Matt Taven recently spoke with Interactive Wrestling Radio; you can read a few highlights below:
Matt Taven comments on facing Cody Rhodes at Ring Of Honor 16th Anniversary, if it establishes him at the top of ROH:
“Of course I am. People sing the praises of this guy. For what reason? Because he hit the genetic lottery and his dad was someone? I cannot wait to get on pay per view, show everybody what a Melvin he is, and at the end, take the ring, shove it against his face and he’ll know who the King is!”
“I’ve always felt I deserve to be there. This Kingdom conspiracy thing, it is not just me putting stuff online. I truly believe that. There is a movement against me and the Kingdom in general. I mean, I’ve won every single title Ring of Honor has had to offer. In the 5 years I’ve been with Ring of Honor, I’ve had 2 World Title shots. Two of them! One ended with interference from Truth Martini. The other had interference from Frankie Kazarian. What has Ring of Honor done about it? Absolutely nothing. They’re so, so (kissing noise) making sure to kiss that ass of the Bulelt Club, Ring of Honor is letting guys like me fall to the wasteside. They give title opportunities to guys like Cody Rhodes come in here, think that he is someone for no reason. It is a shame. It is a conspiracy like I’ve said. But, live on pay per view, I get to embarrass that bleached blond doll and let everybody know that if Ring of Honor continues to hold me down, it is obvious this company has a bias against me and is obviously pushing this Bullet Club agenda.”
Taven comments on NXT being ‘ROH Lite’:
“I couldn’t agree more. Our touring schedule and their touring schedule is starting to cross paths to where maybe they hit a market a week before we hit that market. That is on purpose. Taking talent from Ring of Honor? That is all on purpose. I basically look at NXT as ROH Lite. I wish for every wrestling company to be as successful as possible. There is something that ROH is obviously doing right if the top dog is trying to hurt them. That is something that they’ve (WWE) has tried to do a few times. It just lets us know that we (ROH) are doing something right. And, ROH has been resilient. I first started working here in 2009 doing stuff. I started working more consistently in 2012. But, in my 9 years, wow I feel old saying that, in my 9 years, I’ve seen them come and go. And still, ROH continues to get bigger and continues to grow and grow and reach broader audiences. As much as I love my buds, it shows ROH is doing something right if WWE is trying to bite their style so much.”
Taven comments on Konnan and Sami Callihan saying they want to see Impact work with ROH:
“I’ve never really thought too much about it. Obviously TNA has had to do some rebuilding and they’ve gotten back on their feet. I’m very very happy for them. I have a lot of friends there as well. It seems like one of those things where Ring of Honor, New Japan, and CMLL have this partnership that is a triangle that is working really well around the world. If you (Impact) is trying to get back on your feet, you’re going to want to be a part of that. (laughs) This is the first time I’m really hearing this. I don’t know if it would be a smart business move for Ring of Honor considering they are on this upward trend and they (ROH) are doing it already without any help from another, and I know they’re Canadian based but really another American company. To be honest, I never see that partnership coming to fruition. But, you never say never in wrestling.”
Taven comments on what ROH’s anniversary means to him:
“To be a cornerstone of this company for the past 5 years, it is a sense of pride and a badge of honor. A friend of mine, actually my girlfriend, said to me something the other day that really put things in perspective. She was like, “I remember you doing your firt pay per view.” That was in 2014 and now we’re going into New Orleans, already over 5,000 tickets have been sold. Like you said, that Nashville taping. It just keeps growing and growing and growing. And even though there are things that people think will deter us, it hasn’t stopped us at all. There is obviously a sense of pride. We want to be on that level where we’re as big of stars as everyone else in the wrestling world. Until we’re there, we’re not going to be satisfied.”
