Former TNA World Heavyweight Champion Ethan Carter III recently spoke to Ring Rust Radio about his career, morale in the locker room and more. You can listen to the full interview here and read some highlights below.
The vibe in the TNA locker room:
“I think the talents been there and the creative has been on point. A lot of the guys that are getting the chance now that might not have before are either new, or I don’t want to say weren’t getting it before, but weren’t embracing the opportunity they had. No one is bigger than the business or bigger than the company. We are all gears in the machine and these guys wanted to be gears so bad that when they got put in the machine, they have been knocking it out. The locker room as it stands right now, the morale is high, everyone is in it together, it’s a team atmosphere and we are very proud of what we are doing. I think that shows in the product. Right now there are no bad eggs per say, no downers, and no frowny faces. Everyone is very excited to go to work and achieve something.”
Daniel Bryan’s retirement:
“Daniel Bryan the man is one of the best dudes ever. He is the best dude, I don’t know how to describe it. He is the most well-respected wrestler and just the best dude. Can I say best dude again because I will, he is the best dude. It’s very unfortunate to lose a guy especially because we don’t even know if he hit prime with how good he was. Concussions are scary and dangerous, this business is dangerous, and we lost one of our best, if not the best. It’s very sad, but I am very happy because I know that guy will succeed no matter what he does. Hope for him to have a great future which I know he will, and he’s got a hot wife so what can really go wrong? I’ll miss him dearly, but I mean what a legacy he left. A trendsetter who broke down the doors to so many different things; a model of inspiration to anyone who loves wrestling or wanted to be a pro wrestler. Bless him and Godspeed DB.”
Kurt Angle inspiring him to get into wrestling:
“I only got into wrestling because of Kurt Angle. He was my favorite at the time when I was in my early teens and I wanted to do what he did for a living. So he was a guy I was watching and studying, so someday I would have the chance to be able to work with him at a high level for a world title. That was my dream match and I got to have it. So seeing him go sucks, and it really does suck because we all respect him greatly. He’s a cool uncle in the locker room; we love him and were going to miss him. Working with him is a great honor in my life, and not only working with him, but being able to go out there and tell a story of him symbolically passing me the torch. From the things he said to me afterwards and the care he took with me, telling me things, talking business, talking shop, he didn’t need to do any of that and he went out of his way to really help me out and stick up for me. He helped pay the way for me, so to speak. I have nothing but respect, love and admiration for Kurt Angle. I’m going to miss him and especially going to miss because I want to have one more match and I didn’t get to have it so that’s unfortunate.”
