SAMOA JOE TALKS ABOUT WRESTLING KOBASHI, CHOOSING TNA OVER WWE, WHO HE'D LIKE TO WRESTLE AND MORE
mister...@aol.com
and available for download at www.WorldWrestlingInsanity.com by
clicking on the audio link. This week, host James Guttman is joined by
TNA X-Division Champion Samoa Joe.
James starts the show off by plugging some of the new Flash Games on
the site, including World War Insanity. It's your chance to play a
McMahon and shoot down copies of Guttman's book before they infiltrate
WWE's arenas and headquarters.
>From there, James speaks about the Shelton Benjamin character and how
it might be more harmful to Shelton than people think, even if his Mama
is entertaining. Also, JG talks about Triple H's "I'm going to
Wrestlemania" speech and how the way it plays out will tell us a lot
about WWE's views on its roster, place in the business, and status
against TNA.
After that, Guttman plugs the World Wrestling Insanity debut of Dave
"It's Still Real To Me, Damn It" Wills. James puts over Dave's column
and urges everyone to check it out as they'll be surprised. He says
that Derek Burgan recommended Wills and, when he told him about Dave
coming on board, Tom Prichard fully endorsed him as guest columnist.
James says that Prichard will be doing Q&As with readers in future
columns and urges fans to send their questions to
Ask...@WorldWrestlingInsanity.com.
JG then does this week's reader-voted Moment of Insanity and announces
that Dr. Tom will be joining him for next week's MOI.
Guttman then welcomes Samoa Joe to the show.
James starts off by naming all the awards that Joe won in last year's
year end balloting. Samoa Joe says he likes accolades but there's
always room for improvement. He says that 2006 should be interesting.
Guttman asks about SJ's ability to work with a wide array of opponents.
Joe says he adapts to what his opponents bring to the table. It's a
matter of knowing what you want to portray and making that work within
your opponents ability.
When asked about the Kobashi match, Samoa says that it was a rare
experience that many guys won't have in their careers. He credits the
fans in the arena for making the match so exciting. He can look back
on it and say "We did pretty good together."
Talk turns to ROH and Guttman compares Joe to CM Punk in that they both
made a strong name for themselves there. Joe answers that "At Our
Best" was a high point for him in Ring of Honor. He says he has many
great memories of ROH. It's a smaller scale promotion, but fans are
receptive. Samoa says that you can put together a really good body of
work there.
James brings up the increasing popularity of the TNA X-Division (AJ,
Joe, Daniels). Has Joe's devotion to in-ring wrestling changed TNA
since he arrived? SJ says that they have to make due with the time
they have in the ring in TNA. In ROH, they have more in-ring time.
There's less backstage stuff in Ring of Honor. In TNA, the X-Division
is similar since there's less out-of-ring stuff in their division.
Guttman brings up when Samoa Joe "ridiculously pummeled" AJ Styles. He
asks if TNA is using backstage skits to increase realism with him
rather than drama. Joe agrees. It helps suspension of disbelief. The
skits are being done to highlight the in-ring stuff. He calls it a
"work in progress."
JG asks about working with Chris Daniels in TNA and how both he and Joe
had some high-profile matches in 2001 UPW. Samoa says he's known Chris
practically his whole career. Calls Chris one of the best performers
in the industry. He knows what Daniels is capable of and it makes
their matches better.
When James asks who Joe would like to wrestle in TNA. He names Abyss,
Monty Brown, Alex Shelly, and Sting. He also names Chris Sabin as
someone who should emerge this year. No matter who he works a program
with, he'll put all his creative juices into that. No matter who it
is. JG compliments that train of thought and asks about the brawling
style that Joe uses. Samoa talks a bit about his style and how he puts
it together.
Guttman asks about Joe's decision to go to TNA instead of WWE. He
compares Joe's decision to Matt Hardy's decision to do the opposite and
points to their current career positions. James asks if he thinks this
influenced other wrestlers to choose TNA over their richer
counterparts. SJ responds that Christian has helped that too. He says
that employees of WWE see TNA is a viable way to make a living. If a
wrestler comes to TNA, spots will be open. As time is going on, the
shows are becoming tighter as the roster grows. JG asks what were some
of the things that went into Joe's decision. He says it was the
schedule. Also says that he wouldn't have been used well in WWE right
now.
Samoa Joe also speaks about his Samoan gimmick, changing fan perception
of Samoans in wrestling, wrestlers who influenced his style, who he
would face out of anyone in history, where he sees himself in five
years, the upcoming TNA PPV, facing AJ Styles, the pressure of putting
on match of the night, plus much more.
You can hear the entire interview at www.WorldWrestlingInsanity.com.
JG's Radio Free Insanity is on the air each and every Friday. James
Guttman's book, World Wrestling Insanity, is available at Amazon.com
for pre-order.