Smartmark
03-20-2010, 02:40 AM
College News: Your listed at 5’ 9” and 183 pounds. How challenging is it to be one of the few “little guys” in the WWE?
Evan Bourne: Well, obviously, the disadvantages are that you can get crushed very easily by the giants like the Big Show’s and the Mark Henry’s. But I’m used to hanging around giants and midgets and people of all different shapes and sizes. So that’s not really what intimidates me and I really try to enjoy the role of the underdog and use that to my advantage.
CN: Growing up, when did you know wanted to become a wrestler?
EB: When I was about fifteen, I was really into “Monday Night Raw” and that developed into me loving all sorts of wrestling and, eventually, imitating it. When I was 17-years-old, I started wrestling at a local place in St. Louis just for fun and I’ve just never stopped wrestling. I’ve never taken a weekend off, I’ve never not found a match, and I’ve never not found a competitor to wrestle.
CN: Throughout your career you’ve wrestled across America, Europe, and Japan. What are some of your favorite venues or cities to perform at?
EB: Wow. Domestically, I love wrestling in Chicago. I feel I grew up and learned how to wrestle in that city and have a real special bond there. The fans are awesome. The east coast wrestling fans are absolutely insane! West coast fans are a completely different breed but they’re just as cool, so I really like wrestling out in places like San Jose. When I was in Japan though, there were a couple places that really stood out like Kobe, which was my hometown when I lived in Japan. There’s something about a nice small town in Japan. The people there embraced me and really led me to where I am today.
CN: It’s a pretty grueling travel schedule in the WWE. What do you and the other wrestlers do for fun when you’re on the road that much?
EB: Sunday night movie night is always a fun one. After a live event on Sunday, we’ll typically drive a couple hundred miles to where Monday Night Raw is, but if we get out a little early and we got our work-out in before the show, we’ll go see a movie and then drive to the next city.
CN: You’re one of many WWE stars that have taken to Twitter recently. How do you think that kind of interactive social platform affects your career or popularity?
EB: There are definitely a couple things that go along with being on Twitter. In wrestling, the fans are always interacting with each other when they watch us wrestle, so they’re yelling at their buddy, etc. So it’s a very interactive experience, and for fans to go online and send us a Twitter message? I think that instant access is what brings us all together. It’s great! I love for the fans to give immediate feedback and let us know how much fun they’re having at the shows, who they’re enjoying and whose t-shirts they’re going to buy.
It’s great in so many ways. It even helps me keep track of my travels! I don’t keep a log or a diary to keep track of what I’m doing, but now I can go back and check my Twitter and see what I was doing in Boise, Idaho or see the picture of me, Santino Marella and Yoshi Tatsu on top of Flatrock, when we climbed a mountain on a day we had a couple hours off. It’s great, in that sense, for posterity’s sake.
CN: The Shooting Star Press is a pretty dangerous maneuver. Not too many wrestlers even try it. Do you still get nervous attempting it?
EB: Yeah, it’s always scary because the top rope is a variable. I know I’m going to overcome my fear and I’m going to jump, but what I’m standing on is pretty much two pieces of rope tied together and taped over. Maybe there have been guys before me that have been sweating and bleeding all over the place and maybe that’s on my shoe or it’s on the top rope. Or maybe its baby oil, who knows what it could be?
Anything that could make me slip could be the end of my career. So every time I go up there, I’m extremely serious. This is the “do not try it at home” type of stuff, but I do it every night because that’s how I win matches. That’s what the fans come to see, regardless of if I’m worried. I’ve had to stand on one side of the rope or jump off sideways. Everybody likes to think they guy’s just going to be laying there for me, but that’s never the case. When you’re flying off the top rope he’s never where you want him to be. Sometimes I just throw caution to the wind and go for it.
CN: Those who are familiar with wrestling know the significance of performing at Wrestlemania. What does Wrestlemania mean to you?
EB: Wrestlemania to me is a pivot point. I’ve spend the last ten years trying to make it in wrestling and get some recognition. Now I’m at a stage where I can grab that recognition in one night, where I can cement my name in wrestling history. From then on, I have a reputation to live up to, to the standard I set at Wrestlemania that will continue on through the rest of 2010. My role in WWE is only going to grow and expand and I’m really going to give the fans their entertainment dollar’s worth.
CN: After participating in last year’s Wrestlemania as a lumberjack you’re competing this time around in now-annual Money in the Bank Ladder Match against some stiff opposition. With a suitcase suspended high above the ring, nine superstars will battle each other as well as gravity in order to secure what’s inside the case: a guaranteed WWE title match for any time the winner chooses within the next 12 months. What sort of preparation goes into a match like that?
EB: Obviously tape review, that’s just the basics. I’m big on DVDs, and studying your history as well as your opponents. Obviously, I know all my other opponents very well. I’ve wrestled them throughout the years on a number of occasions, but guys like Shelton Benjamin are the guys you have to worry about. I know how explosive and athletic he is. I’m also facing Drew McIntyre, who has no concern for anyone else’s safety except his own.
A ladder is extremely dangerous. I think they’re aluminum these days, but they’re still heavy. The possibilities are endless as to what we can do with them. I’m very fortunate because I have an open mind and I’m very creative and can think on my feet. I may not even have to climb the ladder, I might springboard off a guy’s back toward the ladder and jump up and grab the briefcase and steal the title shot.
Anything can happen in this match. Maybe when I’m on that ladder someone kicks it out of the way and I crash and burn and you won’t see me for six months! This is the reality that we deal with and we are going to take those chances at Wrestlemania. We are absolutely going to make it a pay-per-view that will not be forgotten.
CN: I have to ask. Do you have anything special planned for the match… like say maybe a shooting star press off a ladder?
EB: When you think about it logistically, shooting star presses off ladders don’t make sense in this match because the briefcase is up top. But you never know what opportunities are going to provide you with. In my years of wrestling I have a number of tricks in my back pocket that haven’t been seen in years which might just come out at the right opportunity at Wrestlemania. That’s what everyone should stay tuned for; not what you’ve seen but what you’ve never seen and can’t even expect. At Wrestlemania, we’re going to deliver.
From top to bottom Wrestlemania is going to be a spectacle this year headline with Undertaker versus Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahon against Bret Hart. There are so many attractions to this pay-per-view that anyone will enjoy, whether they’ve been a wrestling fan for the past 25 years or one week or its their first ever event. They’ll become fans for the rest of their lives.
CN: Other than your own, what match at this year’s Wrestlemania are you most looking forward to?
EB: I already mentioned HBK vs. Undertaker because that is THE match, but here’s the match everyone should be looking out for: CM Punk versus Rey Mysterio. I’ve seen Punk wrestle before, but never with this kind of attitude. We just came from San Diego, which is Rey’s hometown and the disgust that those people had for CM Punk is exactly how I feel. Rey Mysterio is the epic hero and at Wrestlemania we all know Rey has something in his back pocket for us. That’s the one that I’ll be glued to the monitors for.
*** Source: College News ***
Evan Bourne: Well, obviously, the disadvantages are that you can get crushed very easily by the giants like the Big Show’s and the Mark Henry’s. But I’m used to hanging around giants and midgets and people of all different shapes and sizes. So that’s not really what intimidates me and I really try to enjoy the role of the underdog and use that to my advantage.
CN: Growing up, when did you know wanted to become a wrestler?
EB: When I was about fifteen, I was really into “Monday Night Raw” and that developed into me loving all sorts of wrestling and, eventually, imitating it. When I was 17-years-old, I started wrestling at a local place in St. Louis just for fun and I’ve just never stopped wrestling. I’ve never taken a weekend off, I’ve never not found a match, and I’ve never not found a competitor to wrestle.
CN: Throughout your career you’ve wrestled across America, Europe, and Japan. What are some of your favorite venues or cities to perform at?
EB: Wow. Domestically, I love wrestling in Chicago. I feel I grew up and learned how to wrestle in that city and have a real special bond there. The fans are awesome. The east coast wrestling fans are absolutely insane! West coast fans are a completely different breed but they’re just as cool, so I really like wrestling out in places like San Jose. When I was in Japan though, there were a couple places that really stood out like Kobe, which was my hometown when I lived in Japan. There’s something about a nice small town in Japan. The people there embraced me and really led me to where I am today.
CN: It’s a pretty grueling travel schedule in the WWE. What do you and the other wrestlers do for fun when you’re on the road that much?
EB: Sunday night movie night is always a fun one. After a live event on Sunday, we’ll typically drive a couple hundred miles to where Monday Night Raw is, but if we get out a little early and we got our work-out in before the show, we’ll go see a movie and then drive to the next city.
CN: You’re one of many WWE stars that have taken to Twitter recently. How do you think that kind of interactive social platform affects your career or popularity?
EB: There are definitely a couple things that go along with being on Twitter. In wrestling, the fans are always interacting with each other when they watch us wrestle, so they’re yelling at their buddy, etc. So it’s a very interactive experience, and for fans to go online and send us a Twitter message? I think that instant access is what brings us all together. It’s great! I love for the fans to give immediate feedback and let us know how much fun they’re having at the shows, who they’re enjoying and whose t-shirts they’re going to buy.
It’s great in so many ways. It even helps me keep track of my travels! I don’t keep a log or a diary to keep track of what I’m doing, but now I can go back and check my Twitter and see what I was doing in Boise, Idaho or see the picture of me, Santino Marella and Yoshi Tatsu on top of Flatrock, when we climbed a mountain on a day we had a couple hours off. It’s great, in that sense, for posterity’s sake.
CN: The Shooting Star Press is a pretty dangerous maneuver. Not too many wrestlers even try it. Do you still get nervous attempting it?
EB: Yeah, it’s always scary because the top rope is a variable. I know I’m going to overcome my fear and I’m going to jump, but what I’m standing on is pretty much two pieces of rope tied together and taped over. Maybe there have been guys before me that have been sweating and bleeding all over the place and maybe that’s on my shoe or it’s on the top rope. Or maybe its baby oil, who knows what it could be?
Anything that could make me slip could be the end of my career. So every time I go up there, I’m extremely serious. This is the “do not try it at home” type of stuff, but I do it every night because that’s how I win matches. That’s what the fans come to see, regardless of if I’m worried. I’ve had to stand on one side of the rope or jump off sideways. Everybody likes to think they guy’s just going to be laying there for me, but that’s never the case. When you’re flying off the top rope he’s never where you want him to be. Sometimes I just throw caution to the wind and go for it.
CN: Those who are familiar with wrestling know the significance of performing at Wrestlemania. What does Wrestlemania mean to you?
EB: Wrestlemania to me is a pivot point. I’ve spend the last ten years trying to make it in wrestling and get some recognition. Now I’m at a stage where I can grab that recognition in one night, where I can cement my name in wrestling history. From then on, I have a reputation to live up to, to the standard I set at Wrestlemania that will continue on through the rest of 2010. My role in WWE is only going to grow and expand and I’m really going to give the fans their entertainment dollar’s worth.
CN: After participating in last year’s Wrestlemania as a lumberjack you’re competing this time around in now-annual Money in the Bank Ladder Match against some stiff opposition. With a suitcase suspended high above the ring, nine superstars will battle each other as well as gravity in order to secure what’s inside the case: a guaranteed WWE title match for any time the winner chooses within the next 12 months. What sort of preparation goes into a match like that?
EB: Obviously tape review, that’s just the basics. I’m big on DVDs, and studying your history as well as your opponents. Obviously, I know all my other opponents very well. I’ve wrestled them throughout the years on a number of occasions, but guys like Shelton Benjamin are the guys you have to worry about. I know how explosive and athletic he is. I’m also facing Drew McIntyre, who has no concern for anyone else’s safety except his own.
A ladder is extremely dangerous. I think they’re aluminum these days, but they’re still heavy. The possibilities are endless as to what we can do with them. I’m very fortunate because I have an open mind and I’m very creative and can think on my feet. I may not even have to climb the ladder, I might springboard off a guy’s back toward the ladder and jump up and grab the briefcase and steal the title shot.
Anything can happen in this match. Maybe when I’m on that ladder someone kicks it out of the way and I crash and burn and you won’t see me for six months! This is the reality that we deal with and we are going to take those chances at Wrestlemania. We are absolutely going to make it a pay-per-view that will not be forgotten.
CN: I have to ask. Do you have anything special planned for the match… like say maybe a shooting star press off a ladder?
EB: When you think about it logistically, shooting star presses off ladders don’t make sense in this match because the briefcase is up top. But you never know what opportunities are going to provide you with. In my years of wrestling I have a number of tricks in my back pocket that haven’t been seen in years which might just come out at the right opportunity at Wrestlemania. That’s what everyone should stay tuned for; not what you’ve seen but what you’ve never seen and can’t even expect. At Wrestlemania, we’re going to deliver.
From top to bottom Wrestlemania is going to be a spectacle this year headline with Undertaker versus Shawn Michaels and Vince McMahon against Bret Hart. There are so many attractions to this pay-per-view that anyone will enjoy, whether they’ve been a wrestling fan for the past 25 years or one week or its their first ever event. They’ll become fans for the rest of their lives.
CN: Other than your own, what match at this year’s Wrestlemania are you most looking forward to?
EB: I already mentioned HBK vs. Undertaker because that is THE match, but here’s the match everyone should be looking out for: CM Punk versus Rey Mysterio. I’ve seen Punk wrestle before, but never with this kind of attitude. We just came from San Diego, which is Rey’s hometown and the disgust that those people had for CM Punk is exactly how I feel. Rey Mysterio is the epic hero and at Wrestlemania we all know Rey has something in his back pocket for us. That’s the one that I’ll be glued to the monitors for.
*** Source: College News ***