Wardlow reflects on AEW Double or Nothing 2022, noting that what was meant to be his big breakout moment was hampered by plenty of things that were out of his control.
“Mr. Mayhem” faced MJF at the pay-per-view in a match that was the culmination of a storyline that was over two years in the making. Fans were buzzing about the bout ahead of the show, but the day before the event, it was derailed by controversy surrounding MJF. The Dynamite Diamond Ring winner no-showed a meet and greet and reportedly a ticket of town booked, but he didn’t get on the plane. Though he wasn’t seen backstage a few hours before the show, he appeared as advertised at the pay-per-view, where Wardlow squashed him in an anti-climactic match.
Speaking with Stephanie Chase of Digital Spy, the reigning TNT Champion looked back on the match and expressed his disappointment with the way various factors “ruined it.”
“That should be considered one of the best nights of my life and it really wasn’t,” Wardlow said. “Everything that was going on with Max at the time and then in my life personally. Just nothing was going right and it’s kind of sad that everything built up to this big night and there was so much that ruined it.
“All the crap with Max and everything he was pulling. I mean, I showed up that day not knowing if I was wrestling. There’s a lot more I could say about it but I don’t want to get angry but yeah, that should have been one of the best nights of my life and obviously the outcome was amazing but I really didn’t ever have the opportunity to enjoy it.”
While he went on to win the TNT Championship in July, the powerhouse noted that things have been “off” since Double or Nothing, and he has been trying to get back on track.
“I feel like ever since that night things have kind of been just off and I feel like I’m still trying to get back on track ever since that night and we’ll get there,” said Wardlow. “But it is what it is, in this in life and in this business, not everything goes perfectly.”
.@AEW’s @RealWardlow spoke to me about his match with MJF at Double or Nothing: "Everything built up to this big night and there was so much that ruined it"https://t.co/6wSa2HVP6I pic.twitter.com/yKWkzfuu5P
— Stephanie Chase (@stephaniemchase) August 29, 2022
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