10 Things WWE Fans Need To Know About Abyss

8. Dutch Mantell Helped Him Put The Abyss Gimmick Together

Before he was tearing it up in quirky new TNA pay-per-view concepts with AJ Styles, Abyss spent ample time in Puerto Rico for Victor Quiñones' IWA promotion.

That's where he met creative guru Dutch Mantell, and it changed the entire course of his career. According to Abyss in an interview with Vulture Hound, both men bashed their heads together and came up with menacing new persona in early-2002; Dutch had spotted the then-Justice at TNA's first weekly taping.

Just as he had done years earlier for Steve Austin and countless others, Mantell used his creativity to challenge the big lunk and make him think outside the box. Clearly, Abyss was a passion project for both men, because Dutch helped him "fine tune" the uniqueness of the guise.

That's something that has always stuck with Abyss throughout his career. He's immensely thankful that someone as experienced as Mantell was took the time out to ensure he was catered for in a foreign country miles away from home.