Post by hbk on Sept 7, 2006 2:28:03 GMT -5
AJ Styles was interviewed by IGN.com, discussing a number of topics including his in-ring work, TNA's videogame (currently in development with Midway Games), TNA as a competitor to World Wrestling Entertainment, and more. Highlights included:
The TNA Product:[/u] "The wrestling is so different from WWE. I just believe that the best athletes in wrestling work for TNA. When you watch our matches you can see that. We actually bring wrestling, and we bring that wrestling to a different level that WWE isn't able to do. Just the caliber of guys that we have at TNA is just unbelievable, and when you put that with unbelievable athletes, it's a great product."
Positives of the Six-Sided Ring:[/u] "More space in the middle of the ring. It's a circle, pretty much. And for high-flyers like myself, with the ropes being closer together, that means the ropes are tighter so it's easier to springboard. It adds a whole new level, and a lot more confidence to guys trying to adapt to that high-flying style. Most people don't know that it takes away from the corners, though, because it's not at a 45-degree angle, so it's a little harder to stand on top if you're not used to it. That's why you see me do more springboards, because for me, there's a lot less chance of screwing up."
The Ultimate X Match:[/u] "The concept of the Ultimate X match is pretty awesome, and I was quite jealous of the guys who got to do it before me. With trial and error, they've gotten better and better, and I'm excited that I've gotten to be a part of them. They're always exciting and innovative matches…definitely one of the best match styles that TNA has come up with."
Batista's Criticism of Styles' Work:[/u] "In defense of Batista, I don't believe it until I've heard people say it, and I've heard through the gcensorvine that he didn't even say any of that stuff. So it's almost like us against the media. They want it to be hot between the two companies, and it is because that's our competition, but in that same line, I don't want to see anybody get hurt, even if they work for the competition. It gets crazy like that. But do I think WWE fears us? Absolutely, that's why they brought back ECW. They're afraid and they should be. We're growing at a super fast rate, and that's something to be scared of."
Singles vs. Tag Teams:[/u] "I guess it depends on who I'm with. I always had great matches with D-Lo Brown, and then me and Christopher Daniels know each other so well, it's always fun to work together. Then again, you've got singles, and that's always great because if you're not having a great match, you've only got one person to blame, and I always blame myself. It's my job to make sure we have a good match, and singles wrestling provides that. Then again, I can always go back to tag team because it's always something different. For me, it's a challenge because I proved that I can be a singles wrestler, but I want to prove that I can also be a great tag team partner."
The Possibility of Kurt Angle in TNA:[/u] "Time will tell. Who knows? I would definitely love to wrestle Kurt and we'd love to have him in TNA. Time will tell, man, your guess is as good as mine."
TNA's Future Video Game:[/u] "I think that it's good for everyone. TNA is a growing company and Midway is going to take advantage of that by putting out a great game. It's almost like we're going to piggyback off of each other. Publicity-wise, it will be great for everybody, and in the fans eyes, seeing is believing. Maybe you didn't know someone could do a flipping piledriver like The Canadian Destroyer until you see it in the game, then you're going to want to see how it looks in real life. It's such a huge thing for both companies."
The TNA Product:[/u] "The wrestling is so different from WWE. I just believe that the best athletes in wrestling work for TNA. When you watch our matches you can see that. We actually bring wrestling, and we bring that wrestling to a different level that WWE isn't able to do. Just the caliber of guys that we have at TNA is just unbelievable, and when you put that with unbelievable athletes, it's a great product."
Positives of the Six-Sided Ring:[/u] "More space in the middle of the ring. It's a circle, pretty much. And for high-flyers like myself, with the ropes being closer together, that means the ropes are tighter so it's easier to springboard. It adds a whole new level, and a lot more confidence to guys trying to adapt to that high-flying style. Most people don't know that it takes away from the corners, though, because it's not at a 45-degree angle, so it's a little harder to stand on top if you're not used to it. That's why you see me do more springboards, because for me, there's a lot less chance of screwing up."
The Ultimate X Match:[/u] "The concept of the Ultimate X match is pretty awesome, and I was quite jealous of the guys who got to do it before me. With trial and error, they've gotten better and better, and I'm excited that I've gotten to be a part of them. They're always exciting and innovative matches…definitely one of the best match styles that TNA has come up with."
Batista's Criticism of Styles' Work:[/u] "In defense of Batista, I don't believe it until I've heard people say it, and I've heard through the gcensorvine that he didn't even say any of that stuff. So it's almost like us against the media. They want it to be hot between the two companies, and it is because that's our competition, but in that same line, I don't want to see anybody get hurt, even if they work for the competition. It gets crazy like that. But do I think WWE fears us? Absolutely, that's why they brought back ECW. They're afraid and they should be. We're growing at a super fast rate, and that's something to be scared of."
Singles vs. Tag Teams:[/u] "I guess it depends on who I'm with. I always had great matches with D-Lo Brown, and then me and Christopher Daniels know each other so well, it's always fun to work together. Then again, you've got singles, and that's always great because if you're not having a great match, you've only got one person to blame, and I always blame myself. It's my job to make sure we have a good match, and singles wrestling provides that. Then again, I can always go back to tag team because it's always something different. For me, it's a challenge because I proved that I can be a singles wrestler, but I want to prove that I can also be a great tag team partner."
The Possibility of Kurt Angle in TNA:[/u] "Time will tell. Who knows? I would definitely love to wrestle Kurt and we'd love to have him in TNA. Time will tell, man, your guess is as good as mine."
TNA's Future Video Game:[/u] "I think that it's good for everyone. TNA is a growing company and Midway is going to take advantage of that by putting out a great game. It's almost like we're going to piggyback off of each other. Publicity-wise, it will be great for everybody, and in the fans eyes, seeing is believing. Maybe you didn't know someone could do a flipping piledriver like The Canadian Destroyer until you see it in the game, then you're going to want to see how it looks in real life. It's such a huge thing for both companies."