Shinsuke Nakamura is probably one of the best wrestlers I've ever been in the ring with. He's very unorthodox. Everything he does is with knockout power. He's a guy who is very flamboyant, so don't let his Michael Jackson antics fool you. This guy is deadly.
When you're an independent wrestler, committing a lot of time and effort into honing your craft as much as possible in as many different places as possible will catch the WWE's interest as far as the independent level goes.
I've been over to Japan a handful of times, and the fans there are some of the best. So supportive, so appreciative, genuinely excited to meet the wrestlers they watch.
When I was first started, when I was eighteen, I wrestled for a company that had a very hardcore fanbase and demanded a lot from its wrestlers. So, every single match, I would do every move possible. I would land on the concrete floor; I would land really high on my head just to try to impress the fans.
When I was nine years old and dreamed of being a pro wrestler, the thing I was most fascinated by was how much love the wrestlers got.
I was a 19 year old kid; I was 170 lbs soaking wet. I didn't have an identity. I didn't have a look. I didn't have the proper gear. I was just a young guy trying to be a wrestler. So, to be honest, WWE didn't even give me a second look.
Without Ring of Honor, I wouldn't be the wrestler I am or have the confidence needed to continue to grow in this ever-challenging sport.
For anyone watching Ring of Honor out of the gate, they knew when they were watching an ROH event that they were watching a different level of wrestler from what they had seen.
There are good wrestlers, great wrestlers, and special wrestlers.
I like to think I've always been a good wrestler.
