Chad Gable Looking Forward to Facing Andrade Tonight, Talks King of the Ring Tournament

– Chad Gable spoke with PWInsider for a new interview discussing his King of the Ring quarterfinals match tonight against Andrade and more. Some highlights are below:

On being among the competitors in the King of the Ring tournament: “It was a surprise to me too, my friend. I just, sometimes we find out when the fans do and I was totally fine with that. Because once I saw my name in there, I was very excited, as you can imagine. For a guy like me that is looking to break out and find an opportunity as a singles guy, I can’t really think of a better way, you know what I mean, than a tournament like this. And to bring back some of the nostalgia for the fans as well. And so far, I think they had been just doing this awesome job of, you know, putting on some of the best matches we’ve had on TV, on Raw, Smackdown in a long time. So, it’s pretty great.”

On facing Andrade: “[Andrade is] one of the guys that I’ve kind of been looking forward to mixing it up with. You know, I knew him down in NXT, and obviously our styles are quite a bit different. He comes from a different background than me, but a lot of times I find that makes for the best matches. You know what I mean? And you look back in history, and a lot of great matches that happened between guys with similar styles that both of us. When you talk about guys like Rey Mysterio. The matches with Rey and Kurt [Angle], they’re are a lot of people’s favorite matches, and high on their list. And I think our styles are going to clash just perfectly enough to deliver just one of the better matches you’re going to see in this tournament. If not the best. I can’t think of an opponent that I’ve been looking forward to more to kind of tearing it up with then him, so it should be good.”

On who is remaining in the tournament he’d like to face: “Yeah, so I mean the names of the tournament, you can probably name anybody. But from like a character standpoint, I did some stuff with the Elias a few weeks ago where … and you know, he kind of started that whole short joke, making fun of me thing, was kind of on him. And so I’d love to get a shot at him, just get some redemption for that, because I haven’t had a chance to follow up on that yet. And I know … I pride myself on the fact that I think I could have a great match with anybody. And not to say that Elias couldn’t have a great match with anybody either, but we could tear the house down. But say Ali wins. Ali, incredible opponent as well. And from the Raw side of it, even in the finals, I’d love to rustle some of those bigger guys. I’d love to do a singles match against [Baron] Corbin. I’d love to do a match against [Samoa] Joe. And I’ve already mixed it up a little bit with Ricochet when me and Bobby were tag teaming. And I think people got a small glimpse of what me and Ricochet are able to do together. So you know, it’s really a win win for me in the end, no matter who I ended up facing. And to be honest, I really think it’s going to be a win win for the fans as well, just because the caliber of talent in the tournament is like … it’s unmatched. So regardless of who ends up where, you’re going to get just some insane matches.”

On his favorite moment from previous King of the Ring tournaments: “I know everybody kind of points to like the Stone Cold moment as being one of the famous ones. But for me it’s guys like Bret Hart, who went through the tournament and put on these various like different matches, you know, on that night, and like against different opponents with different styles. For me, as a fan of more the technical side of wrestling, and just the sports side of it, a guy like Bret is somebody that I’ll always look up to. And him just kind of charging through that thing like an athlete almost, you know what I mean? At the top level, was something that was, to me, really inspiring and just something I was drawn to.”

On trying to break out as a singles star: “…when Bobby [Roode] and I were broken up when I got traded to Smack Down, I immediately went to Vince, you know, with character ideas, pitches for stories, and I made my own vignettes. I made my own promos that I would bring my laptop in and show him. Just basically like begging, pleading, doing whatever I could to get something, get anything. And I wasn’t married to these ideas that I was giving him. I just wanted to throw as much at him and say, “Look, I’m open to anything. This is what I’ve got for you, but I’ll do anything you’ve got in mind because I’m ready to work. I’m ready to deliver for you, and so when I’m doing that, it shows them that I want to work, that I’m ready. And so when they come back to me with something, there’s no way I’m going to be a guy that is going to poo poo some ideas, you know, or anything that they give me. Because them offering me anything means that they want to invest in me, and to me that’s a compliment. And so I’m going to take that and I’m going to use it to its full advantage, whatever ideas they throw at me. And I take them all as a compliment and I’m ready. I’m ready for them to invest in me, and I can guarantee you they’re going to get back their investment. I will deliver.”

On NXT coming to USA: “For a guy like me, I couldn’t be happier for [WWE NXT]. And I’m also very competitive at the same time, so I will treat it as competition. Never to be out done. But as a guy who came from there and kind of cut my teeth down there, it’s so special. And it’s just unique, you know, because when I first got there, in 2013, they were still doing the buildings in Tampa and the smaller buildings were … man, when I first got there, the crowds were 15, 28, 25 people, you know what I mean? So I’m kind of like, “Whoa, like what did I sign up for?” And then in a matter of nine, eight or nine months, it just blew up man. And we were doing the Barclay Center, which was the show I was on, and so I was part of it at a very special time where I just got to see it explode, and it just hasn’t slowed down. Which is kind of mind blowing to think about because they just keep going and going. And now with this announcement, it’s just further proof that what they’re doing works, you know, it’s an incredible product and I’m just excited to see where it goes. Who knows? I mean it’s gonna keep balling up and keep getting bigger and bigger obviously. So who knows? Maybe there’s going to be some talent match-ups between the brands and stuff, which is something that I would look forward to. Anytime I can get in touch and get in contact with the new opponent, it’s good for me. So you know, really happy for all those guys.”