On dropping weight to enter tournament
I received the opportunity from a tryout I had back in February. In my mind, I was just going to test my worth as a wrestler to see what critics thought of me, because I was still wrestling for Ring of Honor at the time. During the tryout, I was pulled aside and asked, hey, could you drop some weight, because at the time I was weighing about 225-230. They said could you drop some weight because your style fits well with this Cruiserweight thing we have in the works. I said, yeah! I’ll lose the weight as soon as I get home! I’ll start working on it asap! And from that point on, it’s been a journey of busting my butt nonstop to get down to this 205.
On dream match
I would love to have a match with Dolph Ziggler. I am just a huge fan of his work. I’ve never seen a bad Dolph Ziggler have a bad match. Never. I’ve never watched a Dolph Ziggler match and say that was bad. He’s just too good. He does things in the ring that most guys just don’t do. He’s just awesome. I’m just a huge Dolph Ziggler fan, and he’s just amazing to watch.
On leaving ROH:
I actually told ROH about the tryout I was having. Everything was cool, and the cruiserweight thing was just a one-time shot from what I understood, so we’ll do this, but ROH is still there. But at some point, we just decided that it’s better that I focus on one thing and not try to do [multiple] things at once. We left on good terms, and if a time ever shows up that I can come back, then I will.
On expectations for the Cruiserweight Classic
- I’ll probably be one of the highest-flying, hardest-hitting guys in the ring. You can expect me to win this cruiserweight classic, because I lost 22 pounds to get in this bad boy, and I’m not going to do that for nothing. I’m coming out for a win.
**On a related note, WWE Cruiserweight Classic competitor Tony Nese spoke with Wrestlezone’s Bill Pritchard following his big win at EVOLVE 63 that earned him a spot in the WWE Cruiserweight Classic.
Nese defeated TJP, Drew Gulak, Lince Dorado, and Johnny Gargano (other EVOLVE roster members who have qualified for the WWE CWC) in a 5 Man Elimination match as part of EVOLVE’s “WWE Cruiserweight Challenge Flashpoint”. He talks about how he’s feeling about the tournament and what it means to him; you can watch Nese’s comments in the player below.
