FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Interview With: Romeo Roselli
Interview By: Andy Steven of www.PWMania.com
Date: October 8, 2007
Former WWE Superstar, model, actor, and licensed certified personal trainer Romeo Roselli recently took some time out of his schedule to speak with www.PWMania.com. He speaks on several topics from his time in WWE, his release from WWE, wrestling in TNA, the backstage atmosphere in TNA & WWE, modelling, acting and so much more! The complete interview is below:
Andy Steven: Firstly I would like to thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to take part in this interview for www.PWMania.com. How did you break into the wrestling business and what have you been up to recently?
Romeo Roselli: I was always a big fan of wrestling as child, and once I began college, I found a wrestling school nearby and began training there. I later moved down to OVW in Louisville, KY to continue training and later was signed to a WWE contract.
Recently I have been touring on the independent circuit in the US, Puerto Rico, and Europe, as well as opening up my own personal training business, in addition to breaking into the modeling and acting business.
Andy Steven: You have been working with many indy promotions since you left WWE, what has been your best indy event so far and how much different is it from WWE?
Romeo Roselli: I’ve been fortunate enough to be a part of many great independent shows. If I had to choose one it would be tough, but it would probably be when I won the NWE Italian Heavyweight Championship from Vampiro in Sicily (Palermo), Italy. We drew a good house that night, around 6000 or so, and it was my first major singles title, and having a strong Italian heritage made it even more special.
As far as being different from the WWE, the indys allow you more interaction with the fans, your able to work a longer style match, in addition to having more freedom as far as calling the match.
Andy Steven: You signed a WWE developmental deal in 2005 and worked in OVW before joining the main WWE roster. How was your experience in OVW?
Romeo Roselli: OVW was without a doubt one of the great experiences of my life. I had the guidance of guys like Lance Storm, Bill DeMott, Tommy Dreamer, Danny Davis, Al Snow, Paul Heyman, and so many others, in addition to making some great friends. I learned a lot AND had fun – the perfect combination. I made the decision to move down to OVW on my own, take my chances, and continue to climb the proverbial wrestling ladder, and I definitely made the right decision.
Andy Steven: You also made your WWE debut in 2005 and was released in 2006, how was your experience in WWE and what was the reason for your release?
Romeo Roselli: Receiving a WWE contract and working for the WWE on the main roster was a dream come true and something that I will always take with me. As far as the release goes, the reason we were given was that we were floating for a while and not really being used all that much, and the creative team really didn’t have anything for us, so I guess we were expendable. Truth be told, I would have preferred to remain in OVW longer before getting called up to tighten up our skills, our teamwork, and the gimmick the WWE envisioned since we were only teaming around 2 months total in OVW. In addition, we were called up to television without being put on a single WWE house show or dark match prior to our debut, which I think would have helped us out.
Andy Steven: What is your opinion on the WWE tag-team division and do you think it has changed over the past few years?
Romeo Roselli: I think its slowly growing and has improved over the last few years. Teams like MNM, Spirit Squad, Cade/Murdock, London/Kendrick, Haas/Benjamin, among others, have been great additions over the past few years. And teams like Deuce/Domino, Major Brothers, and Highlanders, have consistently been solid performers.
Andy Steven: You have mad a few appearances on TV programs since your WWE release, would you consider acting as a full-time job?
Romeo Roselli: It looks like it may be getting that way. After recently filming scenes in two major motion pictures, I recently earned and have been offered to be part of the union, the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), so I am very happy with where acting has taking me thus far. And like I previously mentioned, I am also a personal trainer, which is also going very well, and I really enjoy training and helping people.
Andy Steven: In your independent travels have you every come across a wrestler with a bit of an ego or if someone has had a problem with you for no reason? If so, what happened?
Romeo Roselli: On the independents and in my travels, I’ve come across many interesting characters. I never let myself get involved in any drama, and always take the high road if a “problem” ever occurred.
Andy Steven: You toured with Nu-Wrestling Evolution in Italy, how was your experience in Italy, how different are the fans from the US and where has been your favourite place abroad to work?
Romeo Roselli: I can’t explain how grateful and fortunate I feel about being able to wrestle over in Italy. My entire family tree on both sides stem from Italy, and it is an absolute honor to not only be able to wrestle over there, but to represent the organization and country as champion. My father, born and raised in Italy, legitimately cried when I told him I would be wrestling in Italy. Over in Italy, we cater more towards children and the younger fans, so that’s really where the difference lies – most of the NWE shows have primarily children in the audience. With all this being said, obviously Italy is a favorite place to work. It was also great working in Puerto Rico and France as well.
Andy Steven: You along with your tag-team partner Antonio, made a surprise debut and appearance at TNA’s Destination X Pay Per View in March 2007 with Christy Hemme as your manager. How different is the backstage atmosphere in TNA compared to WWE? Has there been any talk of a long-term deal with TNA or would you return to WWE if asked?
Romeo Roselli: I guess things would be considered a bit looser backstage at TNA, but I didn’t honestly see too much of a difference. The professionals know they have a job to do, and they get it done. As far as TNA or WWE goes, I really am enjoying myself and my life right now because I am still getting to an opportunity to wrestle in addition all the new exciting opportunities I’m receiving from acting, modeling, and personal training. However, being only 26 years old and having a strong work ethic and passion for wrestling, being back with a nationally televised product certainly is possible. With acting and personal training taking up more of my time, maybe God is taking my life in other directions, but I’m just going to take things as they come.
Andy Steven: Being a professional wrestler, model, actor, and licensed certified personal trainer, you must have been through a lot of experiences and memories, what has been your best one so far and do you have any main goals?
Romeo Roselli: I have a lot of different memories from all those careers, some good, some not so good. I cant pick just one out of all of them, so I guess I’ll try to name one from each category:
Wrestling – The moment I was offered a WWE contract,
Modeling -The photo shoot I did with Stacy Keibler for Cosmopolitan Magazine,
Actor – When I received a call that I got upgraded to a principle role and was officially eligible and asked to join the Screen Actors Guild,
Personal Training – Having clients look me in the eye and tell me that they just had the best and hardest workout of their entire lives.
Andy Steven: What is your take on the current Indy scene?
Romeo Roselli: It has its good, its bad, and its ugly.
Andy Steven: What do you have scheduled for yourself in the near future and if someone would like to book you, how can they?
Romeo Roselli: I’m still going to be doing it all. My wrestling schedule has lightened up a bit since acting and personal training has picked up, so just keep an eye on my website www.RomeoRoselli.com and myspace www.myspace.com/romeorosellifor all upcoming events and news. For anyone who would like to contact me I am available at Giovanni@RomeoRoselli.com.
Andy Steven: I would like to thank you very much once again for taking this time to take part in this interview for www.PWMania.com, I wish you the best of luck in the future and do you have any messages to say to your fans?
Romeo Roselli: To anyone who has been a fan and supported me, I truly appreciate it. I know what it is like to be a huge fan, and I’ve always tried to remember that and stay true to myself, and I do my best to try to treat everyone who supports me the best that I possibly can. It has been quite the journey for me so far, and I excited to see what the future brings. And whether you like me love me or hate me, your going to be hearing about me and seeing me for a long time to come.
Kind Regards,
Andy Steven
PWMania.com
andy@pwmania.com
