Tommy Dreamer Interview: IMPACT's Resurgence, Victory Road, His Career & More
What were your thoughts going into your match with Brian Meyers this past Saturday at Victory Road?
Dreamer: Brian was kind of like a son to me. A lot of wrestlers out there consider me their wrestling father. This situation heated up pretty quickly. Brian came in after not being used in other places with a chip on his shoulder which I totally get because I've been there a long time ago, but if you're going to bill yourself The Most Professional Professional and you're doing stuff behind the scenes... stuff that happens behind the scenes is a big factor as to why guys and girls get what they get in the wrestling business.
He had an unfortunate situation happen in the back and it kind of escalated further and now we're having a back. He's somebody that I hired into WWE straight out of college and the former Zack Ryder and for us to be going at it in a more heated way, I'd rather have a better wrestling match with him or tag with him. But it's escalated quickly.
You've also had the chance to work with Eric Young recently. What have you noticed is different about these guys since their respective returns to IMPACT compared to when you've worked with them in the past?
Dreamer: I was there in 2009 when I left the WWE. I bet on myself as well and I had like four and a half years left on a contract, but I wasn't happy doing something I had loved doing for so long. I understand [Myers and Young] and I appreciate them. You look at someone like Eric Young who has gone on record and said that with all the programming that WWE has, around 11 hours a week, you can't find six minutes for him on that television show? You're doing yourself and the rest of the wrestling fans a disservice. Eric has an unbridled passion for this business as well as he has a chip on his shoulder to prove why others were wrong. I love it because I've been there as well as it helps the company. He's been on this path. He's been the champion and you think about how he hasn't been wrestling for almost two years and literally getting paid not to wrestle somewhere else to show the world how talented you are.
I've always looked at this business from a sports mindset. Cool, not everyone's going to, but some people need change. You look at football, baseball, basketball, hockey. You name it, they go to a different team, they're a different player, it's a different management style, it's a different fan base, and the best part about this is wrestling fans get to see this. It makes everyone step up in the locker room because it's like, “Wow, all these other guys are coming in there.” Competition for TV time, that's the nature of the game. You also have guys and girls who are under a different system who have never been in WWE or that system and that helps them learn. Not only that, but you see the return of The Motor City Machine Guns. It put new life into IMPACT Wrestling and like I said, WWE's loss is IMPACT and wrestling fans' gain because the company has been firing on all cylinders.