Category Archives: Interviews

Lex Luger purges his demons with “Wrestling with the Devil”

With his bodybuilder physique and natural athletic abilities, Lex Luger was a dominant force in the world of professional wrestling throughout the ’90s. From winning the World Heavyweight Championship and other major titles in World Championship Wrestling as The Total Package to being part of historical feuds with the likes of Yokozuna and Bret Hart in the World Wrestling Federation, it seemed that Luger was unstoppable. But while he was destroying his opponents in the ring, he was heading down more self-destructive paths in his personal life involving indulgences such as drugs, alcohol, women and other recreational excesses that often come with professional success. While much of his rapid downfall has already been publicly documented, we finally get to hear all the dark details directly from Luger in Wrestling with the Devil: The True Story of a World Champion Professional Wrestler – His Reign, Ruin, and Redemption. In this book Luger reveals his recollection of his greatest triumphs and worst tragedies, focusing on his wrestling career, rise to fame and the eventual downward spiral that left him physically and emotionally crippled. Amid a flurry of public appearances and book signings, Luger takes a moment to talk to Wrestling with Pop Culture about his life, career and recovery.

I have to say I was surprisingly impressed with Wrestling with the Devil. You don’t shy away from any touchy subjects, and I’m sure it was difficult to condense so many years of your life into a relatively short book. How did you decide which parts of your life needed be told in this book?

It hits some highlights and lowlights. We just went chronologically and put as much as we could in there. The publisher wanted about 200 pages, so we had to trim it down from there. I’m really pleased with how it turned out. The reason we did the book was Evangelical, so we were very pleased with how they handled the first part of the book and just really laserbeamed it out at the end with the gospel.

Why was it important for you to include more about your faith towards the end of the book rather than start with that?

Well, I didn’t have any faith. I was just retelling my story as it was and bringing you along with me. That was how they wanted to do it, so if somebody who was lost like I was for 47 years of my life – I was basically an atheist who believed in evolution and science – could read the book and come along with the wrestling story and my personal story, then we’d drive them towards the gospel at the end.

It’s also interesting to hear how you came up with the name Lex Luger and the Torture Rack as your finishing move. When you talk about how that came to be your signature maneuver you refer to the guy who suggested it simply as “a technician”. Was there a conscious reason for not providing this wrestler’s name or was it just a detail you were unable to recall?

It was Dusty Rhodes. Well, it was kind of a conglomeration of different guys; they saw I could do it in the ring, they thought I looked great and they thought that should be my finish. It wasn’t one individual, and it wasn’t a unique move that had never been done before.

Yeah, you mention Dusty Rhodes and some of the other people that were involved in coming up with the Torture Rack name, but the person who actually suggested it to the group is simply referred to as “a technician”.

It started out as the back breaker, but I think it was the announcers that actually started calling it the Torture Rack. They embellished upon it, so it kind of evolved. That’s just how things work in wrestling.

The wrestling industry tends to be a fertile breeding ground for dark stories like the ones you tell in this book. Do you think you would have gone down the same paths in life had you stuck with football or gone into some other profession?

I’m sure my life would have been somewhat different. But as far as the paths I was choosing and the seeds I was sowing and being separated from God, which I didn’t realize I was because I was lost, that wouldn’t have been any different whether I had stayed with football or was a Wall Street guy with a lot of money at a young age. The same thing would have happened because I was a lost individual. I’ll never know that because God had me on the path I was on.

You were one of the first big bodybuilder types to get into wrestling, which you also acknowledge in the book. You’re critics have always said you didn’t pay your dues like some of the guys who came before you, but even you point out that the first wrestling show you attended was the first one in which you competed. Given the criticism you’ve received over the years, how did you feel about addressing that topic in the book?

Well, I really don’t feel that I need to address it. Everybody’s welcome to their opinions. I was what I was and I focused on what I was good at, which was looking good in the ring. I always stayed in shape, worked out and kept myself tan, so those were my selling points and my calling card. That’s what I did to the best of my ability and I probably can’t change any of the opinions about my career – it was what it was.

I definitely came in at a great time. They were looking for those types of individuals with the height, the size and the physique. Coming out of football was definitely a great career move at the time because wrestling was phenomenal for 15 years. The things I did outside of the ring, living a double life and not making good decisions, had nothing to do with wrestling, what was done in the ring or the fans. That was phenomenal. I had a great time with that. It’s a fun business.

The wrestling industry has changed a good bit since your career peaked and it has a significantly cleaner image now. What are your thoughts on the way wrestling is presented and perceived now as opposed to when you were still in the business?

It gets better all the time, it’s evolving all the time. It’s a worldwide entertainment industry. It’s global and it’s incredible. When I look at WrestleMania now, it’s incredible how much it’s progressed and grown just in the past ten years. The things the guys do in the ring, it’s always getting better, I think.

Sting has been a big part of your story and wrote the foreword to the book. There’s still always speculation about him finally making the jump to WWE and if he will ever be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. He seems to be pretty happy at Total Nonstop Action Wrestling at the moment, but what are your thoughts on Sting and how his career has turned out?

He is very happy in TNA and, as a wrestling fan, I’d love to see him finish out his career in WWE. I think a match against the Undertaker or Triple H, or if Shawn Michaels came out of retirement or something like that, would be incredible. No one does it better than WWE – they’re the mack daddy mega wrestling company and he’s never been there. As a wrestling fan, I think it would be very cool. I don’t think he’s against ever doing that – I don’t want to speak for him – but it would be great to see. I’d love to see that.

You inducted Sting into the TNA Hall of Fame last year. If he were to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame, what do you think the chances are that he’d ask you to do the induction honors again?

I might be biased, but I’d love to be considered. But that’d be up to Sting. It would definitely be an honor. I’ll throw my hat in the ring for that. I’d love to do that, I really would.

I saw you at a fan fest a few years ago and at that time you had difficulty even signing an autograph. According to your book, you’ve made some significant improvements since then. How are you feeling these days?

Fabulous. I mean, when you’re given the prognosis of being paralyzed from the neck down for the rest of your life, and you need 24-hour care to do the simplest things, I’m very thankful for what I can do. There are still things I can’t do, but I’m always hopeful and my health is great. Thank you for asking.

Any chance we might see you in the ring for one last match?

I sure hope not! I enjoy watching the young guys get in there, but I can’t see me getting back in there. I definitely don’t plan on doing that.

What was your last actual match?

My last official match would have been a tag match with Buff Bagwell in WCW. I did a couple of things after that on the independent circuit, but I very rarely ever got in the ring in any official capacity.

Do you still check out indie wrestling shows at all?

Sometimes. I love to mingle with the fans and watch the shows. I go with Harley Race every once in a while because he does them for charitable causes. I love getting to hang out with Harley. And some of the local ones around Georgia I’ll do just to give something back to the fans and possibly have a few extra fans show up and support the young wrestlers. I don’t do it a lot, but when I do it I enjoy it.

Cru Jones and Shaun Banks, two of Georgia’s top indie talents, were in the commercial you shot for the book. Have you worked with them in any capacity, or have you helped train any other indie wrestlers?

Not them in particular, but I do love to work with the younger guys in the industry and some of the retired guys, as well. I’m definitely looking to help the new guys and help them get off on the right foot, for sure. Scott Hall also lives in the Atlanta area and I have his son Cody come by my condo and we hang out and go to a gym called Hard Knox where we’ve got some young guys starting to work a little bit. We have some fun with that. Why not?

Lex Luger coming August 2013 from Tyndale House Publishers on Vimeo.

It’s great to see the improvements Scott Hall and Jake “The Snake” Roberts have made in their lives since moving to Georgia and working with “Diamond” Dallas Page.

Yeah, he lives right down the street from me! I’m thrilled that he’s in town. He’s a great guy.

Have you tried his DDP Yoga?

I do it every morning!

Now that your book is out, do you have any plans to work on a second book or anything like that?

No plans right now. I’m just basking in the glow of this one being completed. I’m very pleased with the way it turned out. I’ve been doing some book signings and appearance, which you can keep up with at www.lexlugerbook.com.

www.lexlugerbook.com

Not even Brodus Clay survives the extreme horror of “No One Lives”

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Though he has become the fun-loving Funkasaurus in WWE, Brodus Clay has exhibited a more ruthless side over the course of his career. And in WWE Studios‘ latest film No One Lives, he plays the most intimidating member of a nomadic gang of killers and thieves who make an unexpected discovery in their latest victim’s contents. Though Clay does have a chance to display his physical prowess in this film, his character meets a gruesome fate that couldn’t have been predicted going into the movie. With the movie now in theaters, and Extreme Rules just a few days away, Clay talks to Wrestling with Pop Culture about how he got the role of Ethan, seeing his violent demise on the big screen and who he hopes to face at this Sunday’s pay-per-view.

So, your first WWE Studios film is out. What did you think of the movie?

Brodus Clay (right) is surprisingly not the biggest threat in "No One Lives". Photo courtesy Anchor Bay Films.

I thought it was a lot of fun. It’s different. I like the fact that it’s a non-typical story where there’s not a definite hero and villain. It’s definitely a different style. I like the fact that it was done in a classic style with actual special effects, not a bunch of computer enhancement and stuff. So it takes you where you need to go.

I was surprised to see the direction the movie takes at a certain point, especially involving your character. You’re probably the most intimidating presence in the movie, so I didn’t expect to see you be one of the first victims.

It was important to show how extreme the so-called victim is. You have no idea what he’s capable of until you see what he does to Ethan.

In WWE it’s often said that one superstar gets under the skin or inside the head of his opponent. But in No One Lives those phrases are taken quite literally.

Yeah. To have a Caesarean section birth go down in the middle of the movie with two guys is something that’s never been done before. So it’s definitely extreme. The reaction of the people in the audience at the red carpet showings I’ve been to was, they were completely freaked out. Sometimes they clapped.

Well, they were probably clapping at how well done the special effects were.

The Funkadactyl harkens back to the thug persona he portrayed early in his WWE career in "No One Lives". Photo courtesy Anchor Bay Films.

I think that’s because it’s the traditional stuff. It can be refreshing to see that stuff because you don’t see it that much anymore. I don’t think computer graphics would have had the same effect.

What was it like for you to see yourself going through these torturous moments on the screen?

The whole process of making the body double was strange. I’d be sitting in a chair getting makeup or something and look over and see myself with a dead expression on my face. That kind of bothered me so I was always like, “Hey, can we throw a blanket over him or something? It’s weird.” I didn’t see any of it until I actually saw the movie, so when I saw how it all came together it was really disturbing. But I think that’s the reaction the director was going for.

The Brodus Clay we see in WWE these days is a fun-loving giant, but we have seen a more aggressive side from you going all the way back to your days in the developmental system. Did you revert back to some of those traits when you were playing this character?

A little bit. But I was never as violent of a character as Ethan is. He’s that classic bully and is very sadistic to the point that he’s pretty much untouchable. I tried to think of what other ruthless bad guys would be like, so I did draw from my previous personalities a little bit.

How were you chosen for this part? Were they looking specifically to cast someone from WWE?

I’m not sure of the specifics of it because I didn’t give them a chance to explain it to me. It was right after Extreme Rules 2011 and I had 13 staples in my head from being hit by a ladder while trying to stop Christian in his match against Alberto Del Rio. John Laurinaitis, who was the head of talent relations at the time, came down and was like, “Hey, Brodus. There’s this movie…” and I just said, “Yes!” He was like, “You didn’t let me finish.” And I was like, “No, I’ll do it.” Then he was like, “Do you want to know about it?” And I was like, “No, no, no. I’ll do it. I’m in.” Then they flew me out to California to get casted, which I thought was reading lines and stuff, then I realized it was getting dipped in chemicals, rubber and plastic and stuff.

Speaking of Extreme Rules, that event is coming up again this weekend. Do you know yet if you will be competing?

Not yet. We’ve had a few run-ins with the Rhodes Scholars and have been battling back and forth with them for the last couple of months. I’d like to see the end of that at Extreme Rules, but I’m not 100 percent sure yet.

Having now done a WWE Studios film, do you foresee yourself doing more acting in the future?

I would like to, given the opportunity. I’d like to try a different type of movie. I was very fortunate to have the opportunity to do this one and see how it’s received. Hopefully there will be more projects for me down the line.

www.noonelivesthemovie.com

Whether in a TNA ring or the country music world, Mickie James says “Somebody’s Gonna Pay”

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As the only person to ever hold the WWE Women’s Championship, WWE Divas Championship and Total Nonstop Action Knockouts Championship, Mickie James is one of the most talented women to ever step into a wrestling ring. Though she’s been out of the title picture for quite a while, and came up short against current Knockouts Champion Velvet Sky on Impact Wrestling last Thursday, James still has reason to celebrate. On this Thursday’s Impact she teams up with Taryn Terrell to take on longtime rivals Gail Kim and Tara. And next Tuesday sees the release of James‘ second album Somebody’s Gonna Pay, a rocking collection that includes her TNA entrance song “Hardcore Country”. Wrestling with Pop Culture talks to James about the upcoming TNA Slammiversary pay-per-view, her new album and her recent reunion with Trish Stratus.

You came up a little short in your Knockouts title match last Thursday, but that crowd sure was into your match against Velvet Sky.

It was insane. I could have sworn someone was starting the wave or there was a person running around going, “Hey, everybody yell” or a fight had broken out. All of a sudden it just started to rumble. It’s very rare that you get a feeling like that. I’ve had that feeling in England a few times and, obviously, at WrestleMania, but to have that crowd come alive like that is incredible. I don’t know if it was the match or if there was somebody streaking, but they were loud the whole time and it was awesome. They were really into it and it was almost a shock to both of us because we were like, “Whoa, wait. Is that for us? What’s happening?” They had been pretty hot all night, but it was a slow build and they really came alive for that match. It was awesome. As soon as the bell rang they just started to rumble.

It was clearly a great match, but it seemed like even you were a little surprised by the way it ended. Were you possibly in the ropes a little bit when Velvet rolled you up for the pin?

I think I was a bit tangled up in the ropes, but I’m blaming my loss on the fact that earlier that day I was at the airport and my flight was delayed. I was a little bit upset and in search of a plug because my cell phone was dying and I walked into my own bag and knocked my pinkie toenail completely off. I know Velvet has a knee injury, but oh, my God, it hurt so bad. So I think that threw my balance off. But I’m not really blaming it on that. I don’t know. It felt like I was a little tangled in the ropes, but ODB counted 1, 2, 3, so what can you do?

It had been a little while since you had been in the title picture. With Slammiversary coming up in about a month, do you know where last Thursday’s loss leaves you heading into that pay-per-view?

I don’t know where it leaves me. It obviously leaves me hungry and wanting more and I still want the championship. I feel like I pretty much dominated that whole match and she got lucky. I love Velvet to death and she’s my friend, but at the same time I know that I’m Mickie James, a kick-ass wrestler. I’m the champion of champions, for goodness’ sake. I can’t believe I lost! I don’t want to be a sore loser, but at the same time I do want that championship. If there’s a chance for me to get it or to go for it again, I certainly will take it. I don’t know where Slammiversary is headed, but I’m hopeful.

It was interesting to see three women in the ring (you, Velvet and ODB as referee) who all came up through the independent scene together and are now in one of the most competitive women’s divisions in wrestling. How does it feel for all of you to be at this level now?

It’s a good feeling. It’s good to see people who actually set out to make in this business, who have a true passion for this business, to all stand in the same ring with a crowd like that roaring underneath you and have that kind of emotion in the palm of your hands. It’s humbling to know how hard each of us has worked to get there. That’s the most rewarding thing is to know that your sacrifices have paid off. The indie wrestling scene, much like the indie rock scene or any type of indie scene, as you’re trying to come in and break through it’s never easy. You work for peanuts and hope for the best and hopefully catch a big break. We’ve all been fortunate enough to do so.

Speaking of indie rock, you have a new album out next week. I guess it’s more indie country, but it definitely has some rock flavor to it.

Yeah. I signed to eOne Music Nashville in September. It’s not traditional country. It’s more where Southern rock meets country. It’s got that kind of Randy Houser/Jason Aldean sound accept with a female feel to it.

Was music something you’ve always wanted to do or was that something you turned your attention to after you had success with wrestling?

Music has always been a massive part of my life. I grew up on a horse farm and trained with horses all my young life. But I also played the violin for five years and I used to record myself walking around my bedroom singing my heart out. It’s always been a passion of mine and I started writing when I was on the road. Instead of writing short stories or poetry, I would write lyrics to songs. It wasn’t to any melody or anything because I didn’t know anything about how to do that. After shows, we often have to drive 250 miles to the next town. That’s a lot of time in the car by yourself, so I started coming up with my own lyrics to songs that were playing on the radio. I took chorus in school a little bit, but I was always a little shy about being out there in front of a crowd by myself with a microphone. But being an entertainer and a performer – I took modeling and acting classes – is something I always wanted to do, but was always so fearful of. Finally after I wrote about five or six songs, I was like, “I’m just going to go to Nashville and lay down these songs just so I can say that I did it. If this demo that I make only sits on my mom’s coffee table that’s fine with me.” So I went to Nashville and played my songs for about 20 different producers – anyone and everyone who would actually take a meeting with me and listen and consider it. I met with Kent Wells, who produced Dolly Parton‘s last album, and he was like, “I totally get it. This is awesome. I think we can take two or three of these songs that you wrote, vamp them up with some killer music and make an album. You’re a great singer, you have a unique story and you’re something country music’s never had. It needs something different.”

I’m not Carrie Underwood, where I can sing these massive beautiful ballads all day long. But I do have that rock edge to me where it is a little bit rough around the edges, because I’m a little bit rough around the edges. So I released the first album on my own and learned a lot. Then I went back into the studio to do a second album. At the time is was going to be a self-released EP, so I went in the studio with Jamie Lee Thurston, who is a killer guitarist, and wrote some songs with him and Porter Howell, who used to play with Little Texas. While we were recording, my management started talking to different labels and that’s where eOne came in. They took five of the songs Jamie did and sent me back in the studio with R.S. Field, who doesn’t do a lot of country but had just done that Uncle Lucius album. So I listened to it, met with R.S. and got a feel for how he wanted to round out the album. We added one more song that I wrote and put my entrance music on there as a bonus track. We got some more killer songs from some other killer songwriters like Bridgette Tatum, who wrote “She’s Country” for Jason Aldean. She wrote “A Good Time,” which is a good party song on my album. It’s ironic because “Somebody’s Gonna Pay,” the title track and lead single, is one of those songs that R.S. kicked out and I loved it. I loved the lyrics, I loved the song, but I didn’t know if I could sing it because it was very old, traditional country. I just didn’t know if I was capable of twanging it up that much and he was like, “No, we’re going to throw seven guitars on it and it’s going to be Southern rock and soul kind of stuff.” I just trusted him with everything. That song selection process is the hardest out of everything because you want to find not just the songs that you can sing and that are right for you, but also the ones you think your fans are going to connect to and that’re going to tell a story within the album. I probably listened to 1,000 or 2,000 songs just trying to pick these ten. And the fact that two of the songs I co-wrote made it onto the album alongside songs written by people who do nothing but write songs all day was awesome.

You also recently released a video “Somebody’s Gonna Pay” that kind of takes you back to where you got your first big break in wrestling with Trish Stratus. How did that come about?

I actually called her and was like, “Trish, would you consider being in my video?” They were looking for a tie-in to wrestling without being too hokey and cheesy about it. So it was a big favor I called in and she was like, “Oh, my God. Of course! I’d be honored to come down and do that.” So she came down from Canada and Nick Aldis (Magnus from TNA) came down, and we filled up the bar with all my friends from Nashville, my managers, fellow songwriters and singers. And obviously we hired some cute little models, who were precious. That was directed by Blake Judd, who just did a full-length about Shooter Jennings that won some awards. I met him when I did a cameo in Bucky Covington and Shooter’s “Drinking Side of Country” video, so it just worked out really well. Blake is a wrestling fan, so he’d talk to me about the old-school wrestling he watched growing up.

Given the obsession you had with Trish when you made your WWE debut, how did it feel to see your idol inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame this year?

It was really incredible. I couldn’t be happier for her. I think she completely deserved it and I was just disappointed that I couldn’t be there in person. Not only is she a genuine friend, but I really admire her for her strength and her ability to break outside of the mold of coming in as a fitness competitor and really growing within the business. Lita‘s incredible and I know that one day she’s going to be in there as well. She came up the same way I did, working her way up through the indie scene to become the star that she is. But Trish came in as a fitness model that a lot of people didn’t give a lot of credibility to. But she took the time and effort to not just learn, but to become one of the best. I was really fortunate to work with her when I first came in because there was a lot of stuff that I learned from her and a lot of stuff she learned from me. I didn’t know anything about which cameras to look at, but there were little intricacies about wrestling that she didn’t know. And to see a friend get such an accolade, and to know that she was going to announce the baby at the ceremony was such an honor.

WWE recently added a Mickie James page to the alumni section of its website. Do you know why you weren’t on there already or why you were recently added?

I didn’t even realize I was missing. But it’s cool of them to still recognize the people that were there and had a bit of history there. There were certainly some moments when I was there that I think people will remember forever, at least the fans of that era. So it’s cool to be recognized and remembered for that.

The end of your stint with WWE wasn’t the most flattering part of your career. Do you think you’ll ever return to WWE if for no other reason than to redeem yourself a little?

No, it was not the most flattering part of my career. You never know, do you? That is not the way that I wanted to go. It was heartbreaking for that to be my exit because I thought something different was going to come out of that. But things happen and I’ve grown a lot since then. I’m approaching life with a whole different attitude, so it’s just one of those things. I do feel that there were some awesome lessons learned from all of that. Bullying was such a major issue then, and still is now, so I felt like Michelle McCool, Layla and myself made that into something special. I just made the most of it and tried to make it amazing and make great television. You have to take whatever you’re given, own it and make it the best you can, and I think I did that. But it was an uncomfortable awesomeness.

You often perform concerts at nearby venues after TNA house shows. Now that Impact is on the road, do you still perform after the wrestling shows?

I’ve done a few afterparties. We may do a couple more. I just have to find the right deal and the right balance of what’s going to work the best. We did a handful of afterparties as a test run to see which cities were drawing, what the best format was and how we were going to do. It seemed to work pretty well, but people are so exhausted by the time the wrestling shows are over it’s almost working uphill to try to get them to come out to another place after they’ve already spent a lot of energy at the show itself. But, yes, we do plan on doing that again sometime soon. We’re looking at trying to line up some tour dates and shows around the release of this album.

You’ve shared the stage with some heavy hitters in the country music world. Were those festival performances or have you actually toured with some of these acts?

I’ve gotten to open for Gretchen Wilson, Montgomery Gentry, Randy Houser. I feel like my music is kind of similar to Randy Houser’s, so it was really cool to watch him perform and see how he works the crowd. They were all awesome shows and it’s cool to be part of things like that and just sit back and learn how they make their sets flow and all those little things that I’m still learning. I did a big country festival in Richmond with Gretchen and Montgomery Gentry as headliners. That was with my first album, so the local country radio stations knew who I was. I had been in there several times to do interviews for WWE, so they called me about that. The Randy Houser deal was in Richmond as well, so those people had seen me perform at that country festival. I was also supposed to open for Darius Rucker from Hootie & the Blowfish, but it didn’t stop thunderstorming until 7 o’clock and the whole thing got scrapped. I really wanted to meet him and watch his show, so that bummed me out a little bit. Hopefully with this second album I’ll get more opportunities like that.

You’ve also appeared at the Days of the Dead and Chiller Theatre. Do you have any such appearances coming up?

I’m not huge into horror films, so I was freaked out for at least a third of the time at Days of the Dead. When the It clown came by, I was hiding behind my chair. No, I actually took my picture with him and did the whole fangirl pics with people, walked around, met a few people and really marked out for Danny Trejo. Those things kind of come up if it works with my schedule, so I don’t know when I’ll be doing another convention like that.

www.mickiejames.com

Christopher Daniels looks to make an “Impact” at Lockdown

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Courtesy TNA Impact Wrestling/Lee South

It’s been five months since “The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels and Kazarian (collectively known as Bad Influence) lost the Total Nonstop Action World Tag Team Championship to Chavo Guerrero and Hernandez. Though Daniels and Kazarian have remained in each other’s corners, they’ve focused on their singles careers since losing the tag titles. But at Lockdown Bad Influence finally gets a shot at regaining the belts in a three-way match that includes Guerrero and Hernandez as well as the current champs Bobby Roode and Austin Aries. With Lockdown shaping up to be one of TNA’s biggest pay-per-views to date, and TNA taking Impact Wrestling live on the road beginning March 14, Daniels is one of many members of the company’s roster who is ready to help take TNA to the next level in the wrestling world. As he prepares for his Lockdown match and leaving the Impact Zone, Daniels is a bit more serious (but no less confident) than usual as he takes a moment to talk to Wrestling with Pop Culture.

You’re going into Lockdown with a little bit of momentum, given that you, Kazarian and Gail Kim defeated Chavo Guerrero, Hernandez and Velvet Sky. What are your expectations for your three-way tag team match for the TNA Tag Team Championship?

As much as I respect Chavo and Shawn, and as much as I respect Bobby and Austin, we’re really the best team of the three. So it’s just a matter of playing to our strengths. We’ve been together longer, we’ve got better chemistry than either one of those teams, so we’re really just going in there with the mindset that we’re going to walk out with the Tag Team Championship again.

Lockdown is, of course, the first pay-per-view for TNA since scaling back to only four pay-per-views a year. And it’s being held at the Alamodome, which is a much larger venue than TNA is used to. Do you know how well tickets have sold?

Courtesy TNA Impact Wrestling/Lee South

Dixie Carter announced on Twitter that Lockdown will have the highest attendance for us in the United States. It’s going to be bigger than Slammiversary, which was a big deal for us last year in Arlington. So Lockdown could very well end up being our most-attended event in TNA history.

The following Thursday will be the first live Impact Wrestling event outside of the Impact Zone, so these are exciting times for TNA.

We’re all really excited. I think changing from 12 pay-per-views a year to four live pay-per-views gives us an opportunity to build up to things at a slower pace, and it gives everybody an opportunity to catch up with all the goings-on and hopefully build more anticipation for some of these top matches. With Impact going live on the road there’s more energy because there are new fans. After a while, we’ve been playing to kind of the same crowd at the Impact Zone and it’s gotten harder and harder to excite that crowd. So going out on the road and seeing new fans every week, this will be the first time a lot of them are seeing TNA’s television product live. We, as wrestlers, feed off the energy of the crowd, you’re definitely going to see us step up our game and put on more energized matches, which will help the product improve.

When Impact has been on the road in the past, whether it was being taped in Europe or at arenas in the U.S., it’s had a much bigger feel than it does in the Impact Zone. So I’m looking forward to seeing how that translates when you do that live from different venues.

Courtesy TNA Impact Wrestling/Lee South

A lot of that has to do with the fact that we’re in actual arenas rather than just a sound stage; there’s more space, there’s room for more fans and it’s more of an arena atmosphere. But, like I said, it also lends itself to the energy of the crowd. For a lot of these people we’re going to go see in Chicago, Jonesboro, Arkansas and the other dates that have been announced, this will be the first time that we’ve ever done television there. So there’s definitely going to be a newness to the audience coming to see us and that’s going to translate into excitement and energy and we feed off of that as performers.

For those who have been to live Impact tapings or even TNA house shows, how will these live Impact shows on the road compare to what we’ve seen previously?

It’s definitely a different vibe. Our live events are very exciting, but all we are interested in at that point is entertaining the crowd that’s in that building. On television, however, we’re playing to the cameras and the crowd. So we want to entertain the people watching at home, but we’re also interested in entertaining the people that are right there in front of us. We use that crowd that’s in front of us to translate that energy to the fans watching at home. So if we can get those people pumped up about the product, you can’t help but watch it at home and think, ‘This is really exciting, compelling television to be watching.”

As you’ve pointed out previously, you’ve been with TNA off-and-on since its inception. Having been so loyal to the company, and now being integral to its growth, would you rather continue to help take TNA to new heights or, were the opportunity to arise, do you ever see yourself going to WWE?

I’ve always said I’d never say “never” in terms of WWE, but I have to be honest and look at how long I’ve been doing this and how old I am now and look at WWE’s hiring practices at this point. I just don’t think we would be a good fit for each other. But the truth of the matter is I’m very happy with Impact Wrestling right now. It’s been very good to me and I feel like right now I’m doing some of the best work of my career. The creative team has been very supportive with all the stuff I’ve been doing with Bad Influence. They’ve put a lot of effort behind us, so I feel very loyal to the company in that respect. Right now we’re just scratching the surface of what we can do as a team and what we can do as a top-tier act. My immediate goals are to continue being the best tag team not only in Impact Wrestling, but in professional wrestling overall, and helping make Impact grow as we go on the road and try and build these television markets and make our television show more and more acceptable to the wrestling fan base.

Now that you will be on the road more, are there any particular cities you’re looking forward to wrestling for?

Courtesy TNA Impact Wrestling/Lee South

As a California guy I’m very partial to going out to the West Coast and doing some shows there. I don’t think Impact has had as much impact, so to speak, on the West Coast as we could. I look forward to maybe going to Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and cities around there. A return to Las Vegas would be great. I know that a long time ago we taped out there and with this particular crew in charge I think we’ll do a lot better if we return to Las Vegas. We need to go back to the Northeast, as well, because there’s a very strong, hardcore wrestling fan base there that would support our television show. No matter where we go, it’s going to be an opportunity to build on this momentum that we’ve gotten in the last couple of months. When I talk to Frankie, we’re in the groove right now, we’re firing on all cylinders and I feel like we’ve become one of the more entertaining parts of our television show. I’m just going to keep riding that horse.

Win or lose on Sunday, who are some other tag teams you’d like to face in the near future?

We’re open for business, man. The good thing about me and Frankie is we’ve brought a lot more attention to our tag team scene. That was one of the reasons that Chavo Guerrero specifically came to TNA was the opportunity to tag with Shawn against me and Frankie. But I love to see guys like the Young Bucks, who have performed with TNA in the past, come back to TNA and get involved with us in a long-term feud. In the last year we’ve wrestled guys like Kurt [Angle] and AJ [Styles], Kurt and Ken Anderson, Rob Van Dam, so anyone on the roster now that wants to put a team together is welcome to step up to us.

www.fallenangelchristopherdaniels.com

Jeff Hardy prepares for cage match against longtime rival Bully Ray at TNA’s Lockdown

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From his days wrestling alongside his brother Matt as the Hardy Boyz to his ascension to the top of the wrestling ladder (literally and figuratively), Jeff Hardy remains one of the most enigmatically talented men to ever step into the ring. And this Sunday at Lockdown, he faces one of his biggest challenges to date as he defends his Total Nonstop Action World Heavyweight Championship against Bully Ray inside a steel cage. Having recently re-signed with TNA, Hardy hopes to retain his title and continue to be the face of the company as TNA takes Impact Wrestling live on the road beginning next Thursday. As he prepares for this match, as well as the positive changes happening within TNA, Hardy takes a moment to talk to Wrestling with Pop Culture about staying with TNA, getting older and his burgeoning music career.

At Lockdown you defend the TNA title against Bully Ray inside a steel cage. As a veteran, how do prepare for a cage match now in comparison to when you were younger and took a lot more risks in order to make a name for yourself?

My psychology is pretty much the same. I’m not really limited, but I try to work smarter now. I’m excited, man, because it’s a challenge. I’ve had so many great cage matches and ladder matches, so its another challenge for me to top myself. I’m a little more afraid to try big things now [because I have a 2-year-old daughter], but I’m still the same Jeff Hardy.

Now that you’re a little older, is it tougher to recover from some of the things you do in the ring?

Yeah, it’s way tougher now, just being older. But I’m taking extremely good care of myself. I see a chiropractor three days a week, I try to get massages when I can, I ice every part of my body that’s hurting after every match and I work out more than I ever have.

You and Bully have such history going back more than a decade and now you find yourselves going against each other in a pay-per-view main event. How would you say you’ve both grown as performers and what has it been like growing into the stars you’ve become today?

It’s really cool thinking about those TLC matches many years ago between the Dudley Boyz and the Hardy Boyz. To see those old matches and now to see TNA in full effect, the way Jeff Hardy looks, the way Bully Ray looks – he’s possibly in the greatest shape of his life – we’ve both reinvented ourselves over the years. It’s so exciting to be headlining such a huge pay-per-view this Sunday and just still being able to do what we do. It’s really something to be proud of and I can’t wait to see what happens on Sunday.

What do you think you’ll do differently in this match than what you’ve done in the past against someone who knows you better than anyone else in TNA?

What’s going to be different is the unknown effect of any cage match, especially with my mentality. One of my favorite cage matches of all time was against Kurt Angle last year and even coming close to topping that this year is going to be a challenge. But I’m not going to do anything differently unless I have to. I’m going to go out there and just give it my all like I always do.

Given that this is a cage match, do you think that gives an advantage over Bully Ray?

I think so, yeah. Bully’s good with tables, ladders and chairs, but I think I do have the advantage in the cage.

What are some of your favorite moments from your time tagging with your brother Matt?

As a team, there are so many amazing memories. But one of my favorite memories of Matt is when we finally got to wrestle each other at WrestleMania. The finish to that match was one of my favorites of all time. The original Twist of Fate in a chair, that will last with me forever.

This Thursday is the first time Impact airs live outside the Impact Zone. What is it like for you looking back to see how the company has grown? Will it be hard for you to say goodbye to a venue that you did so much work in?

It’s going to be a little heartfelt, but it’s time to get out on the road. But I’m sure we’ll be back in the Impact Zone for a reunion show or something.

TNA wrestlers have often said one of the things they like about TNA is the difference in the schedule. With TNA going on the road, you’re going to be busier. Was that something you considered when you were recently in contract negotiations with TNA?

Being in TNA, there are those times where I get to be at home for a week straight. But March is crazy busy for me. I just like being the alternative, the other place to be and believe in. And 15 years from now, there’s a chance it could reach those WWE heights. Time will tell.

You recently released your first album, Similar Creatures, through TNA Knockout Music. How has that album been received so far? Do you foresee doing something similiar to what Chris Jericho is doing where you pursue wrestling and music at the same time?

I don’t know how the first EP is doing. What I’ve been focused on as far as music goes is my band Peroxwhy?gen. We finished recording last week in Nashville and there are ten songs that are just on a different level as far as me as a singer, lyrically and vocally. I’ve grown so much and I’m really excited about that. Hopefully it will be out around July or August. As far as me wrestling and performing, it’s going to be something unique. I’m not sure what that is yet, but you’ll soon find out.

Given what you talked about earlier about taking fewer risks and having a harder time recovering, as well as your family, your musical project and other endeavors, how much longer do you see yourself wrestling?

I have no idea. It’s always going to be in my blood and I think my body will tell me when I need to stop. Hopefully I’ll be 45, 50 years old and still have a match every now and then. But I don’t know. Time will tell and my body will tell me.

www.impactwrestling.com

Christopher Daniels and Kazarian continue to be a Bad Influence as TNA changes its pay-per-view format

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Collectively known as Bad Influence, the tag team of “The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels and Kazarian spent a large part of 2012 as the Total Nonstop Action World Tag Team Champions. Since losing the titles to Chavo Guerrero, Jr. and Hernandez at Bound for Glory last October, however, the two have been more focused on singles competition. Having defeated AJ Styles last month at Final Resolution, Daniels faces “Cowboy” James Storm this Sunday at Genesis, which means you can expect to see both members of Bad Influence on tonight’s Impact Wrestling. And with the recent changes to TNA’s pay-per-view schedule, Daniels and Kazarian will also be part of the new TNA Wrestling: One Night Only specials being taped this Saturday. It’s a lot to keep up with, but Wrestling with Pop Culture gets some interesting insight from the duo as it prepares for this exciting and busy weekend.

Following Genesis this weekend, the next pay-per-view is Lockdown in March. What is your take on TNA running fewer pay-per-views in 2013, as well as doing additional tapings like X-travaganza and the Joker’s Wild Tag Team Tournament to fill that programming for different markets. With so many big shows in such a short period of time, what is the mental and physical preparation like for you guys in comparison to a regular pay-per-view weekend?

Kazarian: I think dropping the number of pay-per-views down by a few is a smart business move. The pay-per-view market is oversaturated with pro wrestling as it is. I, myself, have always been a fan of more big pay-per-views as opposed to just standard pay-per-views every month. It gives our program a lot more time to develop and put a lot more importance on matches. As far as this weekend goes, it is unique in that we have a big pay-per-view and this additional content, which will be a tag team tournament and an X Division Ultimate X cage match. For guys like us, we’ve been the workhorses for the entire existence of TNA so a weekend like this is tough, but it’s nothing we can’t handle. It’s business as usual. If TNA is booking and promoting it, we want to be part of it. It’s going to be a heavy workload, but it’s nothing we can’t handle and we’re excited to be doing it.

Daniels: And let’s be honest, if TNA wants to get people interested in watching these things, of course they’re going to have the two most entertaining parts of their roster on the X-travaganza, on the tag team tournament, on Genesis, on television every week. The top two guys in the company are Christopher Daniels and Frankie Kazarian. That’s just science. Four out of five doctors agree, and the fifth doctor is a quack, so of course we’re going to be there. As far as cutting the number of pay-per-views goes, TNA has always been more about quality than quantity and that’s fine with us. If they’re going to cut some stuff, that’s going to make all the pay-per-views that we do do (I can say do do) more entertaining and get people excited to watch these shows. As far as these X-travaganza and Joker’s Wild Tag Team Tournament tapings go, fulfilling these pay-per-view obligations overseas is going to give those fans over there a chance to see something that maybe the fans in the United States won’t get, give them a special treat. Of course they’re going to have me and Frankie on there. I mean, if you found out Frankie and I weren’t going to be on there, you probably wouldn’t buy it.

A quick note, that fifth doctor in that poll is actually D.O.C. from Aces & Eights and he’s a surly individual anyway, so he doesn’t count.

During your recent World Tag Team Championship reign, you emphasized the word “world” by introducing yourselves as the World Tag Team Champions of the World. Given that you will be traveling to Ireland, Scotland and England later this month, do you anticipate regaining and defending those titles in other parts of the world in the near future?

Kazarian: As soon as we get the opportunity – as soon as Hulk Hogan and the powers that be give us the opportunity to wrestle for the tag team titles, we’re going to get them again. And of course we’re going to take them on tour. They love us in Dublin, they love us in Glasgow, they love us all over Europe – it’s common knowledge. So to rightfully defend the World Tag Team Championship of the World, we have to tour the world, which is exactly what we intend to do.

Daniels: As soon as Chavo Guerrero III and Shawn Hernandez, Jr. stop defending the titles against tag teams that haven’t won any matches yet, when they decide to give a chance back to the actual World Tag Team Champions of the World, the best tag team in the biz-a-ness (that would be Francois Kazarian and myself), as soon as they decide to give us that opportunity once again, we’re going to regain those titles and we will bring them to the U.K., we will bring them all over this country, all over this world, because that’s what fighting champions do. That’s what Frankie and I were when we were World Tag Team Champions of the World. And that’s what we will be when we regain the championships.

Officially in Glasgow, the Christopher Daniels Museum has been alive and kicking for the last seven years. Look it up, it’s true. Check Wikipedia.

From the Zubaz pants to the “Gangnam Style” dances, what goes into your creative process and how much time do you dedicate to that?

Kazarian: When you talk about the creative process, you’re talking about looking inside the minds of Christopher Daniels and myself and that’s a place I don’t think you want to go. We are two of the most creative, fun-loving individuals in the business. Anything you see us do is basically our creation, our idea and/or a request or dare. A lot people don’t think we have the balls to do certain things and we do them. Most everything we do literally comes from the noodles of Chris Daniels and Frankie Kazarian. Is it entertaining? Of course it is because it comes from us, the most entertaining tag team in the business.

Daniels: We’re 25/8 as far as being creative. All we’re doing during the day is thinking of ways we can get under people’s skin, ways we can entertain, ways we can get people talking about us at the water cooler the next day. Whether it’s “Gangnam Style,” whether it’s Throwback Thursdays, whether it’s the appletinis, whether it’s being a national treasure, being the man with the rear that makes the girls cheer, being the physical fascination like Francois is, all of these things are ways to make people excited to watch the best tag team in the world – that’s Bad Influence. People are excited to watch us, people are excited to cheer for us, people know that when we walk down the ramp into the Impact Zone, when we walk down the ramp at the live events, whenever we do that dance on the pay-per-views, they know that we’re the best thing on the show.

Kazarian: On a side note, Zubaz pants’ stock has risen 88 percent since Throwback Thursdays [began]. So we’re talking to their people right now.

Where did the name Bad Influence come from?

Kazarian: That name’s kind of been hopping around the brains of both of us for a while. A lot of people have kind of dubbed us a bad influence and called us bad individuals, especially after us exposing the truth about what a scumbag AJ Styles was. (I say “was” because he’s gone.) People say “bad influence” in a bad way and we say it in a good way. And you know our thing is, once you’re under it, you can’t get over it.

Daniels: Well done, Francois.

Kazarian: Hey, it’s what I do.

www.impactwrestling.com

AJ Styles has one last battle with Christopher Daniels at Final Resolution

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If any one wrestler has become synonymous with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, it’s “The Phenomenal” AJ Styles. He’s held every men’s title in the company, defeated almost everyone on the roster and been there since TNA’s first event. Though Styles has had many rivalries over the years, his perfect foil within and outside of TNA has been “The Fallen Angel” Christopher Daniels. These two have waged more high-flying battles in 2012 than perhaps ever before and it call comes to a head this Sunday at Final Resolution in what is being billed as a “one last time” match. But before that one-on-one encounter, Styles and Daniels will be on opposite sides of the ring tonight on Impact Wrestling as Styles teams up with TNA World Heavyweight Champion Jeff Hardy and “The Cowboy” James Storm to take on Daniels, Kazarian and Bobby Roode. Wrestling with Pop Culture recently got to talk to Styles yet again about his rivalry with Daniels, other potential rivalries and what his plans are for the new year.

This Sunday’s match is billed as the final battle between you and Daniels. What are your memories of the first time you and Daniels faced each other and how do think you’ve both changed as competitors over the years?

The first time he and I ever got into the ring together was the 53rd Anniversary of the NWA; it was the first time I had ever met Christopher Daniels. What a match it was – two guys who knew nothing about each other going in there and having an unbelievable match. I think it’s what helped take my career get to the next level. When you have matches like that with Christopher Daniels you get noticed. My popularity has grown every since I wrestled Christopher Daniels. As far as changing over the years, I can’t tell you that there’s been that much change as far as the wrestling goes. [But] we’ve been the closest friends and bitter enemies.

The two of you have met so many times, and the bar is raised each time you get into the ring together. Fans always expect the two of you to put on a tremendous match, so is there any pressure going into this Sunday knowing it’s being billed as the final match between you two?

The thing about me and Chris is we’ve had so many matches and they’ve all been pretty good, so the bar has been raised every time. The last time we met was a last man standing match and we literally about killed each other. It was such a brutal match from both of us that ended with me putting him through a table off the ramp with a Styles Clash. It’s so hard to top something like that because we literally left everything we had in the ring and outside the ring. There was nothing left of either one of us after that match, so to have one final match is a lot of pressure because we’ve got to make it something that people will never forget. We want to put on a classic. It is hard, but I think we’ll be able to do it.

You recently lost another match with a stipulation that you won’t get another title shot until next year. How does that change your outlook on your goals and what you want to accomplish in the next year?

I don’t know. The year’s not over and who knows what my mindset will be at the end of this year? I’m not sure where this will lead me and where I will take it. Hopefully there will be loopholes, there will be some way for me to get that world title before Bound for Glory. Who’s to say that I’ll even make in the tournament? I have yet to do that, so even though I may have a shot at Bound for Glory doesn’t mean I’ll get it.

Since Sunday’s match is being billed as the last meeting between you and Daniels, what do you plan on doing to try and make it stand out amongst the many matches the two of you have had against one another?

The thing I’m going to try to accomplish in this match is make sure it’s different from everybody else’s on the card and do something people haven’t seen, or maybe they’ve forgotten about like classic wrestling, classic storytelling and everything that goes along with what professional wrestling has been and what it will be. I think the thing is to try to make it different from what we’ve done and what everybody else is doing.

Is there anyone else on the TNA roster you’d like to develop a friendship or rivalry with that might compare to the ones you’ve had with Christopher Daniels?

Rivalries? Who knows who the next guy is? I can tell you that as far as friendships, I think I’ve done enough of those little friendships and factions and stuff like that. I think it’s about time that AJ Styles do his own thing and stop worrying about everybody else and stop being the janitor of TNA and cleaning up messes and go out there and do my own thing.

Probably the one solid rule in professional wrestling is to never say “never.” Do you really believe this is the last time you two guys will meet?

You know, I’ve thought about that myself. What if he’s in the Bound for Glory Series and what if I’m in the Bound for Glory Series? How can we not wrestle each other? Just little things like that. How can we stay apart? Is there going to be some rule? Or maybe there will be one final time where I ask him to wrestle me and he accepts or something like that. That’s going to be a hard one to get around, so we’ll see.

www.ajstyles.org