WSVN-TV Entertainment Reporter Chris Van Vliet recently spoke to NXT Superstar Johnny Gargano, and the following highlights have been issued:
What it was like being part of WWE’s Match of the Year (#DIY vs. The Revival at NXT TakeOver Toronto):
“After TakeOver Brooklyn we realized we have something special here with Revival. Our styles and everything about us just kind of mesh really well. And after we had that match in Brooklyn, we were going to 2 out of 3 falls in Toronto and in that moment, looking around, it felt really special. I always watch the old WWE video packages and you see the crowd going nuts and you go ‘wow, that’s amazing’ and now to be a person that actually caused that is mind blowing to me.”
How he developed chemistry with his tag team partner Tommaso Ciampa:
“We were kind of thrown into a tag team together but we always had chemistry as opponents. We were always really good against each other. So the first time we ever teamed together was on NXT television. It’s funny because we’ve been tagging for a year and a half at this point. I feel like just now recently we just started hitting our stride. It takes like a good solid year of teaming together to get to know each other and now we live together and we’re with each other all the time. We kind of caught lightning in a bottle. We are so different in real life and opposites attract in that sense and we just bring something completely new to the table.”
How his wrestling style has changed since coming to WWE:
“I learn something new every single day. I think if you’re in this profession you can never stop learning. Especially with the minds around us at the Performance Center on a daily basis… I think the main thing for us here is when you do indies you have one little camera, it might even be a phone sometimes that you’re kind of wrestling for and you kind of wrestle more for the live audience. In the grand spectrum of things in WWE, you are wrestling for that camera, and that camera, and that camera and all the cameras they have and you have to make things work that way because through that camera there’s a million people watching.”
His first appearance in WWE:
“I was Cedrick Von Haussen. I was 19 years old. I was basically a child (laughs). I got there that day and I didn’t know what I was going to do and they took me to wardrobe because they said they had a costume for me. Then they bring me like the Kiebler Elf outfit. It went so well, but it’s so intimidating especially as a 19-year old to be just thrown in that environment. It’s cool to look back now that everything has gone so well.”
Advice for aspiring wrestlers who want to get signed by WWE:
“The thing I try to preach the most when anybody asks me for advice, I say just be a good person first and foremost. Be a good dude. That’s the main objective I try to get across. Because if you’re passionate and you work hard and you’re driven, anything is possible. I’m living proof anything is possible. So if you’re a good person and you work hard, I believe ultimately things are meant to happen to good people.”
Will he pursue a singles career in WWE?
“I’ve always been a singles guy. I know Tommaso’s always been a singles guy. I’m a singles guy in my heart but I’m just going to take whatever comes to me. I believe #DIY is something special, I believe we can bring a lot of different things to the table.”
Working with HHH in NXT:
“HHH is very hands on. It’s his baby. And that’s mind blowing to me because I grew up thinking HHH was the man. He has such an amazing mind and he has such an amazing vision for NXT as you can see from the product, it’s amazing. It’s really special and it’s cool to be a part of something like this.”
What he calls HHH:
“Me and Tommaso call him Uncle H sometimes. We feel like he’s our uncle. He’s our fun uncle.”
Nick was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and lived there until the age of 18, when he decided to pack his flack jacket and move to New York City.
