily pull your stuff from a database. They also put over HHH for knowing who everyone is while when they broke in no one really had a handle on anything. Ciampa says the new system is for the best as Cabana says when he was in OVW and FCW, guys who trained when Memphis was the Developmental territory probably thought they had it great and now he thinks the NXT talent has it great and how it will keep on getting better. Hero said the one thing missing the most is learning in matches and how to feel it out instead of doing the same matches over and over.

They then talk about doing the “Street Team” stuff as Cabana tells a story of how he had to drive 1.5 hours to Cincinnati and put up flyers to a show that no one was going to go to anyway and how he wasnt going to make money regardless then the next time he had to do it he took all the flyers and threw them away and took the rest of the day off. Hero said that it was a way to build camaraderie, as you all had to the same shitty tasks, but that came to an end when Canyon Ceman said guys who they were grooming as stars should not be doing this and that is when the Social Media team was developed.

Final Thoughts: I really enjoyed this interview. As Myers said, the way they started in WWE Developmental is now a thing of the past with the new Performance Center. The guys all told interesting stories and spoke of how disorganized things were back then. They also agree that its much better with HHH overseeing things.

As far as the guys themselves in this interview, Myers is always great in shoot interviews. But as far as an actual host, he was solid. He doesnt cut anyone off and let his guests do the talking. Hero really dominated this shoot, especially the last half. He spoke for a majority of the time. I thought he was interesting here but a little too talkative at times. Cabana was a lot more quiet than I thought he would be. He offered a good amount of insight but I got the impression he hated being in the system. Ciampa was soft-spoken and told a few good stories but was practically silent for the last half-hour.

I hope there will be more installments of this series in the future. Its an interesting concept and plenty of guys you could feature.  Plus, you get to hear a ton of great stories.

I recommend this shoot and think it gives great insight into how the developmental system works.

You can purchase the DVD of this interview for $19.99 or the Digital Download for $14.99 by clicking on the links below:



Next week, I will be recapping the Kayfabe Commentaries 1989 WCW Timeline as told by Jim Cornette, which will be released on 5/19..

Here is my schedule for the next several days:

Friday: WWF Wrestling Challenge 6/14/87
Saturday: RoH Bitter Friends, Stiffer Enemies 8/16/03
Tuesday: WWF Madison Square Garden 6/14/87
Thursday: 1989 WCW Timeline as told by Jim Cornette

Highspots Shoot Interview with Ernie Ladd

This was filmed in 2005

The interview was conducted by Michael Bochicchio (Owner of Highspots.com)

It runs for one hour and forty-six minutes long

Ladd starts off the interview by thanking Bochicchio for the opportunity to speak about his career before he talks about growing up poor in Texas. He first lived in a garage apartment then they moved to the projects before leaving to the country in Orange, TX.

He talked about playing football in high school and says his coach, Willie Ray Smith (Father of Bubba Smith) was the greatest coach that he ever played for, calling him a great motivator and for getting young people to develop character and to find their identity. He also loved his time in high school as he names off a bunch of classmates that he liked. Even though Orange was segregated, he still loved living there as there were great people of all races there as well as bad people of all races.

Onto college, he went to Grambling University as he was a fan of Tank Younger, who was a running back. Ladd loved playing for Eddie Robinson and puts over a few of his teammates. The interviewer asks him about not being able to play against the bigger schools due to segregation as Ladd said that they would have beaten the hell out of those teams as they had all of the speed and notes that most of the cornerbacks in the NFL came from the SWAC Conference that Grambling was a part of at that time. He talks about a lot of people he played with that had lengthy careers in the pros from his team. Ladd was very passionate about this part of the interviewer.

The Bears drafted Ladd in the 4th round of the 1961 NFL Draft but he ended up on the Chargers, who drafted him in the 15th round of the AFL Draft. Ladd talks about how Otto Graham, an NFL Hall of Famer, refused to start him and other black players when he was coaching in the college All-Star.

He had a contract issue with the Chargers as they were paying him about $30,000 as he found out that rookies on other teams were getting bonuses bigger than that. He felt bad leaving his teammates but said that he got inducted into the Chargers Hall of Fame, which he said was better late than never.

In 1969, he became a wrestler full-time as he could make more money doing that. Ladd then said that he broke in when the Destroyer challenged to do a real man’s sport with Ladd laughing as he thought wrestling was just phony then they broke him in after rubbing his face into the mat. Ladd said that he started to enjoy it as he was breaking into the business.

He puts over Paul Boesch, Vince McMahon, The Sheik, Sam Mushnick, and Frank Tunney for giving him a chance to make money in wrestling. Ladd then puts over Pedro Martinez for telling him how to get paid in wrestling and develop his talent.

Ladd puts over Dominic DeNucci as the person who he had the best matches with and puts him over for his ring work and interview skills. He talks about their interviews as Ladd said he would call him a “spaghetti eater” as an insult.

On his style and interviews, Ladd said that he stole from guys like Terry Funk and Joe Namath for his interviews and style.

He talks about the money he made and said that about 12 years straight he made over $100,000 a year, which was a lot more than most athletes could say at that time. Ladd also said that some promoters would tell him not to tell others what he was getting paid.

Ladd tells a story of getting into an argument with Vince McMahon Sr. once, who left him off of the card because they could not come to an agreement over pay.

When asked, Ladd said that Sam Mushnick, Paul Boesch, and Bill Watts were the best at payouts. He said that he would work twice as hard for those guys.

Ladd then talks about how he would wrestle some shows that didnt draw and would get pissed when he heard guys saying how they would only perform to the level of the attendance as he stated that he would work twice as hard so they could get a bigger draw the next time. Ladd said that strategy worked and he became a bigger draw.

He then talks about how someone had the idea to make him a heel in the South and how that ended up smashing all sorts of attendance records. He said that Pedro Martinez told him he had to be a heel not just to the white fans but the black fans and when that happened, Ladd said that he was called all sorts of things but the crowds were rapidly increasing.

Ladd said that Boris Malenko told him early in his career to watch the matches as you do not learn anything from sitting in the locker room and playing cards. He said that Malenko would take him out and told him to study the wrestlers and his upcoming opponents to know how they worked. At first, Ladd said he did not like Malenko telling him this but learned quickly that it was extremely beneficial to him as a wrestler then puts over Malenko for helping him become a great psychologist as a wrestler and use that to become a box office talent.

On the subject of racism, Ladd tells a story about how he was at a black hotel in Houston. He said that he was light-skinned and would tan to get darker as he felt it helped him as a box office draw. Well, two black girls walked by and chewed him out for doing that as they were offended.

He talks about being involved in a riot while wrestling against Ox Baker in Cleveland. Baker was the heel and got hit in the head with a piece of steel and the fans really want to kill him. Ladd said how riots kill the town as you do not want to go back their as no one wants to get hurt.

Ladd talks about Paul Orndorff and how he was more focused on the girls at the time and says that Magnum TA would have made a ton of money had he stayed in Mid South. Ladd puts over Mid South for being a great territory for teaching.

He then kills a rumor that he was actually taller than Andre the Giant and was told to appear shorter than him. Ladd then shows us that two of his fingers were the size of Andre’s and then said how he could put his foot in Andre’s shoe and it would move around from side to side because it was so big.

Next, he talks about Dusty Rhodes, who he said stole his “black charisma” from Thunderbolt Patterson. He then said that he had charisma and could speak and was loved by both black and white fans. Ladd said that when he turned on Rhodes they threw a ton of money.

Ladd talks about the Sheik and calls him a great talent who was creative but could not change with the times and also did not let people grow in his territory as he would not let anyone get bigger than him.

He talks about wrestling in the Los Angeles Territory and worked against guys like Ruben Juarez and Chavo Guerrero. Ladd said he made a lot of money in that territory.

Ladd said he goes way back Ole Anderson and liked him. He is asked about a confrontation he had with him as Ladd said that happens from time to time then you move on and says in the end Ole is a great guy but sometimes you cannot let a man get away with a certain situation and you have to take charge, which is what Ole did. Ladd put over Ole as a person more than anyone else I have heard.

On Johnny Valentine, Ladd puts him over as one of the best of all time. Ladd said he was a master of his craft and could make the crowd want to kill him halfway through the match because of how good he could work the crowd.

When asked about Bobo Brazil, he said that at that time, every territory had one black guy who was the star of the territory then tells a story of a match in which he teamed with Bobo Brazil against Jerry & Luke Graham that tore down the house. Ladd said that Brazil and him became good friends but that he had to protect his turf in that territory because he stayed there most of the time where as Ladd was constantly traveling around.

Ladd talks about his marriage, which has lasted since he was at Grambling University, and on how he was able to keep it that long while always traveling. He first said that he married a woman who loved him, and he loved her as well. He then puts her over for having the patience and tolerance for his traveling then said she knew this could provide for her and their four children. Ladd said he has been married for 44 years.

On Wahoo McDaniel, Ladd said that when they were playing football, Wahoo went around saying that he blocked a field goal over Ladd, who said that he knocked him on his ass. Ladd then puts him over for being a great competitor and said that he could have been an International star but he could not see the big picture and more of a territorial person.

About Chief Jay Strongbow, Ladd said that it is easy to have a feud with him as he was very colorful and if you were smart you could use that to draw a lot of money. He said one time he attacked him on TV and stuck his feathers in the back of his pants to tremendous heel heat and they sold out the house nightly after that.

He talks about being a friend of the Bush family and how he was known George H W Bush for 40 years. He puts over the family then says that they did a lot for the black community but never gloated over that or did it for attention but because it was the right thing to do. Ladd says that he has a great appreciation for that. Ladd says that he is a Republican and feels that party does more for black people than any other party but gets a lot of flak about that from the black community. Ladd said that Clinton but more people of color in office than any other President but he did not make more people of color millionaires. Ladd said the Republican Party makes more cash available for you if you do have a good idea. He said that black people have had jobs dating back to slavery and does not need more of them before saying that black leaders do not tell the truth to their community as a Republican, Richard Nixon, created Affirmative Action but that does not get reported back to them.

Ladd now talks about being a Christian and how he is “saved.” He said that one night in Georgia he was waiting in the lobby of a hotel as his room was being cleaned. He then said a “white boy” came to his table to ask if he was saved. At first a few people thought the guy was a homosexual but Ladd said the guy was half of his size and would break him in half if he tried anything. Anyway, the two prayed after reading the bible. The guy tried to leave but Ladd made him call his wife, who was shocked that he was saved as Ladd said he would drink and play cards all night at the time but never cheated or was abusive towards his her.

He then talks about having cancer and how he was diagnosed with just 3-6 months left to live but that was over a year and a half ago. Ladd then talks about how the lord has helped him heal then proceeds to pull out the bible and reads a few of his favorite verses.

The interview closes with Ladd addressing the young people to get their priorities straight and to put the lord first and your family second. He then says how he has a great family and loved the same woman for over 45 years and has great supports with them and within his church.

Final Thoughts: Good interview. Ladd was open and talked about not just wrestling but also his life and football. Ladd seems like a very nice man, I have never heard anyone talk bad about him either. I also agree with Ladd as he constantly stressed about needing to be a box office draw to succeed as a wrestler. Even though today’s WWE is more about the brand, the box office draws are the ones that make people go to the shows.

A lot of the stuff in this interview was before my time, especially when it came to the NFL. Regardless, Ladd made things interesting and he has a voice that makes it easy for you to keep interested in what he says.

Ladd was very proud of his career and life and seemingly has no regrets. Even if you do not agree with his political or religious beliefs, after watching this interview it is almost impossible to come away disliking him. Ladd was also in the midst of cancer during this interview as you can see that it took a lot out of him.

Overall, I recommend this interview as you get to hear a good story from one of the true legends of professional wrestling.

You can purchase the DVD of this interview at Highspots for $15 or you can download a digital copy for $9.99 by clicking on the links below.


Highspots Shoot Interview with Mike Awesome

This was filmed in 2003

It runs at one hour and twenty-nine minutes long.

The interview is filmed at his home in Tampa, FL after he wrestled at a local show. The interview started at 1am.

Awesome said he got started in wrestling through his cousin, Horace Hogan. Awesome himself is not related to Hulk Hogan but said that he and Horace decided to go through with training, although Awesome ended up training before him and at different schools.

He said that he was a fan of wrestling growing up in Tampa. His friend’s dad would take them to the shows and cheer for the heels just to get the kids upset. He was a fan of Dusty Rhodes and Jack Brisco at the time.

He said he was hitting the gym hard for a year before he started to train as a wrestler. Someone came up to him with a number for Steve Keirn’s wrestling school that he got off of the TV. At the time, Awesome was taking classes at a Junior College and working in construction. Awesome said both of his parents supported his decision to train as a wrestler.

Awesome said his training was “old school.” His biggest memory was the first day of orientation. Awesome went into the ring and took a body slam as did a few others and the next day, half of the class did not show up. Awesome said that Keirn was slamming them hard too. Jimmy Del Ray also helped train them. Awesome said that only two people finished training when he started: Dennis Knight (Mideon) and himself. He also said that Al Greene came in a month afterwards and trained with them. He also trained for about a year until he had his first match.

When asked, Awesome said that Keirn did not smarten him up to the business at first. He said that Lou Perez was the one who finally did smarten him up.

He used the Mike Awesome name in his very first match. He started out wrestling in 1989 ding independents in Florida. In 1990, he went to USWA for three months and maxed out all of his credit cards as he made no money so he went home to go back to college while wrestling on the independents. He was wrestling for free as the guy would buy them beers instead and Awesome was the champ. At that time, an agent named Billy Mack was looking for a guy to go to Japan as Al Greene backed out as he signed with WCW, and Mack asked Awesome, who agreed to go.

Back to Memphis, Awesome said it was nuts. He said the fans were “hicks” and “toothless people” who would try to fight you.

Awesome talks about the culture shock he got when he went to Asia. At first, he toured in South Korea. He worked for FMW in Japan. Awesome said that the guys do not speak English but know the names of the holds. He also said that kayfabe was big over there and as a whole, the company was young.

He wrestled as J. The Gladiator in Japan. Awesome said that the fans cannot correctly pronounce the name but call him “Gradji” for short. Awesome says that he knows enough Japanese to get buy in Japan. He said that after staying there a few years, they warmed up to him as you have to earn respect over there at first.

When asked about Onita, Awesome says that he saved his wrestling career and if it wasn’t for him, he’d be an accountant, which is what he was studying to be in college. He puts him over for putting the hardcore genre to the mainstream in Japan.

Awesome talks about once match he was in where the ring was floating in a pool and two sides were surrounded in barbed wire as the other two had water mines. He said the president of the company came through with a diagram of the ring and said that the bombs in the water could really hurt you bad and not to land on the bombs when tossed in the water. He also said there was a rescue swimmer who would take them back to shore when they got tossed into the water.

He then talks about how the traditional wrestling companies in Japan did not respect the FMW promotion at all, thinking it was indeed garbage wrestling. Awesome then notes how those companies have now used table spots and others in their matches.

On Hayabusa, Awesome said the other Japanese guys would torment him as he was just starting out. Awesome tells one story when the other guys stripped him down and put a bottle rocket near his ass and lit the wick.

Awesome talks about splitting a ball joint in his elbow while performing a tope in Japan. His rehab should have been close to a year but he rushed back in five months as the company wanted him back. Awesome said he never reinjured it though.

He met Sabu and the Sheik in Japan. Awesome talks about how the Sheik recently passed away then said how he was mean and rough back in the day but developed a friendship with him during the bus rides in FMW and said he was a nice man. They rode on the “Gaijin” bus with the rest of the Japanese heels as FMW was big on Kayfabe.

When asked about doing a tryout match for the WWF, Awesome said that he had a knee brace on because of a hurt knee and wrapped it up in tape as he did not want to get the job but also did not want to tank but by making it look like his knee was in bad shape it would shy the WWF away from signing him as he wanted to stay in Japan. He said that Jake Roberts told him to come back when his knee got fixed.

He talks about his brief time spent in ECW during 1993-1994. Sabu said that he should give it a shot and Awesome did not want to do it as he was home during his time off but Awesome said that Sabu is a great motivator and he decided to go to Philly. Awesome said that he was shocked at how easy the American fans were pleased.

Initially, Awesome said that Paul Heyman would talk you up like you were a million bucks. Overall he said that he is alright then adds how he doesn’t like to talk bad about anyone.

Awesome talks about the spot of him hitting JT Smith with a tope that remained in the opening credits for years. He originally thought that he killed him at first the way his back bent over then lunged to the ground and asked if he was okay and he was then Awesome got up and yelled as the fans went nuts.

When asked about first meeting Masato Tanaka in Japan, Awesome said he was a young boy and got the shit kicked out of him on a regular basis but you could see just how talented he was. He puts over his toughness and how he would never complain, no matter how hard you would hit him.

He talks about the change in style when Onita was no longer in charge of FMW. He wasn’t feeling obligated to be there as the office changed and the matches did too. He did say he was trying to topping himself by doing crazy moves. He said that he learned a lot of top rope stuff by watching Damien 666, who was on tour with them. Awesome said he wanted to pattern himself after that style when watching it at first.

Awesome said that Heyman offered him a job in the airport at Tokyo. He did not accept at first but Heyman told him that he had a job whenever he wanted. Heyman then brought over Masato Tanaka and Heyman wanted Awesome to put him over.

He said that he and Tanaka had a hard-hitting match that he never ended up getting paid for that. A year later, Awesome said that Heyman wanted him to sign a contract but Awesome refused unless he got paid for that PPV match against Tanaka and he still refused. Awesome said Heyman begged him to work for ECW and wound up hurting his knee, did a tour of FMW and broke his ankle then after two weeks worked for ECW and blew out his other knee taking a leg lariat over the top rope and told Balls Mahoney to roll him into the ring and pin him because he couldn’t do anything. He sat home for a year then worked for All-Japan Pro Wrestling then came home as Heyman told him that he wanted to make Awesome his champion and to sign a five-year contract.

Awesome talks about the three-way match in which he became the ECW Champion. He said that only himself, Heyman, Tanaka, Taz, and the referee knew he was going over. Awesome talks about how Tanaka was being groomed for the spot. Speaking on the match, he said once they got the dead weight out of there(Taz) he and Tanaka tore it up. When asked about the technique of tricking the “smarks,” Awesome laughed and said that he liked it but it shocked the locker room. He then said a month or so later, Justin Credible came up to him a little bit upset as Heyman promised him that he would be the next champion.

He is asked about his match against Spike Dudley at the “Guilty as Charged” PPV. Awesome says that Spike is a nut and that he put the match together but Spike came up and wanted Awesome to powerbomb through stacked tables.

Now, Awesome is asked about leaving ECW as Champion to sign with WCW. He said that he was not under contract at the time and while driving to the show, he was thinking how he has not been paid in a few weeks and left his job in Japan for this as he could barely make his mortgage payments. He called his cousin Horace, who told him that he was crazy for working without getting paid then turned around and went back home. He then spoke with Vince Russo and Eric Bischoff and signed a contract with WCW. Awesome spoke about how Heyman wanted to bring lawyers into it but at the end of the day, he was not under contract to ECW so he was within his legal rights to leave and sign elsewhere. Awesome then talks about how while it is cool to be the champion it doesnt mean everything as being able to provide for your family is number one. And when he was not getting paid, he was unable to provide so he left. He also said that other promises that were made to him never came to fruition.

On dropping the belt to Taz, Awesome said that he was not even allowed in the locker room and got a paper faxed to him by Heyman’s attorney saying they had a hotel room for him (which they never did but Awesome did not want it anyway), and did not want him in the dressing room and they would lay the match out. Awesome says this was all conducted by the lawyers. Despite all of this, Awesome said the atmosphere was great with everyone chanting “You Sold Out” at him. He knew he was not selling out and just providing for his family but the only thing he did not like was that he wrestled Taz instead of someone like Rhino, who he trusted and could have a good match with. Awesome said if you watch the match, he put his hand up to protect himself.

His first night in WCW, there was an injunction and he was not even allowed to be in the arena. His lawyers hammered it out and he got to wrestle there after a few days.

Originally, the plan was for him to be used like he was in ECW. However, none of the top guys wanted to do the stuff that he did and names guys like DDP and Lex Luger and how they were only out there for themselves and not the company. He then said it all fell apart for him at Bash at the Beach 2000 when Hogan refused to lay down for Jeff Jarrett and fired Horace Hogan right off the bat and thought he was too close to Hogan and he became the “Fat Chick Thriller” which did not get over at all. Despite saying that wrestling is all just a work, he felt bad having to make fat jokes at the expense of the girl “Heidi.”

The Fat Chick gimmick died when Russo one day approached Awesome backstage and noticed his hair and style and wanted to make him an 80’s guy but instead became the 70’s guy. He said it was lame but sometimes it was fun for him.

As a person, Awesome did not have a problem with Russo but was unhappy with the gimmicks he stuck him with.

On the WWE buying out WCW, Awesome said that he thought things were turning around for him in WCW as they paired him up with Lance Storm then they got bought out and were unsure of what was happening. e met with Jim Ross who told him that Heyman put him over and had no personal issues with him and he got hired by the WWE.

Awesome recalls the first day of the WCW guys being in the WWE locker room was intense. He said that if you did not play the politics, the WWE guys would bury you. Awesome said that he knew the atmosphere but the young guys did not know you were supposed to shake the Undertaker’s hand and stuff like that so they all got heat on them for really nothing at all, which Awesome calls ridiculous. Awesome even recalls Booker T finishing his match and left the arena afterwards to get some food, which is what they all did in WCW, but the next day Booker got heat for not sticking around and shaking hands with Steve Austin.

Speaking about the politics in the WWE, Awesome said he knew right away when Heyman came up to shake his hand and was smiling and knew right away that Heyman was going to fuck him over. He also said that he did not fully realize how political the WWE actually was until he left the company.

He said that while Taz was a “total jerkoff” in ECW, but a humble guy in the WWE. Awesome says that you won’t last in the WWE if you act the way that Taz did in ECW.

On winning the Hardcore Championship, Awesome said that it didnt matter as he kept jobbing at house shows and how he was booked like an afterthought until they found someone else.

When asked about working with Edge & Christian, Awesome said he had some ideas with them but they did not want to take his moves (powerbombs off of the ladder through a table), citing the fact that there jobs were safe as the reason.

Awesome blew his knee out while wrestling the Big Show when he got caught coming off of the top with  chokeslam. He said that he felt pressured to return early and did after six months, when it was a ten month recovery time, and he came back and was not ready then got cut shortly after that. Awesome said that he kept getting called by the WWE at home while he was recovering. On what reason they gave him for the release, Awesome said he did not get one but saw the writing on the wall. When Johnny Ace called him to tell him he was fired, Awesome told him that he was relieved. He said he would not have quit and is not the type to quit when things do not go your way.

When asked if he had any enemies in the WWE and if that was why he got let go, Awesome said that it could have been part of it and having Heyman in the office was not going to help but he was not wrestling his style of matches and he came back too quickly from injury, which he thinks was the main reasons.

He said he is happy to be back in Japan and his knees feel fine. He is going back in two weeks to tour All Japan for the third time. When asked if he had heard about the financial troubles of All Japan, Awesome said that the Great Muta wants to bring in his guys and its just a changing of the guard.

His biggest friend in wrestling is Sabu. He also is a friend with Shawn Stasiak, who he said is going to become a chiropractor and leave wrestling. He also said that Horace is trying to be a physical trainer.

They go back and ask him about the time he wrestled Vampiro in WCW when a fan dived on his back. Awesome said the guy dove and grabbed him but was able to shove him off and hit him only once but accidentally hit some of the security guards as they were dragging away the fan.

Awesome then tells a crazy story while in Japan. He said that the mafia will sit in the front and you are not supposed to go near them but Sabu was wrestling Tiger Jeet Singh and ended up fighting near the mafia guys and wound up fighting one of them. They almost had a riot as the mafia guys brawled with Sabu up to the dressing room and Awesome peeked out of the certain and saw Sabu getting hurt and ran out and hit a few guys. After things settled, they had to lock all of the Americans in the locker rooms for a few hours as they had to calm things over with the mafia, who wanted to kill them. Eventually, it all got taken care of and smoothed over.

He talks about Vampiro claiming he injured him in WCW and how that was a crock of shit and when he saw him backstage at a MLW show, Vampiro would not leave him alone and Awesome said he just wanted him to stop talking.

He talks about how he played a rib,as a rookie, on Mark Starr, who would constantly brag about how he was never ribbed and pulled a ton of them on others. One night, Starr passed out after a night of drinking so Awesome ran up to his room and got his clippers then shaved his eyebrows off and wrote on his face with markers.

Awesome closes by thanking the fans for their support.

Final Thoughts: Solid Interview. Awesome seemed like a really good guy too. He did not have an agenda but was willing to shoot straight and that is really all I want out of an interview.

It’s a shame that Heyman bad-mouthed him the way he did when Awesome left the company. Awesome was completely justified in leaving for WCW and smart for not signing a contract with Heyman to begin with. Like he said, he left a job in Japan that provided for his family to work in America then was not being paid what he should have been. The fact that the ECW guys and the PWInsider.com guys blame Awesome for screwing over ECW is laughable.

Overall, I recommend this interview. Its also another example of how badly the ECW guys were getting fucked over by Heyman and a nice glimpse into the career of Awesome, who spent a lot more time in Japan than I realized.

The interview is available on Highspots.com for $9.99


Highspots Shoot Interview with Barry Horowitz

I believe this was filmed in 2006

It runs at one hour and forty-seven minutes long

Barry is first asked about his amateur wrestling background. He started out when he was in junior high and said he got his ass beat but improved and ended up going to Florida St. for a year but said he did not do that well and wanted to be a professional wrestle and left after a year.

He said he became a fan of professional wrestling at 15 years old and said after watching that was what he wanted to do for a living.
After college, Barry trained under Boris Malenko. He said that he trained for a year and a half until he wrestled in his first match. He talks about how it was hard to break into the business because there were no schools and gave Boris $600.
When he trained, Barry said that he was taking bumps on mats for six weeks then after that, got to use a ring. He also said that he trained with both Dean and Joe Malenko. He said that he did a few months of shooting but most of the training was working. He also said the only other one of the twenty-five trainees to make it through the camp was Al Perez.
Barry said he had his first professional match took place in 1979. He also was asked about working in the WWWF for Vince McMahon Sr. Barry said he learned a lot from the veterans and said he just listened and did not talking, stating that is how you learn.
He is asked about the differences between Vince Sr. and his son. He said that Sr. was more old school and that Vince Jr. was more innovative.
The interview is back after Barry nearly choked on a B-12 tablet. His first match was against Frank Martinez, who went by “Dr. Death.” He talks about how he gave the guy an armdrag then applied an armbar when Martinez told him that he must have been trained by Malenko.
Barry talks about wrestling in small towns, primarily in bars, against Dean Malenko for a year then after that, Boris gave him a sheet of paper that had phone numbers of Stu Hart, Gorilla Monsoon, and for the Puerto Rico territory and eventually moved to New Jersey and called up Gorilla at the age of 21 and that was how he got invited to the television tapings.
He talks about the tapings and how he would work 3-4 matches a night. His first was against Angelo Mosca Sr. and his second was against Don Muraco. Barry was an enhancement talent for a year there and barely got in any offense. He remembers Gorilla saying how they already had a lot of superstars in the company.
After the WWWF, he went to work in Florida. He is asked about Lex Luger at that time. Barry said that he looked good but couldn’t really work. He also believes that Luger was in the business for just three weeks when he defeated Wahoo McDaniel for the Southern Title in a lumberjack match.
Barry is asked about being managed by Percy Pringle (Paul Bearer) as part of the “Pringle Dynasty” stable along with Len Denton, Rip Oliver, Rick Rude, and eventually Lex Luger.
He left Florida for Memphis and worked as “Stretcher” Jack Hart. He said that he was only there for about four months. Barry liked Jerry Jarrett and said that he did not speak much with Jerry Lawler but was not impressed by his work and thought he was full of himself. He puts over his punch but said he is into a more technical style of wrestling.
Barry then talks about how he wrestled as “Bret Hart” and thinks Michael Hayes gave him that name.
Now, Barry is asked about Vince’s National expansion. He said that he had a job and a contract at the time and was not worried. He said that when he was with the WWWF, he asked about getting bookings on house shows and they did not have room but they made a call and got him to work for Crockett.
He talks about breaking his neck for Vince Jr. in the early 1990’s and that when he healed and wanted to come back, Vince told him there was no room for him in the company as they brought in Black Bart, Pez Whatley, and Buddy Rose to fill his position so he went to WCW for a year.
Now, he is asked about working with some guys. He said that Terry Gibbs was his favorite partner and that he is now a supervisor for US Air in Pittsburgh. He said that Dynamite Kid was stiff in the ring but not trying to hurt you and that working with Davey Boy Smith was a night off in the ring.
Barry is now asked about the term “jobber.” He said that it is a shit name. He said that some guys deserve that name, like guys who do not hit the gym and can only take hip tosses. However, Barry said that he puts guys over as he can go in the ring a big guy or a technician and wrestle a long match. He also said that there has to be a guy that loses and that it hasn’t hurt his career one bit as he never wasted his money.
He is asked about Tom Magee and how he lost to Barry in one of his last matches in 1989. Barry does not recall that but said that he had a resume of all sorts of athletic accomplishments and was 6’5 270lbs. He also said how he was in the territory at the same time as the Ultimate Warrior and might have been better but Magee never panned out and said he was respectful and polite.
When asked about the Ultimate Warrior, Barry said that he doesn’t even want to bring him up and said that he was nice and humble at first but changed and hated working with him afterwards. He claims that the Warrior could never get over today as the fans want to see suplexes and highspots and not someone shake the ropes. Barry then tells a story about working with the Warrior at a TV taping when after the match, Warrior was in the locker room bitching to the Bulldogs about how Barry had worked in the business for 10 years and could not get up for a press slam. Barry says that he went up for him and had taken the move from guys like Hercules and Luger who were strong enough to pick him up without help.
His favorite wrestlers to work with were Tim Horner, Brad Armstrong, Chris Candido, Brady Boone, and Owen Hart. Barry said they were all the same size and could go out and have a good match and not just get themselves over. His least favorite were Chris Adams. The stiffest in the ring according to Barry were Swede Hanson and Stan Hansen.
Back to the WWF in the 1980’s, Barry is asked about the sex scandals. He said that he heard about it but never had seen anything happen. He puts over Pat Patterson for helping him with his career.
Barry talks about Owen Hart and how he wrestled Owen’s first match in the WWF. Barry said that Owen wanted to rehearse before the match and Barry said you could not do that in the WWF. Barry then said that Owen’s death should have never happened as he did not need to come down from the ceiling because he was a worker. Barry said that someone like the Ultimate Warrior needs a gimmick like that to cover up his work.
When asked about drugs, Barry said he never used anything and would catch shit from some of the boys for that but that he never traveled around anyone who used.
Barry is asked about working for Jim Herd in the NWA. He is asked about working with “The Juicer” Art Barr and said they had some good matches but did not hang out with him outside of the ring.
After leaving the WWF, he went to work for Global Wrestling for Joe Pedecino. He said that he came in on the tail end of the territory and was treated well and got his rent-a-car and hotel paid for. He said that he beat Jerry Lynn for the Light Heavyweight Title.
Now, Barry is asked about working as the Red Knight with Shawn Michaels for the Survivor Series. He said that Terry Taylor went home sick and they needed a replacement so they gave Barry the mask and told him not to do his mannerisms. Barry said that he suffered a concussion in that match as Bret kicked him in the head. He talks about working TV the next night and took a hiptoss from Mo (Men on a Mission) and remembered holding his head and got through the match then left to get an MRI.
Barry worked for All Japan. He said that Steve Williams was great and that Stan Hansen could be a bit scary in the ring to work with. He puts over Kenta Kobashi as a person and a worker.
On beating Skip (Chris Candido), Barry talks about the events leading up to the match. He said that he got to the arena in Jersey and Kevin Nash called him aside and told him that he was going over but Barry thought he was joking. After that, Patterson explained to Barry that they were going to put him over and said that he got to call his own finish. Barry said that Candido was a great guy but got mixed up with the wrong crowd and ended up becoming addicted to drugs. He said that one day he would be hyper and the next his eyes were rolling around.
When he teamed with Hakushi, Barry thought it was fun. He also traveled with him and tried to help him speak English. At that time, he traveled with him and Glen Jacobs (Kane).
Barry is asked about the Kliq and said that they never bothered him but ignored Scott Hall, saying he had a big mouth. He said that HHH is cocky but respectful in the ring. Barry said that he always got along with Kevin Nash.
On the subject of the tension between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart, Barry said that he heard of it but never saw anything. Barry also said that he always prepared for his matches before hand and was not screwing around before the show and if he was on early, he would shower after the match then leave.
Barry signed a two-year contract with WCW in 1998. At first, he worked all three shows (Nitro, Thunder, Saturday Night) then he only worked on the Saturday Night shows but still got paid the same. One day, he did not get a phone call and still do this day was never told that he was released.
He is asked about the lucha libre style then talks about how they went too fast and it lost the crowd after a while. He also said that anyone could point out how some of the stuff was too choreographed and that it smartened up the fans. Barry said that he was not into the hardcore style and that you could see that for free at a bar.
Barry said that he was supposed to work a program with Alan Funk and they went as far as filming vignettes but Barry got released before it happened. He also said that Evan Karageis was a jabroni.
When asked about being a Jewish wrestler and if he had any difficulties because of that. Barry said he dealt with a few jokes but that was about all.
He talks about being on the road and how he watched his money. Barry said he only concerns were getting a motel, rent-a-car, and to a gym. He was not going to ring up $500 bar tabs as he did not drink to begin with. He talks about how Rick Martel, who he calls a great guy, always watched what he spent and has become a millionaire as a result. The interviewer pokes fun at Barry for being frugal and he responds by joking that he will stretch him out.
Barry is asked about TNA being a viable competitor to the WWE. He said that he wrote a letter to Jeff Jarrett in the infancy of TNA but was told that they did not need him. Barry felt disrespected by that and said that there are “jack-offs” like Vince Russo in charge and recalls back in WCW when he called Russo 20 times and never got a call back. He calls Russo a “mark” and said that in the WWF, Russo wrote and filmed his vignettes with Hakushi back in the WWF. Barry goes on a rant about Russo having Toby Keith come into TNA and suplex Jarrett, stating how it shows the fans that anyone could be a wrestler and likens it to him going up to Dan Marino or Michael Vick and telling them they could be a quarterback.
He also did not like the “Tough Enough” show as he said that the are drive around to practice and living in a million dollar show and was weak but admits that it was just done to compete with other reality shows and had run its course.
When asked if he feels that he is one of the most underrated wrestlers of all-time, Barry said that he is up there. He said that he was trained and had fans and even other wrestlers say that he should be getting a push. He recalls once in the WWF that Scott Steiner came up to him and questioned why Vince wasn’t doing anything with him. Barry said other guys that had talent and never got much of a chance were Reno Riggins and Al Perez, who he thinks left the WWF after refusing to job to the Ultimate Warrior. Barry also points out how he got pushes in other territories.
He is asked about working with Booker T and Stevie Ray in the GWF. Barry said that they both were very green and how Booker is a good guy and that he is a good worker today.
Barry tells a story about Mick Foley while in the NWA. He said that Ole Anderson was in charge and did not like gimmicks, especially Cactus Jack. Barry said that he saw Cactus backstage, who told Barry that he would not be here long because Ole did not like gimmicks and was fired within a few weeks. Barry said that Foley was even more frugal than he was on the road.
Back to the GWF, Barry talks about how the rings at the Sporatorium were drilled into the cement and were the stiffest rings in the world.
Barry is asked about working with the Handsome Stranger (Marcus Bagwell) in the GWF and said he was polite with him. He tells a story about how he put him in a bow-and-arrow lock and Bagwell told him to stop because he worked his legs at the gym that day. Barry then said that he would put the belt on Bagwell and that he had a great gimmick and was a good technical wrestler and what he calls a “wrestler’s body.”
When asked on who came up with the pat on the back, he said that he did in college after he beat a guy in the match and did it after he left the mat but ended up getting points deducted.
On the funniest rib that he ever saw, Barry tells a story about Mr. Fuji grabbed a turd from the toilet and chased the Barbarian around the locker room. Mr. Fuji is fucking crazy. He also tells a story of Ivan Putski falling asleep on the ring apron at the building in Hamburg, PA where they used to tape television and someone, he thinks it might have been Mr. Fuji, stuck tape on him and lit the bottom of it on fire and it eventually got to Putski’s foot as he woke up.
Barry is asked about someone shitting in his food. He tells a story about something that happened in 1996 or 1997 (Barry is probably wrong about the year) while at a television taping. Apparently, Davey Boy and Luger were pissed that there were no more egg whites and thought that Barry was to blame for the situation for some reason. After that, they would bring food with him for the next show and on the bus, Barry said that he could smell shit from one of the trays that he asked for and just put it in the trash and never put the rib over. He said that someone else put Luger’s boots into a sink filled with water after that. He then says that who cares about ribs as Luger went to jail and Davey is deceased while he is still alive and even after all of that, he doesn’t even know if they did that.
He is asked about some questions. His favorite territory was Florida. His favorite opponent was Owen Hart. He would like to wrestle Kurt Angle today.
Barry thinks that he might still be able to work today but now works as a nutritionist and focuses on that. He works for a small company that sells supplements, herbs, and homeopathic products. Barry also said that he went to school for that. He would have no problem speaking about the business or doing autograph seminars. He then talks about Pat Patterson once telling him that 70% of this business is in the locker room and 30% is in the ring.
They close with some name association:
Pat Patterson: good mind for the business
Vince Russo: “jerkoff mark”
Jim Ross: Thought he was a decent guy
Hulk Hogan: Great guy.
Vader: “no comment” then says he is in the same class as Bradshaw, meaning that he doesn’t even want to put them over by mentioning their names.
Vince McMahon Jr: Calls him a cutthroat businessman.
Junkyard Dog: Great guy and was very passive.
Percy Pringle: Good guy who likes to rib and goof around
Paul Heyman: Doesn’t care for him at all. He recalls a story of Paul coming to Florida with a guy named “Tombstone” who started by taking pictures. One day, he was traveling with Heyman, who was pissing him off, so Barry said that he slapped him. He said that Heyman never booked him when he was in ECW as a result.
Bobby Eaton: Says that he and Barry Darsow were the nicest guys in the business.
Jim Cornette: Did not trust him when he worked in the office for the WWF.
Barry closes by saying that he wants to close out his career on a good note and plugs his website before thanking his fans.

Final Thoughts: Well, Barry is certainly a guy who took pride in his work. He also took pride in the fact that he abstained from overspending, drinking, and drugs and as a result, saved the money he had earned in wrestling.

Although he seemed to not like a few guys, the only one who he really buried was the Ultimate Warrior. He knocked him on several occasions throughout the interview. He also made it known that he disliked Bradshaw and Vader but declined to talk about them, stating that he did not want to “get them over” by mentioning their names. He just left it as not liking them and not wanting to waste his time talking about them.

I thought this was a good interview. Barry not getting a push might have resulted in his abstaining from hanging out with the boys afterwards but he was on the smaller side at a time when bigger guys were getting pushed. Barry did not seem bitter about his career, although said that he wished he got pushed and made more money, but was content over the fact that he was able to save a good deal.

I recommend this interview. Some watching might think he comes off as being self-important and thinking he was a bigger deal than he really was but Barry actually took pride in the fact that he got people over. But yeah, I thought this was a decent shoot. 

Highspots Shoot Interview with Ahmed Johnson

This was released by Highspots in 2006.

It runs for one hour and forty-eight minutes.

The interview starts with Ahmed being asked about his homelife. Ahmed said he grew up going back and forth between Indiana and Florida. He adds that his father was extremely abusive to him and describes it as a “living hell.” As the interview progesses, you will find out in great detail just what he meant.

At age 13, Ahmed joined the “Bloods.” He did eventually join the military, calling it one of the highlights of his life and said he was graduated at the top of his class but it was bittersweet because while everyone else had family there, he did not.

Ahmed played baseball, football, track, and wrestling in high school. He was a wrestling fan growing up and watched the AWA. When he moved to Houston, he watched Mid-South and ended up sweeping the floors in the Coliseum as a kid. This was in 1986. He was a big fan of Buzz Sawyer and Rick Steiner.

He got involved in wrestling when he went to a school in Houston with Booker T and Stevie Ray. The school was run by Ivan Putski and Joe Blanchard. Scott Casey was one of the trainers too. Ahmed said it was brutal, even tougher than football. This occurred in the late 1980’s.

When asked about his earlier gimmicks and characters, he was the “Black Superman” at one point and then became Moadib in GWF.

Ahmed got in GWF after Stevie Ray? (I couldnt understand what Ahmed said here, after re-watching the clip several times) sent a tape to the office from when he wrestled in Japan. He was managed by Skandor Akbar. He said he was there for about two years. He worked with the Freeebirds, Chris Adams, Bradshaw, Action Jackson, and Iceman Parsons. He learned a lot from Dick Murdoch, Paul Orndorff, and Johnny Valentine. He said the fans liked him and did not accept him as a heel.

Ahmed got into the WWF due to Michael Hayes. He was walking to the ring during a match (He did not specify what promotion this was) and someone hit him in the back. He thought someone was playing a “ha-ha” on him so he turns around and sees some big biker guy, covered in tattoos. Ahmed said he cracked his jaw then he turned around and headed back to the ring and saw Hayes and Terry Gordy on their knees laughing hysterically. He went on to have a good match and Hayes told him that he would get him into the WWF and he ended up making good on his promise.

He was asked about his first impression of the WWF He said that he met Bill Watts at first.He then said that he was very impressed with the company. Watts told Ahmed that he loved their intensity.

He started off in dark matches and got over doing when he did high-flying moves. Ahmed said when they presented him with the character, they did not give him an outline and was never told what to do.

Ahmed said he wasn’t promised much at the beginning but whatever Vince did promise him, he kept his word.

At first, Ahmed said he did not get along with Yokozuna at first. They had a tag match that involved Davey Boy and Owen and they were “doing ha-ha’s” all match long and in the locker room, Yoko confronted him and challenged him then Ahmed stood up to him.

Ahmed said Owen was the best and he always kept morale up. He tells a story of one of his dark matches when his music played so Ahmed took that as a cue to “go home” and he did. Backstage, Mike Rotunda was the agent and flipped out because the match ended early then they saw Owen and Davey walk out of the sound truck and Rotunda threatened to call Vince as Owen and Davey blamed each other for what happened. He then tells about another ha-ha that Owen pulled on him. He was at his first WrestleMania (WM XII) and was in his room when he got a call from someone at the Jay Leno show asking for him to be a guest. Ahmed said he spent $4,000 on a suit and bought a chain, stating he was “pimped out from head-to-toe.” He was waiting outside for the limo that was supposed to be there at 8pm. Davey walked out and asked him where he was going and when Davey found out, he was mad that Ahmed got that opportunity and he hadn’t, despite being with the company longer. After 8pm, the limo had not arrived and Owen asked him where it was. Ahmed then thought how would Owen know about this and realized that he was pranked by Owen, who pretended to be from Leno’s show. Ahmed said that Owen and Davey were hysterically laughing and that Bret almost fell into the bushes because he was laughing so hard.

He tells another Owen story. When Ahmed was doing arm wrestling matches against Davey, he was supposed to meet his future wife’s parents before the show. Ahmed saw Owen and Davey and thought hey were up to no good. Well, turns out that Davey had broken a stink bomb on his hand and locked up with Ahmed, who couldnt do anything about it because they were on live TV. Ahmed said it smelled like dog shit and when he went to meet his wife’s parents, he smelt awful. Ahmed said that Owen and Davey would get a key to your hotel room and shit in your toilet then turn up the heat so the room would reek. Ahmed then said that Bret told him Owen would only rib people that he liked. Ahmed really seemed to like Owen a lot, despite all of these pranks pulled on him. He said he was devastated when Owen passed away. When asked about the PPV, Ahmed said he would have called off the show but said that you have to understand Vince, who got where he was by pushing the envelope. He was also sad about Davey’s death, especially how bad he became with drugs at the end.

Next, they talk about his angle with Goldust that culminated with him winning the Intercontinental Title. He is asked about when Goldust gave him mouth-to-mouth. Ahmed said that Goldust ribbed him then on live TV as he told him before the show to put his hand over his mouth and do it that way but once the cameras were rolling, Goldust thought it would be funny to put his lips on him and Ahmed did not find it funny. He got along fine with Dustin before that. Ahmed felt great winning the title.

Ahmed talks about how shortly after he won the belt, someone wrote on his rent-a-car “Congratulations Nigger” and says that a fan told him that he saw Steve Austin write that. Ahmed doesnt know if that was the case or not but never cared for Austin and said that he got a vibe that he was racist but never witnessed any behavior like that from him. He also read about his ex-wife Debra saying that Austin would not let her watch black people on TV and that he was a racist person. Ahmed said if he ever heard him say the “N” word, he would beat his ass.

When asked if there was any other racism or jealousness he experienced at the beginning. He said that Shawn Michaels asked him to stop doing all of his top rope moves because when he does it at his height and weight, it isnt as important as when he is using that and wanted Ahmed to stick with power moves. Ahmed said he was disappointed by that but stopped using the moves because Shawn asked him too. Ahmed said that he is happy where Shawn is now at this point in his life and is happy that he found the lord.

He now talks about his feud with Faarooq, specifically about being kicked stiff by him during a run-in. The announcer brings up how Faarooq did a convention a few years prior to the interview and tells Ahmed Faarooq kicked him to deliver a message about being too stiff in the ring and hurting guys. Ahmed said that he had not wrestled him prior and it was the first time they had met. Ahmed thinks that he might have been a little jealous for winning a belt so quickly and did not like that. Ahmed said he was quiet backstage and when Faarooq first met him, he might have taken his demeanor the wrong way and stiffed him because of that.

Ahmed talks about the injury he recieved by Faarooq’ kick. He was tagging with Shawn against the Smoknig Gunns. Faarooq did a run in and kicked him right in the kidney and it felt like he got shot. Ahmed said he had no idea it was that bad and he was rooming with Vader that night, who noticed that Ahmed was breathing funny and called an ambulance and that is how he found out he was injured. Ahmed said he felt like it was done on purpose. He also called Faarooq one of the stiffest workers in the business but said he liked that. Ahmed said that he gave Faarooq a receipt during a match and he wound up in the hospital during the WrestleMania XIII Chicago Street-Fight match in which he teamed with the Legion of Doom against the Nation of Domination. He gave Faarooq a spinebuster and during the move drove his head into his ribs, breaking a few of them. Ahmed said that he believes in receipts. For those who do not know, a receipt in wrestling is payback for when someone who stiffs you or fucks you over.

He is now asked about a shoot interview with the Legion of Doom and how Animal said that Ahmed stole the spikes he wore in their WrestleMania match. Ahmed said he had never stole from anyone in wrestling or football and with the money he was making at the time, he didnt need to steal shoulder pads with spikes if he wanted them. Ahmed said that he did not know that he and Animal had heat together but if he has a problem, then fuck him. Ahmed then said that Hawk gave him the shoulder pads to keep when he went to return them and said that he was tight with Hawk, teaming up after they left the WWF. Ahmed said that he gave Hawk’s shoulder pads to the Dallas Sportatorium to put in a glass case after he passed away. Ahmed seems pissed at Animal now. He called it an honor to team with them but is still mad after what he heard.

Now, Ahmed is talked about his reputation among wrestlers about not protecting his opponents in the ring. Ahmed said that wrestlers have told him that they were scared when they first faced him due to his intensity. Ahmed said that Lawler and Vince always commented his intensity. He then talks about how no one in WCW complained about him being stiff and said that after a segment in which he brawled with Hulk Hogan, he approached Ahmed backstage and told him that his punches looked so intense but they were the softest blows and told him his punches were the best in the business. Ahmed says that rumor came about when he left the WWF, who bury people when they leave. He said that he had never hospitalized anyone with his finisher and no one in the WWF told him that he was stiff after a match. He also goes back to people being jealous of him in the WWF.

Ahmed is asked about the Kliq and other groups in the WWF. He said that everyone had a group but the Kliq ran the show. He did confirm that would bury those they didnt like. Ahmed didnt pay attention to who they were burying but said that everyone disliked them, even if they sucked up to them in person.

He loved the Kuwaiti Cup. He said that HHH walked him through that match and was a good guy back then.

Next, he is asked about his heel turn. He didn’t get the idea of the turn. He said that Gerald Brisco broke the news to him and he was mad, as was Brisco but it came from the top so there was nothing he could do. Ahmed said it didnt last long at all and tells a story why. He said that Vince called him and the rest of the Nation of Domination to the offense and showed them a clip of their entrance to the ring. Vince told Ahmed he had to take him out of the Nation. Ahmed said that he just turned on all of his fans, who now hate him, and in two weeks have to make them like him again. Vince showed him why and played a clip of the Nation walking to the ring, with six guys all over 300lbs, except for D’Lo. Vince then told him that it was too intimidating and said that he couldnt get anyone to believe that they would be beaten. Ahmed said after Vince showed and told him that, he got exactly what he was saying. The original plans were for Ahmed to take over the NoD for those who were wondering but they ended up switching plans to Ahmed trying to destroy them by acting like an agent.

He then talks about a fight he had with the Rock. They were going to have a match and Ahmed was willing to do Rock’s highspots but Rock was unwilling to do his and after a back-and-forth, Ahmed said they could settle it in the ring then a few punches were thrown but Faarooq and Kama broke it up. Ahmed then said tha the Rock was getting really cocky at this point and would refuse to do spots with certain guys. He then said he heard a rumor that Rock hated the fact that he wrestled with the same last name that his father had. Ahmed said he was given that name and it wasn’t his choice.

He got hurt again in a match with the DOA after one of the Harris twins tore his meniscus in the knee. Ahmed said that Vince paid for his knee surgery and physical therapy after that. Ahmed puts him over for that.

The interviewer asks Ahmed about him being a project of Vince to get to the top. Ahmed confirms that he was Vince’s project and that was why his push was so good.

When asked about Chyna and a comment he made about her, stating that he wasnt going to let a “Bitch” hit him, Ahmed said he doesnt know where that came from and if he said that, it was as his Ahmed Johnson character. He liked Chyna and thought she was good for business.

He did not like working with Jeff Jarrett and did not like him as a person, either .He said that he was extremely arrogant off camera and if he can understand that he is not the Rock and relinquish some control, TNA could take off. He then talks about a confrontation in WCW with Mike Awesome after he powerbombed Booker in the corner and nearly killed him. Ahmed and Stevie confronted Awesome in the locker room and told him that there would be problems if that happened again, with Stevie doing the talking. Jarrett was apparently outside of the room and heard this and Ahmed believes that he started a rumor that they beat him up.

Ahmed talks about his match at the 1997 against Faarooq when he powerbombed an unnamed member of the NoD through the announcers table. Ahmed said that person was his friend who was also a wrestler that he helped land a dark match. This guy owed him money and never paid him back so Ahmed told Faarooq to let him into the NoD so he could get him after the match. He said that he grabbed the guy, who had no idea what was going on and tried to get away, after the match and powerbombed him but did not realize that the monitors were still in place and his head’s whacked the edge and he received stitches in his head. Do not dodge Ahmed if you owe him money.

When asked why he left the WWF, Ahmed said that his sister was dying of cancer at the time. She also happened to be a huge wrestling fan and was terminally ill. This started to really effect him in the ring and never told anyone about it. He couldn’t concentrate on his match he knew she was watching the show and could only think of her. There was a proposed angle in which the Truth Commission was supposed to drag him up the ramp by a rope and he didnt want his sister to see that. He then got a call that his sister was really going downhill so Ahmed quit, right before the show. A week later, his sister passed away. He then goes on about the rumors that came about as to how he left the WWF.  Ahmed said that after all of the abuse they went through as kids, he needed to be by her side as she was passing away. Ahmed said that he does not talk about his problems and never wanted to look for sympathy.

Ahmed is now asked about the abuse he endured as a child. He said that it was all physical abuse. Ahmed then said that as a child, he and his siblings were not allowed to touch any food unless his parents gave it to them. He then talks about having to steal food for his siblings and that at times, they would resort to eating out of garbage cans. He also adds that they were all malnourished, with their ribs showing and said you would have thought they were from Ethiopia. One day, Ahmed thought his father had left so he grabbed some hot dogs and boiled them. His dad came back in and asked who did that and when Ahmed said he did, his father tied him to the bed and poured the boiling water on his stomach. His skin began to bubble and peel off so his dad stuck him in a cold bathtub and his skin kept peeling off but his dad refused to take him to the hospital and instead, rubbed vasoline and butter on his burn.

He tells another horror story from his childhood. One day, his sister couldnt find her piggy bank so his dad took all of the other kids and removed their clothes and beat them with an extension cord, switch, and a belt for hours. He said that at the end, their skin and blood were on the walls. To make his father stop beating on his other siblings, Ahmed said that he stole the piggy bank. When his dad heard that, he punched Ahmed and knocked him to the ground then flipped the bunk bed over and it landed on him. Ahmed said that he got beat until he passed out. It was so bad that his mom came in and had to peel the sheets off of his back because they stuck to his back, which was soaked in his own blood.

Now, Ahmed talks about how his dad’s violent ways changed him as a kid. He remembers while in middle school, he wsa playing softball at recess and the other team was getting destroyed and had not even been up to bat yet. Recess was almost over so the pitcher told Ahmed, who was up at the plate, that he was going to pitch fast. Ahmed said just dont hit me and the pitcher barely grazed his arm. Ahmed said that the fact he warned him not to do it made him go insane and he took the bat and charged the mound, hitting the kid upside the head. He actually put the kid in a coma for a few days. They called his dad in the principal’s office. His dad was in a motorcycle gang called the “Road Knights” and several of them pulled up to the school. Ahmed thought he was going to get his ass kicked by his dad but when they told him what happened, Ahmed said he hit him because the other kid hit him first and his dad said that he should have hit him then and his dad took him out and bought him ice cream and treated him great, thus rewarding him for his violent behavior.

When asked about his mother, Ahmed said that he couldnt cry for her and didn’t at her funeral and still holds a grudge against her for allowing someone to abuse their kids like that. Ahmed said that his dad is alive and in Florida but does not talk to him at all.

Back to the wrestling, after leaving the WWF, he did not call them at all. He wound up in WCW after Vince Russo called him a year after leaving but he said no. When Stevie Ray called him a year later, he said yes. Ahmed said that he and Stevie grew up together and got in a lot of fights in the streets as kids. He couldnt say no to him. Ahmed said he was 410 lbs at that time and miserable. He sweated all day long and couldnt walk without getting out of breath. He said that he only went because of Stevie but just ate after his sister’s death and stopped working out and wasn’t into wrestling at that time

He said there was a lot of bickering backstage. The main problem, according to Ahmed, was that there was too many chiefs and not enough indians and when the boys got control, egos got out of control and that was the end.

He tells a story about Scott Hall in the WWF and how no one helped him out but him when he first started. He would watch his matches from the gorilla position and tell him what looked good and what needs to change and what he can improve on, which Ahmed appreciated.

After leaving WCW, he didnt wrestle at all until he started to lose weight then went over to Japan for a year. He said that he is going to go back over soon and work in a new promotion, which is some sort of spin-off of Big Japan. Right now, he goes by the name Big T. He still works a few indy shows.

He talks about landing the role of Suge Knight in the MC Hammer story “Too Legit to Quit” after the director had him in mind since he worked with him on an episode of “Walker, Texas Ranger.” He never took any acting classes before. He said that he is trying to get back into the ring and not looking to become a full-time actor.

Now, he is asked about racism in wrestling and if he was a direct victim of that. He said when he first got there, he was the only black guy in the WWF and said that it took until 1997 for the WWF to crown their first black champion. Ahmed then talks about racism can happen in any environment and how it is a two-way street. He tells the interviewer, who is Caucasian, that he would probably experience racism in a football locker room that is comprised mostly of African-Americans.

Ahmed said that he was told by others that Vince was racist but he cannot testify to that as he delivered on all of his promises. Ahmed said all you can judge a man is how he treated you and Ahmed said he was treated like gold.

His favorite matches were against Vader and one that he had with Owen. He talks about his match with Vader, who we rode with on the way to the show. He was told by Vader that he better be ready because he was going to hit him hard. Ahmed said that Vader clotheslined him so hard that he left his feet. After that, they had a hard-hitting match but Ahmed said it was enjoyable. He loved his match in Kuwait against HHH, which he said went 35-40 minutes and HHH basically carried him.

On his least favorite matches, he said he had a few against the NoD that Ahmed claims “didn’t go right.”

Ahmed is confronted about the interviewer about an incident regarding Dennis Coralluzzo, who ran a show and alleged that Ahmed refused to go to the show due to not having a limo pick him up and stayed in his hotel room, which lead to the promoter going into the ring and telling the crowd that Ahmed was full of himself and refusing to perform then proceeded to give out Ahmed’s room number. Ahmed claims to have never met him and said if he did, he would put his foot in his ass and when informed that he passed away, Ahmed said he will do that to him in heaven. Ahmed said that he was supposed to get $1,500 and told him on the phone to have the money when he was picked up so he didn’t get screwed. He was picked up and no money was there. He told them to have the person picking him up for the money and when they didnt show up with it, he refused to go. Ahmed then said he called Coralluzzo was few more times and when he still didn’t receive the money, he flat-out refused to go to the show. He then made reservations that night to go home and found out he gave out his room and phone number that night.

He is then asked about an autograph signing from 1998, between his stints in WWF and WCW. The rumor was that Ahmed held up the promoter for more money then threatened to kill the promoter on the phone. Ahmed laughs at that and said it never happened. He then said how being from the streets and getting into many fights, he wouldn’t tell you he was coming for you but rather just go after you. Ahmed stresses again that verbal threats are not his style.

On the subject of steroids in wrestling, he is asked point-blank if he took them. Ahmed said he has always been well-built. He did use steroids in college and said they are in every sport and in wrestling, but never used them in wrestling.

Ahmed then talks about how he just found out that he had a daughter after he did an interview and someone called the interviewer, a girl named Amanda from Canada, who claimed that Ahmed was her dad. At first, Ahmed said he was freaked out at first but found out a girl he was with was pregnant and that it was his. She was 21 at the time of this interview and doing well and currently in college. Ahmed plans to meet her for the first time soon.

He then talks about wanting to go back to the WWE. He says that he had an intensity that cannot be matched today and some guys try to be intense today but it feels forced. He said he was training with a friend and how his vertical leap, 40 time, and bench press was higher now than when he played for the Dallas Cowboys (According to Wikipedia, Ahmed played for the Cowboys from 90-91).

Ahmed said he wants to call Vince and apologize to him for they way he left. He does not regret or feel sorry for how it happened but does owe him and the fans and apology.

When asked about the Bobby Lashley comparison, Ahmed thinks that they have two totally different styles. He said from watching him wrestle only a few times but Lashley does not have the intensity that he does and that their styles wouldn’t clash at all.

He doesnt believe that TNA is an option due to Jarrett’s involvement in the company. If Jarrett wasn’t involved, he doesnt think he would go there and says he wouldnt fit in as more of the matches are high-flying.

The one guy in the business he hates working with the most is Steve Austin. He is most impressed with the Undertaker and said he is one of the coolest guys you will ever meet outside of wrestling.

Ahmed had no problem with the Ultimate Warrior and said that he was always treated well by him.

Now, he is asked about a few guys. He never conversed with Bret much at all but liked him. He said that Vince Russo is one of the best “angle makers” in the world. In WCW, he never had a problem with Bischoff but when he was there, the boys were in control and he had very little power.

Ahmed closes by saying believe what you want to and lists off rumors about him being killed and on dialysis. The interviewer then tells Ahmed that he has been nothing but pleasant to deal with during the interview and for the autograph session as Ahmed talks about treating others how they treat him and if you live up to your end of the bargain, so will he.

Final Thoughts: A tremendous interview. Even if you do not believe everything he said, Ahmed was willing to talk about anything and the interview had everything covered, from his horrific upbringing to his glory days in the WWF.

The first part of the interview was about his time in the WWF. He seemingly got along with everyone except for Steve Austin, who he hates with a passion. Ahmed seemed to have a genuine friendship with Owen and brightened up whenever he talked about him, even when recalling all of the pranks Owen played on him.

About his upbringing, he was graphic in telling about the abuse he received from his sociopathic and abusive father. From beating him senseless to rewarding him for violent behavior, it is a miracle that Ahmed was able to make a career for himself and not wind up in prison.

From that upbringing though, you can easily tell by the interview that he has a short-temper. When he found out what Animal said about him, he was really bothered and almost seething for a minute. Other than that, he was calm for the duration of the shoot. He also stressed how loyalty was the most important thing and when that is broken, Ahmed will not deal with you again.

If you were a fan of his or the WWF during his run, I absolutely recommend this shoot. Hell, if you are a fan of shoot interviews in general, pick this up right away. I provided the link from the Highspots, which you can download the shoot for $7.99.


Highspots Shoot Interview Series Presents: AJ Styles- Leaving an Impact

This was filmed on January 2, 2014 inside of the home of AJ Styles in Gainesville, GA.

The interview runs at two hours and twelve minutes long.

The interview starts with the interviewer putting over AJ’s “man-cave” as AJ briefly discusses his love for video games. After that, they briefly mention AJ’s last shoot interview from 2006, in which AJ states that he doesn’t remember a single thing that happened then. It was a really bad interview and apparently rushed as they filmed it before a match that he had.

AJ is asked about being a free agent for the first time in eleven years. He said that he always loved the independents and would like to give advice and help the younger guys. He does feel glad that he started in the independents and got to incorporate different styles. He compares that to UFC and how everyone uses different fighting styles.

AJ said that he was hardly able to keep up with the independents while in TNA. He said that he would want a guy who had potential to make money work with him in TNA when he was still with the company but as the years went by, it was harder to keep up and he was told by the company that they didnt have the money so he lost touch with the scene.

He is now asked about TNA putting a high price tag on their talent when independents called looking for them. AJ said they did that deliberately but understands where they were coming from as if they got hurt, they wanted it to be in their ring instead of someone else’s.

When asked if the house show idea’s were too big for TNA, AJ agreed that it was and thought that they did a bad job of promotion, noting that they would come into some towns and there would not be any signs or any other advertising at all. He even said he would ask people at the hotels they would stay at if they heard about the show being in town and they said no.

AJ gets asked if he felt that TNA was a competitor to the WWE, he said yes. He believes that both companies paid attention to each other’s shows, noting that the WWE had taken stuff that they had done prior and put in on television. He talks about speaking with John Gaburik when he came into TNA, from the WWE, and he said that they would take stuff if they thought it was a good idea, knowing that there was no copyright on what they did. AJ also said that he wanted the WWE to do well because that meant TNA would do better in return.

Now, AJ is asked if there is any feeling in the locker room of TNA that they would not have a fair chance in the WWE because they came from them, AJ thinks that Vince McMahon likes to make money and if believes he can do that with someone from TNA, he would do try to make that happen.

He is asked point blank if he has had any contact with the WWE since leaving TNA and he says no. Before that, AJ said that he is scene as a TNA guy instead of an independent guy and that he still has the “TNA stink” on him. When asked if he was surprised the WWE hasn’t contacted him yet, AJ said no and that he has learned from being in the business that you do not get excited about the prospects of something that might happen. He then talks about the rumors about him getting a contract from the “dirt sheets” and how he can’t believe the stuff he reads about himself or what others send him through Twitter.

AJ doesnt believe that TNA has closed the door on him and he hasn’t closed the door on them and if there was an opportunity to make something happen, he think it can happen.

When asked if there was any point during his TNA run that he wanted to leave and go somewhere else, AJ said that he was 100% behind the company and wanted to give it all he head and to trust the people in control to do the right thing, which he said is a hard thing to do. AJ said he is a team player.

He is asked about watching any of the guys he wrestled on the independents become stars in the WWE. He said that the first time he wrestled Tyler Black (Seth Rollins) he knew he had whatever “it” was and that Claudio (Antonio Cesaro) would make it and AJ said he was surprised that it took him so long to get to that point as he is a great wrestler and extremely strong. He mentions how it is also cool to see Daniel Bryan do his thing too.

AJ said that his kids watch wrestling but do not usually watch the WWE. However, he bought his son the WWE video game and mentions how if TNA made another video game, he would buy him that too. This leads to a discussion about wresting video games and how AJ said that the best ones come from Nintendo 64 and are better known as “No Mercy” and “WCW/NWO Revenge” but he knows it as “Virtual Pro Wrestling 2.” AJ said it is without a doubt the best wrestling game ever made. He said it is an All-Japan Pro Wrestling game but it has New Japan guys and shoot fighters too. He said the newer ones are doing a better job but the controls for the one on Nintendo 64 are the best because they are easy to play but hard to master. He even pitched the idea to TNA that they should have a downloadable feature that put the heads of the TNA characters onto the guys from that game and you can keep the old engine.

We go back to wrestling talk as AJ is asked about his contract negotiations. He thought that they would eventually reach a deal, especially with the character and storyline going the way it did. His extension was for three months and expired on December 15th. AJ is asked about rumors of TN wanting to cut his salary in half. AJ said that there were a few inclusions in the contract that were hard to swallow. He said it was only a two-year deal and felt it was like a slap in the face. AJ felt hurt by the offer, stating that he had given them everything and when he feels all of his pain as he gets older, most of that happened inside of TNA rings.

AJ is now asked to compare the differences between WWE, TNA, and the independents if you had the same base salary. AJ said the money is in the WWE, with more shows and merchandise, if you are able to make a name for yourself. In TNA, you have a little bit of royalties and can make some extra at house shows. On the independents, you can get paid under the table at times plus you can sell your merchandise after the shows and only claim that you made $60,000 on your taxes when in reality, you made more. Also, promoters usually pay for rooms for the bigger names, unlike the WWE or TNA does with most of their talent.

When asked if he regrets spending 11 years in TNA, AJ said no and that he ended up making a lot more money than he ever thought he would, has a nice home, wife, and three kids so he has nothing at all to regret.

He is asked if he would accept a WWE offer today, knowing that he would have to go down to the Performance Center and if he would feel insulted. AJ said he would have no problem spending time down there and getting used to the ring but would not like to move his whole family to Florida. He would love the opportunity to wrestle in the WWE but would not be broken if it didn’t happen. He said that his main goal in wrestling is to make money, regardless where he is wrestling.

AJ is asked about his relationship with Dixie and if it is now strained due to the contract negotiations. AJ believes that she didnt have the final say in his contract and that the company did not want to give out big deals due to all of the money poured into veterans who did not deliver. He said that they are still on good terms.

When asked if he has paid attention to Ring of Honor lately, AJ said that he is excited about wrestling there and would love to open the doors for other great wrestlers but fears that he might come across as the old guy. He does not want to open up the doors for those who want to be lazy and said he wants guys who take pride in what they do to join him.

AJ then talks about while he was in TNA, he told Samoa Joe shortly after he came in and got popular that after a few years, when the older guys left the company, they would be the stars of the promotion, no matter how many bad gimmicks they got saddled. AJ said that he was wrong about that.

He now follows up the above comment by talking about how TNA brought in WWE guys and other older stars. He said that Christian was the first big name to go to TNA from the WWE and he made a huge impact and was just an awesome guy. Then, Kurt Angle came in right as Joe was getting hot and they made them wrestle each other, which AJ thought was a terrible and that they should have built up to a big match instead of jumping in right away. The interviewer mentions how AJ lost the title to Jeff Jarrett right when they got the Fox Sports Deal as AJ said that TNA wanted the big name for TV, which is fine, but that during all of that, they forgot to build a company and just put out guys that were more recognizable, which did not work and did not make them different from the WWE.

AJ is asked about the veterans that tried and the ones that phoned it in and were only there for the paycheck. AJ puts over Christian strong as a person and a wrestler. He said that he is funny and a great all-around guy. The interviewer then brings up how AJ more or less played an idiot comedy character at that time as AJ said he just thought up stuff that made him laugh at that time and loved the stuff he did with Tomko. At first, AJ said that not a lot of people liked Kurt Angle. He apparently kept on referring to Chris Sabin as “pig pen.” AJ thinks that Kurt’s attitude changed once Kurt realized the roster had talent and could go in the ring. AJ said that he thought about confronting Kurt about his ridiculous statements but that Kurt ultimately gained respect for the guys and AJ now likes him a lot, saying that they have a friendship. He also said some of the best matches he has ever had were with Kurt.

The interviewer goes back to Tomko for a minute and asks him if he was surprised about the legal and drug issues he currently has. AJ said that he tore his pec while in Japan and could not afford to take time off and ended up really hurting badly and he lost touch with him. After that he tried a comeback with TNA but he didn’t last long. Basically, he didnt know or want to answer the question.

He is asked about the “Elevation X” match and said that he volunteered to take the bump over Rhino because he was afraid that if Rhino took the bump, he would really hurt himself bad. AJ said that they were on boards that were about two feet high and they practiced by walking on the boards at a lower level before the match. He thinks they made the best out of the stipulations.

AJ is asked about the Lethal Lockdown matches and if he was worried that the cages would hold all of the table and ladders, along with their weight. He said the first time, he was with James Storm and they almost fell through. AJ said he didnt like doing that two years in a row, as the fans have already seen it before. AJ then said he suggested a War Games match that year with two rings and they thought about doing it but it turned out that TNA already sold seats that were right around the ring and they had no room for the second ring.

He calls Christopher Daniels a “ring general” and said that he can it on the fly and recalls some of the matches they had as a team, specifcally against LAX. The interviewer brings up how LAX was a hot act and said that TNA always seemed to have one hot act but that they always ended up pulling the plug from them and as a result, they never got as over as they could have. AJ agrees with him about that and said that they do not leave guys in teams long enough and adds that once they seem like they can draw something, they decide to split them up. He also thought that the Fortune group could have done something big but that TNA decided to split them up just as they were starting to gain traction. AJ said that they had ideas for Fortune including a scene of them all getting off of a plane called “Flair Force One” together with Ric Flair and re-enacting scenes from the film “The Hangover” but that TNA just wanted them to wear suits and ride in limousines. AJ didn’t think that was cool and would rather wear a sports jacket with an “Affliction” t-shirt and have them show up in their own sports cars or motorcycles and that even though they showed up in something different, you knew that they were cool because you could relate to them. He said that they were all for that but TNA never wanted to do that with them.

When asked about Ric Flair, AJ said he was quite the character. At one point, they wanted him to be like Flair and AJ said that they had Flair overshadow him completely during the angle. He is now asked about Flair’s bar tab during the European tour. AJ said he was not there at the time, he was home nursing an injury, but had others tell him what happened. AJ said that Flair was acting like he always does, buying everyone drinks and acting crazy, then ran out of money and started to ask some of the others for cash. After that, then started to flip out on the promoter about not getting more money. AJ said that he doesnt know all of the specifics though.

AJ is now asked if he thought Ric Flair lived up to his end of the bargain. He said that he did exactly what he was told to do, even when he thought the ideas were terrible. AJ then adds that no one had any balls to confront Flair when he acted out of control, especially how he acted in the United Kingdom.

He is then asked if he was surprised that Chris Harris’s career never took off. AJ said when you looked back at America’s Most Wanted when they first started to become popular, you would think that Harris would become a star as he was tall and athletic. He thinks that he just got frustrated at a certain point and never reached is potential.

When asked about working with Adam “Pacman” Jones, AJ said he thought it was funny and made no sense then brings up how no one in TNA even bothered to think if he could actually work at all in the ring. AJ credits Bill Behrens for creating the finish to the match.

When asked if Booker T was in TNA only for the paycheck, he said that he wrestled him a few times and that he asked Booker to call it in the ring and he just did all of his moves and never called anything at all. AJ also said that he didnt want to put some people over then questioned how much he had left to give to TNA. AJ said that Booker got him upset when he apparently told Kazarian that he should have stretched after he tore his tricep. At the same time, AJ said that he still managed to learn from him. He gives an example of Booker showing him how to hit someone with a title belt. After Booker left TNA, AJ approached him and said that despite the fact they did not always get along, he still learned a lot from him and he said Booker was cool about that.

AJ is asked about the promo that Samoa Joe cut on Scott Hall after he no-showed a PPV then asked about the alleged confrontation between Kevin Nash and Joe backstage. AJ said he did not see that take place and thinks that Nash pulled Joe aside somewhere away from the locker room and confronted him. AJ then talks about the promo itself and said that Joe was told what to say but Joe dug a bit deeper and can understand the anger that Nash had, stating that he would be upset to if someone was saying this about his friend. AJ then said that once Nash and Joe realzied that TNA was pitting them agaisnt each other, they stopped being angry with each other.

Now, he is asked about Kevin Nash’s involvement in the X Division. AJ said that you need characters, even in the X Division, but you also need good matches. He never felt insulted by what he did and stressed how you need characters in wrestling.

When asked about the storyline involving Kurt and his then wife Karen, he thought it got really ridiculous at times but he had fun being involved in the story.

AJ thinks that Eric Young is very entertaining and can play many different characters. He then said that more people know him from his show “Off the Hook” than they do for the ten years he spent in TNA. He puts over Eric for being funny and said that TNA has missed the boat on him.

He compares Sting as the Undertaker of TNA. He then puts him over for being a great guy who does his best whenever he wrestles. He said that Sting is incredibly humble and would even let him call the match when they wrestled.

When asked about Mick Foley, he said that he never knew what his role in the company was supposed to be. He didnt know if he was a wrestler or a commissioner. He said before a match with Fortune, Foley came up and told them that he and Flair were going to stay out of their way and let them do their thing. As soon as the match began, Flair and Foley began to fight. He said that ate up a lot of time.

They talk about Matt Morgan and how it seemed like there were so many times that it seemed like they were going to give him the push but for some reason they pulled back. AJ said that he liked wrestling with Nigel McGuinness (He wrestled as Desmond Wolfe in TNA) and was happy that they brought in him but sadly, he had to stop due to medical concerns.

AJ believed that the company was slowly growing before Hogan and Bischoff came into TNA. He said the talent was getting better and they were having good matches. He did say that he looked at them entering the company as a positive but after their debut, they could not sustain the ratings. AJ did state that the live crowds went nuts for Hogan when he came into the company. AJ didn’t understand why TNA did not use Hogan more to advertise their shows and TV in different markets. He also said that Hogan barely mentioned TNA when he made public appearances and said that someone should have told him about to talk about the company. He did state that Hogan was able to listen to their ideas and he appreciated that.

He is now asked if the older guys that TNA were bringing in like Hogan, Bischoff, Flair, and Cornette had the business pass by them at that point. AJ pretty much agrees with that but stated that he saw eye-to-eye with Cornette when it came to the wrestling part and loved having him as an agent. AJ states that while everyone has their own ways of doing things, you have to at least try to do some different and think outside of the wrestling box.

AJ is asked about changing back to the six-sided ring. AJ said that it made them different and he thought they should have kept it but the squared ring was much easier on the body.

The interviewer asks AJ if he felt that RVD gave his best effort in TNA, after telling AJ he did not believe that he tried his best. AJ thought that having RVD come in and beat him for the title was wrong not because he lost but that someone else came from the WWE and immediately beat a homegrown TNA talent. AJ said he wanted to say something but at the end, it was better to be professional. He did state that RVD should have grabbed his left when he pinned him.

He didnt understand why they got rid of Jay Lethal, who was entertaining, young, and a great athlete.

AJ said that he heard a rumor that Paul Heyman was asked to come in but declined as he wanted complete creative control. When asked if he thought that Heyman could have been the savior of TNA, AJ just said that he was able to create characters in ECW and make that company popular. AJ then put over Tommy Dreamer for having a lot of great ideas and heard that he was similar into Heyman in that regard.

When asked how it is to tape in a studio rather than on the road, AJ said it is harder to tape at the same place with the same people as they are always seeing the same thing. He also talks how it makes it harder to gauge how other crowds in different cities will react to the product.

Now, AJ is asked about the Jeff Hardy vs. Sting match at the 2011 Victory Road PPV. AJ heard that Bischoff saw Hardy backstage twenty minutes before his match then when he headed to the ring, he saw Hardy was in no condition to perform and told Sting to take it home. AJ said that now, Hardy is clean and sober and luckily nothing dangerous happened.

AJ is asked if he was TNA management and had to make a decision about his contract and who would he cut to retain his deal. AJ said that you cannot spend more than what you take in and joked that you probably shouldn’t rent a castle when you stay in the United Kingdom. He then said you have to find a way to get around and thinks they were not trying hard enough to retain him. The interviewer then tells AJ about what Austin Idol told him. He said that when they are not willing to pay his price, he will disappear because he will be worth more when he comes back. AJ said that time apart might help that and if they realize if he is someone that they need, it might be too late and he could be somewhere else. AJ also said that he is taking a risk too because he might not get paid as much but he has to weigh his options himself and grab the opportunities in front of him.

AJ is asked about the storyline with Claire Lynch. AJ said that this might sound crazy but it could have turned out to be a great story but the problem was that Claire was originally supposed to be a niece. However, they did not want to make the company look bad so they did not want Claire to be a Carter in storyline. Also, AJ said Claire had to be hot to make it work, to make it believable but that was not the case. He then said the moment Claire came out, the story was ruined.

He is then asked how Vince Russo should be remembered in TNA. AJ said he tried his best but at the end, he succumbed to pressure and he got burned out. At then time, he didnt notice because he was too frustrated himself with the storylines.

When asked about Jeff Jarrett leaving TNA, AJ asks what does that say about the company when he is leaving? AJ then talks about Jarrett having a lot of inside knowledge in the company and when he left, he knew something bad was going on in the company.

AJ said that you cannot let a company bully you into signing a bad contract. He knew for sure on December 28th that he was not going to re-sign. He talks briefly about his last TNA appearance and said that now he understood why Bret Hart was pissed at the WWE and did not want to drop the title, because they were taking away his contract. He said he didnt have a contract and could have laid down and told Magnus to pin him but chose to do it professionally and do it in a way that satisfied him.

He is asked about his book and AJ said it involves his personal life and wrestling, along with his future.

When asked what he will be doing a year from today, he has no idea career wise. He would like to say he would be with one of the bigger companies but said he could go out and get hurt the next day. Regardless, he will give 100% when you see him in the ring.

Final Thoughts: Not the most entertaining shoot but it was decent enough. It was really slow-paced so that might turn people off. Also, the questions were not asked in chronological order so they jumped around a lot. This was a follow-up to his shoot in 2006 so that is why they asked questions from then until present day.

As for AJ, he seemed like a nice enough guy. He did not have an agenda and was not looking to bury anyone. It was clear that he was frustrated with how TNA was run and valued himself as being with the company from day one for a reason as to why he was upset with an offer that he felt was low. The guy did bust his ass for this company and along with a few others were the reason it stayed alive it’s first year. I came away from this interview liking AJ as a person. I also saw that he was sad to be gone from TNA and did not trash them too much, leaving a door open for a return. Still, I think he was confident that he made the right decision to leave.

The interviewer, I do not know his name, was not the greatest. He really tried to get AJ to trash Flair, but he wouldn’t bite. Flair screwed over Highspots so you can probably figure out why he asked those questions.

If you are a fan of AJ or TNA, I would recommend this shoot. If you are not, then I wouldn’t bother watching. Its not an in-depth look at his career and if you want that, RF Video is releasing a 4 hour long shoot with him in the next few weeks.

Highspots Presents: Brian Kendrick and Paul London’s Excellent Adventures, Disc Two

This is the second and final disc of the shoot. It runs for one hour and forty-seven minutes.

If you have not read the recap for Disc One yet, click on the link below.


They are asked memories of their four-way ladder match at the Armageddon PPV against MNM, Hardy Boyz, and Regal & Taylor. Kendrick said he was supposed to perform the Sliced Bread off the ladder but was petrified and did not perform the move. London said that they were not informed that it was going to be a four-way match until a few days before the PPV. They both said they had no idea Mercury got his face sliced open as during the match, they were busy and just noticed that someone was missing. London talks about how most ladder matches are structured as a spotty match but when it involves grabbing a title, it becomes a lot more realistic instead of performing crazy spots to get a pop from the crowd.

When asked why there wasn’t a rematch when it was announced, Kendrick said that it is all on a whim and everything changes daily as London said he heard that Vince saw him all over the show and nixed that. London said that they would try to talk to the writers and ask where the angles are going and they would blow them off. Once, they asked Dave Lagana about where they were going, referencing them as the champions, as Lagana told them he was going to Taco Bell. London calls Lagana a “faggot” then hints that he got fired for sexually harassing Mordecai, which seemed to be in a joking manner but who knows for sure.

Kendrick is asked about making it to the top of the WWE. He said he is a stubborn person and you have to put up with a lot of bullshit to get to the top but if you stick around long enough, you can make it provided that you have talent. London jokes that in the WWE, the jizz rises to the top and if you can nut on the bosses face, you can cement yourself on the “bearskin rug” roster.

They are asked about working with MNM. Kendrick recalls while in developmental in Memphis he did a spot with Bobby Eaton when he gave him a hurricarana off of the apron to the floor and someone apparently told the office about the spot and Eaton got fired and guys were blaming Kendrick for getting him fired, especially Mercury. Anyway, Kendrick talks about how Mercury is good as schmoozing to people that will get him ahead and tells a story of an office working telling them that they overheard Mercury telling Deuce & Domino not to bump for them. Kendrick then approached Mercury at a bar and asked him about what he heard and Mercury said that he didnt remember because he was on a lot of pills at the time and told Kendrick that he will just say that he did say it, which had Kendrick question as to why you would admit to something that you do not remember doing. Kendrick said he likes Nitro but he has no spine. London talks about how Mercury was nice to him in RoH but different when he got to the WWE as they were the hot team then he was banging Mickie James so he thought that he was the man then London bringing up her pictures and how everyone has seen them which leads to Kendrick interrupting to tell a story of how Batista put up those pictures all over the locker room once and how it was the funniest thing. Anyway, they talk about Mercury blaming drugs for his behavior rather than taking responsibility for his actions.

Now, Kendrick talks about the Hardy Boyz. He likes them both and says that he originally had a bad feeling about Matt but after he was invited to his house, he said he was nothing but gratious and has drank and partied with them many times.

London talks about his history with the Hardy Boyz. Growing up, he really loved what they did in the ring and gives them credit for creating a following. Getting into the WWE, he had a series of dark matches and his last one was with Matt, who gave him a lot of offense, even hitting him with his finisher twice. He talks about how while sitting at a casino, he got “mauled” by Ashley Massaro and ended up getting into a relationship. He barely even knew about her relationship with Matt but knew they were over. At that point, London said his confidence was shot at the time due to his standing in the company and Ashley won the Diva’s contest and he was starting to get a little bit of attention. As it went along, London realized that there was a lot of feelings between Ashley and Matt and London said it led to a stupid love triangle. He goes on about how he believes that if people are no longer in a relationship, then they should be able to date whoever they want and then talks about how he wasnt going to be like Johnny Nitro and let Batsita bang his girlfriend without saying something to him. London said Ashley would tell him all of these horrible things he did to her and London said he didnt want to judge Matt based off of that and thinks that Ashley might have possibly lied to him about her standing with Matt and he said that she was leading him around. London said that he went to both of them and said he wanted them out of his life. From that, London said he was thinking of all he heard about Matt and couldnt believe that no one could see right through him.

He then talks about Jeff Hardy and how they had an awesome ladder match in Mexico City. Thy day before, he got a black eye after Holly hit him during a match but London said he loves Bob and didnt care and Bob liked him because he didnt bitch about it leading London to say “this isn’t ballet.” The match came about after Kendrick hurt his foot. Anyway, Kendrick interrupts and said how awesome the match was with tons of nearfalls and crazy stuff and when they got backstage, Dean Malenko told them that it could have been more sudden, leading Kendrick to ask him what was wrong with the match and it leads to Kendrick talks about how nothing was wrong with the match and some people just want to critique others to justify their job. They both talk about how he just has “it” and is insanely over. London closes by stating the Hardy Boyz are a legendary tag team.

In regards to Haas & Benjamin, they both liked them and would like to see them in TNA, where Kendrick was at the time of this shoot. London liked them but said that they took their collegiate accolades a little too seriously at times but had fun working with both of them. They both talk about how Haas is very intesne and how he could rip your arm off during an arm drag.

They now talk about Cade & Murdoch. Kendrick describes a “slapping” incident with Murdoch during a match. They said that Murdoch did a lot of “fat guy” chops, which is when you slap guys on the back and chest but not delivered in the traditional manner. Anyway, Murdoch did that to Kendrick without warning and he was livid and told him he was going to slap in in the face after the match and he did it on TV again then Kendrick started to slap them in the face. He likes them both though and had them over his house. London said that they lobbied to work with them and Kendrick said that Murdoch told them thanks for keeping the belts warm while in South Africa. They close by stating they were both safe in the ring and fun to work with.

Now, they discuss the time they got pedigreed by HHH on RAW. They ran in to save HHH from Cade & Murdoch and when they cleared the ring, HHH went to shake their hands but instead kicked them and they both got the pedigree. Before that happened, HHH approached then backstage and said it is from the office and not himself, stating it was from Kevin Dunn. Anyway, they both asked if they were going to get any sort of chance for revenge and they got blown off, with both guys saying they ended up looking like pussies. London then takes the opportunity to make HHH jokes about him sucking the cocks of the McMahons.

When discussing the Undertaker, London said you saw the good Undertaker and then he would do stuff that you would shake your head at, like being dragged out of your room at 3am in Australia to look at the veterans hold “Wrestlers Court” to watch Undertaker to act like Judge Judy. Kendrick said that they worked with MNM all tour and did great then had to go down and watch their valet, Melina, get put on trial for not shaking hands in the women’s locker room. They were all forced to bet as to how long it takes her to cry and London ended up winning. Kendrick said that guys would act differently around Taker and those who you thought were your friends would tell him gossip and rat out guys in an attempt to get ahead. Thy both said that Taker seemed to relish that position.

London talks more about Taker, stating he is not a fan of those who wear their own merchandise and drive around town with “Dead Man” on their license plate.

They both love Randy Orton, with London saying that he could be a crossover star into entertainment. He calls him a flawless performer and that the agents love him too. They also had a lot of good times with him too. They then tell a story of how they were in South Africa, they nearly pissed on the band Air Supply from the balcony. London said that despite the fact the office hated him, he always got great accomodations when they traveled to foreign countries and on this occasion, got an awesome suite. He thinks it was due to his name being a bit similar to Paul Levesque. Anyway, they were in the suite with Cade, Murdoch, Orton, and Robbie McAllister, who they both thought was “cool as shit.” They look out the window and saw John Cena with a lot of other top guys sitting at the pool area. He said they were both “mentally elevated” at the time and Kendrick thought it would be funny to piss on Cena, because he might think it was funny and he said he bought his rap album at the time and thought it was awful. They both love Cena by the way. When Kendrick went to piss, the wind carried it over and they were told it hit the band but Kendrick ended up pissing all over hotel management.

Both guys also love Batista, saying he is super-jacked and cool. Kendrick says his motorcycle was great as London talks about how he would throw parties when they wrestled in Washington D.C. and pick up everyone’s tab as Kendrick said he always did that. Kendrick said that Cena and Orton picked up tabs too and realized that they made a lot more money than the undercard and appreciated them. London mentions how Benoit would pick up tabs for them as both guys said they liked him.

London tells another Benoit story. He was with Benoit and Jamie Noble in Buffalo and Chris was hungry so they pulled over at a Hooters. It was 11:30pm and they were getting ready to close and as they were shutting the door, Benoit stuck his foot in and asked if they were open. Anyway, they sat down and a table near them were being loud and disrespectful to the waitress so Benoit told London that he should go over and say something to them. He went over and told him to keep it down and how they were irritating his friend. The guys told London to bring his friend over to them but after a minute they stopped. They leave and approach them to say they were sorry and they recognize Benoit and when one of the guys went to put his hand on his shoulder, Benoit told him to get his fucking hand off of him. After the waitress thanked London and took their order, Benoit told him that the “seeds were planted” and that he could now go fuck her.

London tells another story of how Benoit told him that he and Kendrick were the future of the business and London said that no matter how shitty they were treated by the office, it was worth it to have respect from guys like Benoit, who they admired.

Neither guy was surprised that Benoit snapped and murdered himself and his family. Kendrick said the day they were told, they had an idea something happened and when the news was broke, Matt Stryker apparently cried and wailed loudly. London said that a few weeks before the murders, Benoit called London, who was in a funk at the time when he came back from injury and was having bad marches. He said that he wanted to check on him. Kendrick said that Benoit loved the bible and how all of the crazies love the bible.

London is asked about memories of teaming with Billy Kidman. He said that he was a fan of his when he wrestled in WCW. He felt that Kidman wasnt really into the team and would bury him when they were in the locker room but not when they were alone. London said that he got fed up when Kidman when they feuded with the Dudley Boyz and he never stood up for him. He said that Bubba had an issue with him and was trying to test him and would whip him with a belt buckle without telling him before hand, even when the cameras were not rolling, prompting Kendrick to say that is low. London called Bubba a pussy and a baby then says that he stiffed him in a house show in Canada and he rolled outside and stayed their the rest of the match and backstage, he asked Bubba what happened and that led to Kidman actually sticking up for him when he told Bubba that he probably meant to stiff him in the ring .London then tells a story when he they were supposed to get the belts from the Dudley’s, Fit Finlay approached them backstage and told him how they saw the Dudley’s camping outside of Vince’s office and Fit asked them if they were gonig to change the finish of the match and they said no before shrugging their shoulders and walking away.  They tell a story of how London hit a shooting star during a house show in MSG with Kidman getting upset over him stealing his shooting star press, despite the fact that he stopped using the move at the time, in the gorilla position.

London tells another story of how Bubba was a dick. Over in Italy, London said he was with Rene Dupree and they took a walk as they were both down about their standing in the company and when they came back to the locker room, Bubba was trying to bury him and he stood up for himself, which had the Undertaker come up to him and tell him how he handled himself well in the locker room.

Kendrick talks about his time in TNA at the moment. He said he is there for a week and if that isnt enough, he can go to other independents too. Kendrick said that he wants to take the X Division away from “car crash” style of matches. When he arrived, he was placed in a multi-man match and the agent told them to have a “car crash, video game-style” match. Kendrick said he isnt a video game wrestler but was able to wrestle the style he wanted and he is able to put his word in a little, more so than in the WWE.

Both guys talk about how they never did steroids and that was the one thing Kendrick’s mother promised him when he started in wrestling. London talks about how guys gooverboard on steroids and it makes them useless in the ring. He said that Carlito was all gassed up one time and tore his pec taking a simple move because he was so jacked up.

They are now asked about Vince McMahon. Kendrick said he had limited interactions with him but would give him the time when he had to meet with him. London says that Vince is close-minded and stuck in time and only remembers one time in which he felt like he didnt hate him and that was while waiting in Gorilla, Vince told him he liekd his beard and asked why his partner did not have one. London then talks about how it is disgusting to watch people lay down and give away all of their power to him. Kendrick talks about how Vince created what he loved but does not want to spend another day in the WWE, no matter how much the money. He says he knew it was his fault for being a pain in the ass and smoking weed and one day he got fired. He does not regret it but he was mad and it was tough to explain to his wife and would rather work at Home Depot.

They are asked what led to the team splitting up. They had been going nowhere and knew they were fucked and not going to move up the card, despite the fact that they were perfect for each other. They talked about trying to be called “The Hooligans” but the office said no because no one would know who they were when they split up.

London talks about how the WWE do not always know what their fans want and how they are a bastard child of entertainment, no matter how hard he tries to get into Hollywood. He then said that Vince is in the business to create stars.

Both guys talk about Rene Dupree. They both say he is hilarious. London tells a story of how Rene was lactacting once while he was on the juice. He then tells another story of how he filled his hotel bathtub with vomit after the video game challenge at WrestleMania weekend in Chicago when he had a ton of sweet potato fries at the buffet afterwards.

They talk about guys they were friends with. London said he was friends with Carlito in OVW but that he changed a lot when he got called up to the main roster, thinking that he was a lot bigger star than he really was. Knedrick calls Santino the funniest guy on the planet that he knows.

Kendrick is now asked about how his “The Brian Kendrick” character got created. He said that he pitched it to the boss and it came time for him to debut. He had new gear that his wife made and a promo. However, Michael Hayes wanted him to use a promo that he created and wear his old gear. Kendrick ended up changing into his new outfit and HHH liked it so he told that to Hayes who wanted Kendrick to get the OK from Vince. He didnt care but Hayes didnt like his promo so Hayes rearranged it and when he gave that promo to Vince, he hated it and asked him if he wrote it and Kendrick said no and gave him the promo he created and Vince loved it and told him that he should add “The” to his name. Ezekiel Jackson was added when Kendrick was working a match against Dolph Ziggler, who he said is extremely talented. Ziggler had Rob Terry as his valet at the time and during the match, Terry kept missing his cues as Kendrick was livid. They kept changing the finishes and Kendrick went backstage and nearly knocked over Steamboat by accident and started to flip out, stating that if he can make the guys he had been facing look good that he could do the same for HHH. Hayes went over to talk with him as he was threatening to quit as he went off on a tangent about putting over shitty guys like the Gymini and Deuce as Johnny Ace approached him and said they would talk to Vince. As Kendrick is waiting in front of his office, Ace sees him then walks the other way and disappears as he is by himself with Vince. He tells Vince that he is ready to quit and if he can make shitty wrestlers look good, imagine how he could make the top guys look. Shortly after that, Ace told him that he was fired and could help him get into Japan, which he said he didnt need.

They talk about Mark Henry for a second and Kendrick said that Henry threw his bachelor party for him. London said that Henry would look at porn and take out the centerfold in the locker rooms and even on airplanes.

Both guys are asked about Bryan Danielson signing with the WWE and how he will fare. Kendrick tells a story of how he cut a promo while still in the WWE and was cutting a promo about finding the perfect tag team partner but his microphone got cut off and he was livid. Originally, Kendrick pitched the idea to the WWE that Danielson be his partner but Brian Gewirtz and Johnny Ace couldnt come to an understanding and it never happened. They both say he is awesome as London calls him a positive person and that he should go to the WWE and experience it for himself instead of hearing people who were unhappy when they left.

London is asked about being in PWG. He said that everyone was nice to him and he felt appreciated. He is asked about the hybrid dolphins and said that he spend the day on the beach eating pizza an seeing the mammals and dolphins in the water then had a shitty match and was asked to come back and cut a promo, as he was high as a kite. He then came up with the idea then.

The interview closes with Kendrick talking about 9/11 conspiracy theories an states that it was the result of holograms, with London looking at him like he was an idiot.

Final Thoughts: A highly entertaining disc. Lots of funny stories sprinkled in with some insight. I will say that Kendrick comes off as being a lot more responsible for his actions than London, who does seemingly go into blame mode at times. Then again, it was known that London was not exactly in a mentally stable place during this time. It also didnt help him that he was extremely fucked up during this interview.

I will say that the interviewer was completely useless. He did not make any attempts to reign them in when they went off track. He also never challenged London on why he cracked up during the segment when Vince McMahon walked past the entire locker room en route to his limo. London himself had been rumored to have a lot of issues during his time that had been reported such as going out and doing promos that were not approved by the office and asking for time off.

I recommend this shoot though. Lots of funny stories were told and it gave a good glimpse into the atmosphere and locker room of the WWE during its run. This shoot also spawned several other shoot-style pieces by Paul London as well as a sequel. In the sequel, London is only drinking coffee and both guys come off as somewhat apologetic from this video.

Highspots Presents: Brian Kendrick & Paul London’s Excellent Adventure, Disc One

This is a two-disc set that was released in 2010. This post only contains disc one as I will post the second disc tomorrow. Disc One runs for one hour and thirty minutes

The interview starts with both men passing around a joint, already stoned. They are also drinking.

The first question is about how they met. Kendrick said that they met in California while trying to make their way through the independent scene. London talks about growing up in Texas but believed that in wrestling, you have to be away from your element and move away. He wound up in UPW. He then talks about liking to surround himself with quality human beings who inspire to be something instead of lazy people. London is high as a kite right off the bat but coherent.
Kendrick talks about signing up with Shawn Michael’s Wrestling Academy and how it was from 9-12, three days a week. He talks about Rudy Boy Gonzalez, who would be there Monday through Saturday and Kendrick would show up an hour early and leave three hours late.
Kendrick then said that he went up Johnny Ace after watching London tear it up in his dark matches against Saturn and Matt Hardy and wanted him to be his tag team partner.
London talks about being trained by Ivan Putski but went to Shawn’s to learn more about psychology. Kendrick said they never knew each other while in Texas at Shawn’s academy.
Kendrick got his first big break after 9/11 when a wrestler named Mikey Henderson turned down a chance to go to Japan and wrestle for Zero-One out of fear over the terrorist attacks so Kendrick said he would go over. This was on less than two days notice too. He had to wrestle three matches in 40 hours and would do everything from drink protein mixed with water to jerking off in order to stay awake.
London talks about people making excuses for why their career never took off and saying that people in the Indy scene in Texas would never want to travel and stayed there as he didn’t care if he had to drive all over the country for no money as this is what he wanted to do and you have to go get it if you want to make it big. You also had to not take no for an answer and never want to settle. London babbles on for a bit here but his main point makes sense.
They talk about getting into Ring of Honor. Rudy Boy rented a van and they drove from San Antonio to Philadelphia in a van to take a chance on a new promotion. London said they were losing money at the time and he was actually at college full-time at that point but was skipping classes in order to wrestle.
They then have the first of several “Stoner Moments” when they talk about bullshit stuff. My guess is that these segments came about because they talked forever, mostly due to being fucked up, and when they got off topic, they would throw these in between. I am not going to bother recapping these.
Back to Ring of Honor, London said that it helped put himself on the map but that Kendrick was already known so it just enhanced him. Kendrick said he owes a lot to Gabe Sapolsky. London said that originally, he went up there as a standby but the week before the show he got put in a match. He talks about his first match was three minutes long but he was amped and he felt horrible because his friend, Chris Marvel, snapped his ankle after catching him after an Asai Moonsault. London said that the locker room was really supportive after he was feeling awful. This does lead them to talk about locker rooms being referred to as family, which they say is bullshit, but they still loved everything about RoH.
Kendrick talks about himself as a wrestler, saying that he can make shitty guys look good and tell some sort of a story in the ring but he was never going to be a guy that a company looked at as the star. He then tells a story while in the WWE when they were six months into their Tag Title reign, an agent approached them stating that Vince wanted them to get rid of their masks because he didn’t understand why they were wearing them and just found out they had them six months into their reign. Kendrick said that his wife made them and he felt horrible as he had to get rid of them. London said that John Laurinaits told him in the parking lot that they had to get rid of them.
London talks about his various tryouts with the WWE before he got signed. He said that they tested you a lot and during one of his empty arena tryouts, he could hear the WWE wrestlers laughing at them while critiquing their stuff. London said that TNA offered him a one-year deal at the time but he turned it down as he was still going to school and wasn’t sure he wanted to be there but Kendrick put in a good word for him and he was signed.
When asked about the most jarring differences between the Independents and the WWE, Kendrick talks about the shorter matches in the WWE than in the independents and how you can be under contract and not have anything to do when you show up for TV tapings. When that happens for a while, you lose your hunger and start to think, what is the point of being here. He brings up how Paul told him he sounded like a different person after leaving the WWE. Kendrick says that the WWE is not an evil company but that it just wasn’t right for him as they wanted different things and the independents give him more self-satisfaction as he can do more. London then talks about how when you sign a contract, you give your power away to the company. They talk about when you get to the WWE, there is a list of 10-15 guys and the shows revolve around them only. He then talks about at the beginning of his run, he had a series of matches with Jimmy Yang that were well received by everyone but when they made it to TV, they were all edited heavily. London then reiterates the fact that the WWE is not for everyone and then jokes about how unless Vince pays him a gazillion dollars he is not returning. London then said that Vince’s balls would wind up in HHH’s mouth, like they always do. This is the first of many instances throughout the shoot in which you realize that Paul London will never, ever work with the WWE again.

They both now talk about the list they mentioned in the above paragraph about the company revolving around 10-15 guys. They, along with Gene Snitsky (who they both liked), were taking a tour of the corporate office in Connecticut as part of the WWE’s effort to show the wrestlers that they are working for them. Anyway, they are almost done with the tour of the building and they go into a room with Shane McMahon, who gives Snitsky a hug and offers him a cigar. He then blows off London and Kendrick, with Kendrick noting how they were treated like douchebags. After looking around the offices, they see all sorts of photos of different wrestlers and characters but did not notice any tag teams. Kendrick asks Shane what do you have to do as a tag team to get on the walls of the office and he told them that he has not cared about a tag team since the Legion of Doom. Kendrick then says he found out that the WWE is just a TV show and not a wrestling company.

After talking about how they were like the recurring characters of a TV show and learning that the actor who played “Boner” was just found dead, the interviewer then asks them about Chris Benoit. Kendrick said that he always got the vibe from him that he was crazy as London said they referred to him as being “tripolar,” but they both liked him while they were in the company. Kendrick said that Benoit was very complementary of his work and London adds that when guys would ask Benoit on how to perform a move or hold, he would tell them to go ask Kendrick. They then talk about how Benoit and Bob Holly didnt think they were taking their jobs seriously because they were not always in the gym. Kendrick even recalls being in the shower after a show one night in Nashville when Benoit opened the curtain to ask him if he worked out that day. London said that Benoit and Holly took them under their wing early on, helping them out. After a month, Kendrick left, stating that they were lunatics and the whole thing was crazy. London said that by 9am, they would have worked out for two hours, eaten a huge breakfast, then do a ton of pushups with Holly and Benoit.

Now, they tell a story about Benoit at a Bob Evans. London and Kendrick were sitting on one side of the table and at the other side were Jamie Noble (who London refers to as “Mini Benoit”), Bob Holly, and Chris Benoit. Benoit orders an insane breakfast, demanding his steak be steamed, with Bob Holly asking for twice as much food. London said he ordered egg whites and and a small steak to not piss them off but Benoit made him get the big steak. When Kendrick ordered, he asked for pancakes and waffles with all sorts of syrup and as the waitress was taking the order, Benoit reached his hand across the table and pushed down the waitresses pad and made Kendrick order what he had and watched him as he ate everything on his plate. London said he valued these experiences though and unerstood some of what they were trying to teach them.

Kendrick talks about his time under a WWE Developmental deal in the Memphis territory. One day, Memphis was shut down and they were originally told that they were either going to OVW or HWA. Joey Abs was the first guy in and he was told that he was being fired, instead of getting reassigned. Shooter Schultz and the American Dragon (Daniel Bryan), go in next and they are fired too. Kendrick got fired too by a guy named Dennis Brandt, who had never seen any of them work before. A week later, after watching a higlight reel, Brandt called him up and said that he was pretty good but at that point, Kendrick was going over to Japan.

While Memphis, Kendrick said that William Regal, Tracy Smothers, and Bobby Eaton were all awesome and great trainers but that the Office didnt think that Tracy and Bobby were the office types.

London talks about his experience in OVW. He didnt want to be there and believed he was just there to appease the office. He also didnt think he would be there long and didnt want to be either. He was only there for about three months. He didnt despise his time there at all but just did not want to be in Louisville at all. He had one TV match against Aaron Stevens (Damien Sandow).

He then talks about the developmental system and how they trained everyone like robots and that everyone wrestled the same matches with the same moves. He disliked Rip Rogers, stating that he would just bury everyone and make people give him yogurt protein bars and if you did give that to him, you could sit out on a training session, prompting London to say “What kind of faggots are they training here.” He then tells a story of Bob Holly coming down and ripping on everyone, which he said was hilarious. He tells a story of Jillian Hall trying to do 450’s off the top rope with her gut hanging out when a few hours prior she sat out a training session citing an injury and after Bob called everyone over, he told her to cover up her gut and that he would never lay down for her 450. London said OVW was also his first experience of the ass-kissing side of the business. London did have some positives in OVW. He really liked Danny Davis and Kenny Bolin.

Next, they are asked about Michael Shane. They like him a lot but at first, London said he disliked him, which prompts Kendrick to say that he is an asshole but still likes him. London even added that he tried to get Shane booked but promoters would be hesistant due to stories about him being difficult. He said that when they worked for Ring of Honor, they hit it off and became friends. London is surprised that he didnt make it to the WWE and put him over for being able to throw great punches but again, Kendrick reiterates the fact that he is an asshole as to why he never made it into the WWF.

London tells another story while in Reno with Shane. At first, they got pulled over and almost arrested. After one of the guys they were with got shorted over pay, the came back drunk to the hotel room and London slammed a lamp on the ground. He said it didnt break and he felt like an idiot but as he was reaching to pick it up, Shane walks over and stomps the lamp.

They talk about being in Japan for a minute. The talk about how they are weird over there and very perverted. Kendrick says that he feels great over there because as a “short-dicked Irish man” the Japanese condoms are very small but at the same time the Magnums are American and way too big. London said that the Zero-One Promotion would always put the wrestlers in hotels right near Roppongi, which is a party district. Then after a while, they stopped that as all of the guys would take buses into town and go to all of the bars. London then speaks of the Japanese porn channels in the hotel rooms and all they censor penetration. He then talks about a wrestler named Tom Howard who came up to he and Low Ki to tell them about a “stomper bar,” which is a place you would pay money for them to stomp on your nuts or even gerbils. Kendrick then said he got tied up once there and burned with candle wax while getting whipped, prompting him to say how he loves those “goofy gooks.”

London then talks again about the WWE and how he said no matter how hard he worked, he never felt the reciprocation from the company. He remembers being excited just for the fact that he got to be in the Royal Rumble match, which was his favorite PPV. When it came time for him to be eliminated by Snitsky, he said he wasn’t going to get thrown out in some lazy manner like most people did and wanted his elimination to stand out and he worked out the spot in which he got his head taken off by a clothesline and flipped off of the apron onto the floor where an ambulance took him to the back. He said when he got backstage, they asked him if he was alright and he said yes then they told him his elimination looked “too good” and that it took away from the match and London said he got heat over that spot. He said that he wasn’t going to be like the rest of the “clones” and refuses to settle for mediocrity.

Now they are asked about if they had agents lay everything out for them or if they had freedom. London talks about how he usually had either Ricky Steamboat, Arn Anderson, or Dean Malenko as agents and liked all three guys but that the agents usually worked under the umbrella of the office and did not have much freedom at all themselves. He then talks about other agents that would lie to their face, like Mike Rotunda, that would never consider of even ask the office about their suggestions, even when he said he would speak up to the office itself. London says that it works better as a collaboration but that did not happen much. Kendrick is more diplomatic and said that the agents had to do their jobs but some were better than others at laying out things for you.

Next, they are asked if they had doubts after being told by Shane McMahon that he hasn’t cared about a tag team since the Legion of Doom. Kendrick basically said that they were fucked anyway but thought they were getting over as a team. He also said the crowd responded to him as well but that when he asked backstage, they told him they heard it but it might not be a big as what they did so he could be wrong in that aspect. London said that over time, they got respect from the wrestlers and the agents for their work but at the end, most people in that company are powerless. At the end, both guys state that despite the fact that they were frustrated while in the WWE, others should try it out for themselves instead of listening to people who were bitter about their experiences.

The guys now talked about wrestling against Deuce & Domino and state how Deuce is the worst wrestler they ever wrestled with. They said he was a trash talker and would never even bump for them. For instance, London would fly across the ring and dropkick him in the face and still wouldn’t bumpand just held on to the ropes. Kendrick says that Deuce lives off of his dad’s (Jimmy Snuka) laurels but is dad was really cool. He then mentions how Snuka told him that when he first met him as a student he was going to kill him but at the end he said that they loved him and how they now bum smokes off of each other. London jokes that Deuce would make a better gay porn star than wrestler.

On working with William Regal & Dave Taylor, Kendrick first talks about how he trained under Regal while in Memphis and owes a lot to him. He got along with Taylor a lot too. London didnt have a problem with them but noted for some reason, whenever he went to dropkick Taylor he would always hit him in the ribs. London then joked how Taylor looked like Don Flamingo from “Mike Tyson’s Punchout.” London then says it was a pleasure working with hose guys who are veterans but would still bump for them and take everything they would give without complaining and even suggesting more from them. This leads to more bashing of Deuce who refuses to bump despite not having accomplished anything in wrestling himself.

They say the proudest accomplishment was getting a really good match out of KC James and Idol Stevens (Damien Sandow). They both say that KC James is awesome then talk about how after their PPV match against them, they were clapping when they came backstage from the gorilla position. Six months later, they had split up and James became an enhancement talent on the new ECW as James Curtis but was still under contract. One day backstage, Vince walks by and looks at James and said “look at this guy, sign him” then walks away. London tells another story about KC James when in England. There was a notorious rat over their called “Big Bird” who London said was nasty. Anyway, James told him how she wanted him to romance her and he did not want to do any of that so he told him that he went into the bathroom and took off her clothes only to come out and stick his cock into her face, which horrified her and she left. They then talk about how James was born twenty years too late and would have fit in the 1980’s style of wrestling perfectly with his look and attitude.

Final Thoughts: I found this to be entertaining, although disc two is better and mostly all about everyone they worked with in the WWF. A lot of the interview strays off topic and the interviewer doesn’t even attempt to lead them back to the topic at hand. Most of the rambling is probably due to the fact that they are high and drunk. London comes off a lot more bitter than Kendrick and as the this progresses (you can tell a lot more in the second disc), London gets a lot more fucked up. Still, they show a decent amount of insight and you can tell just how passionate they were about wrestling when they were starting out.