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August 13, 2010

Rob Van Dam video interview

Here is an interview I conducted with TNA star Rob Van Dam last Saturday at The National Sports Collectors Convention at The Baltimore Convention Center. The interview was done the day before the Hardcore Justice pay-per-view, and RVD at that point was still expecting to face Jerry Lynn, who ended up having to pull out of the match due to a back injury.

Posted by Kevin Eck at 3:40 PM | | Comments (5)
Categories: Video interviews
        

Comments

Sure you heard, man...but Lance Cade is dead. Heart failure. 29. Geez

Once again, your rabid anti-TNA bias comes shining through. Former WWE diva Mickie James gets two parts, but current TNA champion Rob Van Dam only gets six minutes?

Also, let's be clear: Whining about a reporter being biased against a particular wrestling organization is pretty much as pathetic as it gets. And finding said reporter's opinion to be "biased" kind of misses the point -- it's an opinion, people.

So, in conclusion, Peter Schmuck rulez!1!!1

As much as RVD likes to project the cool, down to earth, stoner-friendly laid back image to his fans, he just seems like he really is a pompous stuck-up selfish d-bag. A few things in this interview really tick me off as a wrestling fan.
Firstly, NO RVD, wrestling is NOT about you "showing off" it's about telling a story and playing a character within that story that fans can connect with. No wonder RVD didn't reach his full potential in WWE. RVD's matches seem overly choreographed and it doesn't seem like much thought goes into the sequencing of moves and now we know why. The guy has no respect for the story-telling and give-and-take psychology of a wrestling match. If showing off is all he wants to do he'd be better off as a Las Vegas acrobat rather than a professional wrestling performer.
Secondly, how unprofessional is it of him to admit he goes to the ring and doesn't really care about what he's about to say. Can you ever imagine John Cena, Triple H, Edge or The Undertaker EVER saying anything as selfish as that? No wonder they are where they are, and he is where he is.
Thirdly, yes it IS a business and RVD and Jeff Hardy do have bigger name value than the AJ Styles' of this world. Guess what, it's because VINCE MCMAHON promoted them on HIS television show. Yes of COURSE the TNA guys would be p***ed at them taking their spots and rightfully so! TNA is bringing in guys that WWE built and then pushing them ahead of their home grown guys because they have a bigger name value. Guess what, keep doing that and AJ Styles, Samoa Joe, etc will NEVER be in a position to draw the kind of money Hardy and RVD draw. Simply saying that himself and Hardy are bigger draws doesn't solve the problem, it only makes it worse!

I'm done with RVD. He's overrated and has no respect for storytelling in the ring. I'd much rather watch someone like John Cena who has1% of the talent that RVD possesses but 100 times the heart.

Could you smell the pot on him?

His response to your question about AJ and the TNA original's reaction to the ECW PPV was very interesting. The tone with which he answered that seemed a little confrontational, and maybe a bit egotistical.

I wonder though after watching Thursday night's Impact if that was sort of a worked response - like, he shifted into character and made those comments within the storyline they're running now. I could see why AJ and the other's in Fortune would be ticked at the ECW guys with comments like that!

True, it's a business, but he basically implied that AJ and the others don't draw any fans. He could have answered that question while still putting them over, but instead he made it sound like himself and Jeff Hardy are the only things worth watching in TNA.

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About Kevin Eck
The Baltimore Sun's Kevin Eck blogs about professional wrestling.
E-mail Kevin.
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