My Exclusive Interview With All Elite Wrestling’s John Silver
All Elite Wrestling (AEW) keeps giving us the storylines and action that us professional wrestling fans have been thirsting for. One of the most electrifying stars in AEW right now is John Silver, I had the pleasure to speak with Silver on the eve of his big match at tomorrow night's (May 11, 2022) AEW Dynamite, where Silver will go face to face against the one and only CM Punk, inside the beautiful new UBS Arena on Long Island.
John Silver has been in wrestling for over 15 years, making his pro debut in 2007. Silver spent time honing his craft with New York Wrestling Connection (NYWC), Combat Zone Wrestling (CZW), Chikara, Pro Wrestling Guerrilla (PWG), and the WWE, before making his AEW debut in 2019.
Silver, a native of Long Island, is now part of the Dark Order stable in AEW, and on this week's AEW Dynamite, he will face off against the one and only CM Punk at the beautiful new UBS Arena in his true backyard. I asked Silver to describe the feeling of performing on such a huge stage
"It's huge, it's a fantastic arena, and I'm wrestling one of the biggest stars in professional wrestling, so..it's pretty awesome! I don't have to fly somewhere the day before and stay in some hotel, I can drive! I'm literally 15 minutes away, and i get to perform in front of my friends and family, and the fans that have been watching me on the independent wrestling scene since I was 16 years old."
I then asked Silver what the inspiration was behind his "Johnny Hungee" war-cry catchphrase, is it a warning to his opponent?
"I guess? I mean, it's something that I say in my normal life, hahaha, I get hungry and I say..hey guys...we need to eat, cuz..Johnny hungee! It's funny, you say something on your YouTube Channel, and then the next week, you have a whole arena chanting it at you, it's pretty cool."
AEW's roster includes one of my all-time favorites, Jake "The Snake" Roberts, among many true legends of the squared circle. I asked Silver what was the best advice that he'd received from his legendary co-workers.
"Maximize everything you do, make sure they remember that you were there. Make sure that you make people laugh, make people smile, make them sad, whatever it may be in. Whether it's a half hour match, or a 30 second run-in, maximize the moment. The great thing is, a lot of my legendary co-workers could, you know, just keep to themselves, or, just show up, do the work, and take off, but they don't, they help you get better, they like to help, it's pretty awesome."
I had to ask Silver one last question, what can we expect in his match against CM Punk on AEW Dynamite?
"You can expect me to beat him up! That's what I'm gonna do. I'm going to go in there and beat him up, a lot of people don't expect it, but I'm going to prove a point, I'm going to beat him up, and I'm going to win, that's what's going to happen."
I hope so, straight edge irritates the hell out of me. Thank you for your time, John!
AEW Dynamite is live Wednesday nights on TBS at 8 PM, and this week it's live from the beautiful new UBS Arena on Long Island, tickets are still available at AEWTIX.com.
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