As one-third of the reigning Ring of Honor World Six-Man Tag Team Champions, it’s safe to say that “The Baddest of All Time” Shane Taylor is looking forward to the company’s Best in the World pay-per-view this weekend. In an interview with Wrestlezone, Taylor shared his thoughts on the show and expressed his excitement for the buzzworthy pay-per-view.
On Sunday, ROH will welcome live fans back for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic. Most of the company’s roster has grown accustomed to performing in an empty arena, but Shane Taylor Promotions has already gotten used to competing in front of crowds again through the group’s work on the independent scene. Taylor made it clear that, as a result, the champions might have an advantage at the pay-per view because they won’t be thrown off by the presence of live fans.
“I’m excited,” said Taylor. “Luckily for us, for myself, Kaun, Moses, O’Shay, everybody in STP, we’ve been around the country doing shows, doing independent shows as well. So we’ve gotten acclimated to having fans back, but there’s nothing like that Ring of Honor atmosphere, there’s nothing like the Ring of Honor fans that just bring just bring so much passion, so much joy, so much excitement to what we do, and that’s what makes these events so special.
“So being back in front of these fans is gonna have us at a whole new level, it’s gonna us hyped. But I think from a combat standpoint, from a game plan standpoint, for people who haven’t been in front of crowds like we have, maybe there’s those nerves. Maybe they’ll find themselves a little flustered now that they’ve got all those eyes on them again, you know what I mean? So we’re gonna use that to our advantage and we’re gonna prove why we are the best in the world.”
As for his match at the pay-per-view on Sunday, Taylor previewed the bout by crediting the credentials of his challengers. Dalton Castle is a former ROH World Champion, and Dak Draper won the Top Prospect Tournament. Plus, Isom had a remarkable run in the Survival of the Fittest tournament and is often viewed as one of the company’s brightest stars. Taylor described how it might be easy to focus on the fact that this trio hasn’t teamed up before, but this lack of experience makes the challengers a tough opponent.
“Sometimes opposites attract,” said Taylor. “I mean so for us, a team like Dalton Castle, Eli Isom and Dak Draper, are almost in some ways more dangerous than a team that knows each other, right, because teams that know each other, they have tendencies. Even us, we have tendencies, we have go-tos, we know what the other person is thinking. Sometimes, if you’re on your game, a team can take advantage of that because sometimes you can be predictable. But with a team like we’re facing at Best in the World, we’ve never seen them together. So there is no tape. We know what they can do individually, but who knows how they’re gonna act when it hits the fan?
“So for us, for people from the outside looking in, it looks like, ‘Oh, well they’ve got no chance.’ But you’re talking about three world-class athletes, a former champion in Dalton Castle, three of the best athletes in ROH, so you have to take every contender seriously. Whoever is in front of you is the number one threat so for us, it’s gonna be sticking to our game plan, doing what we do, imposing our will, trying to shut down the grappling of Danton, the grappling of Dak, the high-flying of Eli, and imposing our will as STP does.”
While Taylor acknowledged the risks of facing an untested team, he also expressed his confidence in the game plan that has turned Shane Taylor Promotions into the most dominant trio in ROH today. He pointed out that, at least up to this point, nobody has managed to overcome their strategy, and he doesn’t expect this streak to end on Sunday.
“Well the beauty of our plan is, essentially like [Mike] Tyson said, everybody has one until they get punched in the mouth,” said Taylor. “And luckily, we punch people in the mouth very well and very hard. So for me, my game plan, throughout my entire career, has been centered on, I’m gonna punch you in the face until you decide you no longer want to get up. So for me, it’s everything that I do can be based on that. And we can change things up as we need to depending on the situation, right?
“But our game plan is no secret. We walk in and we tell everybody exactly what we’re going to do. And as of yet, nobody has stopped it. I’m sure the day will come, but I don’t think it’s gonna be this Sunday.”
The full interview is available here:
