Son Of An Elvis Impersonator: Roderick Strong Talks His Early Days And Future In Wrestling

When WWE fans saw Roderick Strong make his debut in NXT as Austin Aries’ partner in the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Tournament it was a long time coming. The Messiah of the Backbreaker started his career in the Florida independent scene following in his father’s footsteps. Strong’s father wrestled with an Elvis gimmick and although he doesn’t get in the ring anymore, he still performs whenever he can as a full-fledged Elvis impersonator.

Roderick Strong recently spoke to the Miami Herald where he went into the beginnings of his career and discussed how surreal it is for him at times when NXT visits his old stomping grounds.

Strong says, “A lot of the towns are very similar. Some I haven’t wrestled in seven years, and I got there and I’m like, ‘Oh my God.’ Dejavu. It’s awesome to see that the crowds are thriving, and they’re getting an opportunity to see a lot of younger [NXT Talent], who are eventually going to make their way to NXT TV and possible the WWE main roster. It’s awesome to be a part of that.”

Roderick began accompanying his father to watch him train with Jim Neidhart when he was a young boy. “My parents were separated at the time, and my dad couldn’t afford a baby-sitter, so he said, ‘Hey- you’re gonna come watch.’ That’s when I really fell in love with it. It was something that I watched when I was younger and then seeing it done in front of me, I became infatuated with it… when they let me in the ring, I was hooked.”

Roderick was trained by his father and Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart as a young boy because nobody could keep him out of the ring.

“I had the chance to wrestle Hector Guerrero when I was younger. I was around a lot of talented guys and took a little bit from everybody.”

Strong wrestled under a mask when he was underage but once he turned 18, he shed the hood and started making a real name for himself. Ron Niemi, who ran IPW Hardcore and NWA Florida used Strong frequently early on in his career. Niemi contacted people like Zandig, Fat Frank, and Blue Meanie about Roderick and he was booked in many more promotions after that including CZW, JAPW, and 3PW which eventually landed him in Ring of Honor. The rest as they say, is history.

Strong spoke briefly about how he ended up under WWE’s umbrella in NXT: “I had been wrestling all over the world for 15 years, and I had been a mainstay in Ring of Honor for almost 13 years. I had a tryout with WWE before in 2014. I’ve communicated with Regal. Just about timing of everything. I got a phone call from them. They were interested, and obviously I was interested, and here I am today.”

Roderick said he has a few goals for WWE which include capturing the NXT Title and then making a successful jump to the main roster to grab a WWE World Title. When asked if appearing at a WrestleMania was on his list Strong responded, “of course, multiple WrestleManias. Not just one.”