Chris Jericho says his goal is to help elevate young talent in AEW.
Throughout his time in AEW, Chris Jericho has worked with young stars, such as Sammy Guevara, Daniel Garcia, and MJF. He recently started a storyline with FTW Champion HOOK.
Speaking on Gabby AF, Chris Jericho discussed his current program with HOOK and noted that things were “thrown into a loop” when Kenny Omega, his tag team partner, was taken out of action. (H/t Andrew Thompson of POST Wrestling for the transcription)
“Yeah, well, things got kind of thrown into a loop storyline-wise when Kenny (Omega) got sick and so, you do the best you can when you have to switch midstream and we kind of did the best we could with the Don Callis story and then it was kind of time to go into something new.
“The idea of working with HOOK was something I had thought about for a while and it just really kind of seemed to fit with the match that we had at Revolution with the eight-man Scramble and HOOK was in that,” Chris Jericho said. “I thought, well let’s do something with this and the story’s just beginning. But, I think we got some good ideas and some good stuff going on. That’s kind of what my mission in AEW has been since day one is to do the best I can to elevate the younger guys and in contrary to popular belief, which you might see, it usually works.”
Chris Jericho: Usually, When People Work With Me, They End Up On A Higher Platform
Chris Jericho continued by stating that, most of the time, people end up on a higher platform when they work with him. He named several examples, including MJF and his former stablemates. Jericho then shared his belief that he can help take HOOK to the next level.
“Most of the time when people work with me, they end up on a higher platform than they were prior,” Chris Jericho said. “If you look at Orange Cassidy to Darby Allin to MJF… (Powerhouse) Hobbs and (Konosuke) Takeshita and all those guys. The list goes on and on and on. Even the guys in The Inner Circle and the Jericho Appreciation Society. I mean, look at Dani Garcia now compared to where he was a year ago.
“So, I think HOOK is another guy we’ve done a lot with, I think we can do some more with and add some depth to him and give him a little bit more experience because you’re only as good as the guys that you’re in the ring with and if you look at HOOK versus Samoa Joe, I think that’s probably the best match he’s ever had because Joe has such experience. I think with the experience that I have and then working with HOOK and his persona’s so unique and I think he’s lightning in a bottle, something that we can really get to the next level and that’s kind of what my idea is for this story.”
Chris Jericho Responds To Criticism
Chris Jericho then responded to some critics who have argued that Daniel Garcia has grown since he parted ways with Jericho. He then highlighted the way Matt Menard and Angelo Parker grew through working with him.
“That’s the thing when people are like, ‘Oh, Dani Garcia, once he got away from Jericho, he really started to blossom’ but it’s like, that’s where he kind of learned and got that confidence,” Chris Jericho said. “When he first came into the Jericho Appreciation Society, I had those guys come in because the storyline worked. I didn’t know anything about any of them to be honest with you. (Angelo) Parker, (Matt) Menard and ‘Cool Hand Ang’, ‘Daddy Magic’. There was no Daddy Magic prior. It was Matt Menard. There was no Cool Hand Ang. It was Jeff Parker and the first thing I said was, ‘You guys gotta change your names…’”
After noting that they were different once they changed their outfits, Jericho described how Garcia’s run in the Jericho Appreciation Society helped him grow as a performer.
“Dani’s a sports entertainer. When he said that he got heat, well, ‘I’ll try dancing.’ Dude, you need to entertain,” Chris Jericho said. “Once again, great matches are important but character is everything. The dance put him into a completely different level. That wasn’t there before he was in Jericho Appreciation Society so, all of those things work to help build your persona and like I said, that’s something that I’m very proud of Dani for; what he’s able to do because he’s not the same performer he was two years ago when he first came into the JAS.
Chris Jericho is set to face HOOK on the March 20 episode of AEW Dynamite. WrestleZone will have coverage of the show as it airs on Wednesday.
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