Source: Matt Fowler of IGN
IGN TV: The first thing I’ve got to ask you is what it was like being a part of the live Monday night Impact two weeks back? What was it like backstage? I mean, you actually got to get in there and work a match with Samoa Joe.
Abyss: Aw, man, it was incredible. The whole day was incredible. The whole atmosphere there was magnificent and for me it meant a lot – and for a lot of the other guys too – but for me personally it meant so much because I started out wrestling in late 1994. I started training right before the Monday Night Wars started and it was compelling to watch it all go down. It was a battle. A true fight between the companies of the time so actually being a part of, I guess, a new Monday Night War – it was a special feeling. And being in there with Samoa Joe, it was the first time he and I had ever wrestled on television so that was special in itself. It was a magnificent day. It really was. It was a great day for TNA as a company and without a doubt I think we answered a lot of the critics. We really raised the bar not only for TNA, but I think for wrestling period.
IGN: Hulk Hogan, in an interview here at IGN, mentioned your name as one of the standout performers in TNA. What’s it like when someone like Hogan singles you out?
Abyss: I don’t know if I can put it into words. It’s really a great feeling. And I did hear that he said that. And I read it. It was exciting. Hulk Hogan, in my opinion – and a lot of other people’s opinions – he’s the person that put wrestling on the map to begin with. In the main stream world. So to get a compliment from him just means the world to me. My goal is, and my concentration is on, not letting him down and not letting TNA down in any way. And to continue to give solid performances. But to have Hulk Hogan make a comment about me like that meant the world.
IGN: Do you know of any plans for TNA to do another live Monday show soon?
Abyss: You know, I don’t know the answer to that question, I really don’t. I definitely think that TNA has positioned itself now to where it is a true competitor. I think we’ve raised the bar in every facet of our game. On TV. On Pay Per View. On our merchandising and so forth. So I don’t have that answer right now, but I think it’s definitely in the cards, down the road somewhere.
IGN: The TNA Pay Per View, Genesis is this coming Sunday, the 17th. I don’t see a lot of matches listed for the show. They seem to be advertising Hogan as the big draw for buying the Pay Per View. Do you know what you’ll be doing on the card? And is it strange that they haven’t announced many matches?
Abyss: Yeah. I don’t know. I think that’s just part of, kind of, the re-set. Well, I won’t say a “re-set” but it’s just because of all the changes and all the additions and all the things that are going on in TNA that started at the beginning of the year, on the 4th, I think that just something we’re settling into right now. I’m not sure what I’ll be doing, but I think the fans are in for a great show though. I know that. Obviously Hulk will be on it, so I think some really cool things are going to transpire that night. No doubt about it.
IGN: There’s been a lot of talk from Hogan about all the guys in TNA having to prove themselves to the company. I think there might be a few guys in the company that have proved themselves as performers over the years and might not have to step in line with everyone else. How do you side? Do you think that everyone needs to re-prove themselves?
Abyss: You know, I do. I think that the day that you quit challenging yourself and the day that you’re satisfied with what you’re doing, no matter what you’re doing – whether it’s wrestling or something else – the day you feel like you feel like you’ve done all you can do and you’ve reached the pinnacle, that’s the day you start going downhill. I think with Hulk being there, I think one of the things it’s going to do is challenge everybody to raise their game to the next level and raise the bar on their own performances. Across the board. Whether you’ve been with TNA since the beginning like I have or like AJ Styles has. Or if it’s a newer guy that hasn’t been there as long. I think everybody’s going to be challenged to compete. And that’s how it should be. Now matter how long you’ve been there you’re constantly trying to prove yourself with every performance that you give. I think that’s the way it needs to be.
IGN: You had held the NWA/TNA Title for a while. I’m a huge fan of the “monster” persona in this business, but they don’t always get the gold. Do you think Abyss could be the World Champion again? Do you think there will have to be a bit more of a persona change in order for that to happen?
Abyss: I think, to answer your first question, that Abyss should be a World Heavyweight champion again. There’s no doubt about it. I think one of the things you hinted at was the evolution of the character. Abyss has evolved an awful lot. If you remember for the first four or five years he didn’t say a word. He didn’t speak for himself. He had great management. You know Reverend Jim Mitchell was a great manager who was able to articulate for me, but the character really needed to evolve. And it has evolved over the last year and we’ve done some good things with it. He’s begun to articulate for himself and speak on the mic. He’s taken on a little more of a human aspect to the character and he needed to evolve and we’re beginning to see so many different aspects of the character that we hadn’t seen before. You can see a “teddy bear” Abyss, or you can see a monster “ready to tear somebody apart” Abyss now. You can see different emotions in the character now – whether he’s happy, sad, angry – that you ever saw before. It makes the character almost a new character. I think that it can all evolve to the point where Abyss is a World Heavyweight contender again.
IGN: Who was it that made you want to become a wrestler? Who were you a fan of early on?
Abyss: You know, there are several. I think most anyone in this business has maybe one or two, or a handful they could pick from. For me, I’ve always said that, from the day I started wrestling as a kid, Roddy Piper had a big influence on me. From the first time I saw the guy on TV and doing a promo, or a Piper’s Pit, that’s when I really started digging in deep and watching. He grabbed me right away. Just his whole demeanor and his whole swagger drew me right in. He was probably one of the first wrestler’s I ever saw that made me want to dive into it. Mick Foley’s another one. I’ve said it before – I have an awful lot of respect for the man and I take a lot of pride in everything that we’ve done together in TNA. He’s been just fantastic. But there have been others. Sting’s been a great influence on me and helped me out a lot. And obviously now, if you’re just going down the list, how can I not mention Hulk Hogan? As being a guy who influenced me, and probably a little bit of everybody in this business.
IGN: What have been some of your favorite Abyss matches in TNA over the years? For you personally?
Abyss: That’s a great question. One of my favorite matches, if not my favorite match, was be the very first Lockdown Pay Per View match. The very first time we did the show and did the all-cage match format and AJ Styles and myself really tore the roof off that place. It was an excellent match and one of my favorites. I’m also really very proud of the Monster’s Ball. I think Monster’s Ball is a concept that TNA came up with. It’s original and the name’s original. And I think we’ve proven that over the years with it that it really is the signature match of hardcore wrestling. Jeff Hardy‘s competed in it. Rhino. Sabu. Myself. Raven. Monty Brown. There’s a great “who’s who” list of guys who’ve been in it and really shined in it. My matches with Sting I was also very proud of. I really enjoyed all that. I could probably go on for another half hour, but those are the top ones I can think of. I also enjoyed working with Jeff Hardy when he was in TNA the first time. I thought we did some really good stuff together then as well.
IGN: Hogan has said that he wants to make a lot of changes in TNA. As someone who’s been in TNA since the beginning, is there anything that you don’t want to see changed?
Abyss: That’s a good question. Are there things I don’t want to see changed? That’s hard to say. Change is good. Change is sometimes hard to deal with, but change can be a good thing. And a lot of times in this world, and in the wrestling world, things can move so fast that without change you get stagnant. You kind of spin your wheels a bit. It remains to be seen. It’s kind of early on. I think that if what we did on Monday Night is the direction of the company than we’re really on the right track.
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