Dimes on If He Eventually Wants to Make the Move to AEW or WWE, His Fandom for John Cena, Wanting to Eventually Face Someone Like AJ Styles

During a recent exclusive interview with the 411 Wrestling Interviews Podcast, the OVW Rush Division champion Dimes discussed his career, who discussed his career goals and wanting eventual opportunities in WWE or AEW, his fandom and inspiration from wrestlers like John Cena and AJ Styles, and wanting to face someone like AJ Styles when he gets to WWE. Below are some highlights and audio from the interview with Dimes:

On growing up as a fan of John Cena for wrestling: “Well, I had always liked pro wrestling as a kid. And one of the first people that I remember seeing on TV was John Cena, and he’s one of my favorite pro wrestlers, still, today. And I remember when I growing up, I would go to a babysitter, and they would have Stone Cold [Steve Austin] and The Rock sheets and pictures and stuff like that all over the house. So, I was always in to pro wrestling, and I was an amateur wrestler throughout high school. And even with that, I kind of just wanted to put on a show and entertain people. So, I would have higher scoring matches than other people. And then I went to college and graduated from IU, and then I started working I guess what you would say a normal job, and I didn’t really like that, and I remembered that OVW was right across the river from where I live. So, I figured it was a perfect place to train, and I started training there.”

Dimes on the wrestlers who inspired him the most: “Well, when I first really started getting into wrestling, it was like 2005. So, some of those main guys were like Eddie Guerrero, Rey Mysterio, Edge, Randy Orton, AJ Styles was a big one for me, and then of course, like John Cena. And a lot of those guys are still able to wrestle today, which is incredible. I hope to be able to wrestle that long and get to the point where hopefully in the next few years I’ll be able to wrestle somebody like an AJ Styles if he’s still there when I eventually get to WWE.”

Dimes on his career goals and wanting to make an eventual move toward AEW or WWE: “I mean right now, I would like to get an opportunity at a larger company, like a WWE, like an AEW, but before that comes, I would like to build OVW as big as I possibly can. I do have eventual career goals. Like everyone wants to wrestle at WrestleMania, right? So that’s of course one of my goals. Just getting myself on the biggest platform possible, whether it’s AEW or whether it’s WWE, I would really love an opportunity to wrestle at either company. I see a lot of my peers getting opportunities at those companies, and I definitely think that I’m on their level, So, I think that it’s just a matter of time really.”

In the full interview, Dimes talks about the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on wrestling and how the industry may look afterward, training under Al Snow in OVW and how Snow has changed the company, his teaming and rivalry with Corey Storm, his aspirations to join AEW or WWE, and more.

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0:00: Intro
1:56: On how things are going for him right now amid the COVID-19 pandemic
2:59: On if there’s a date when OVW may be able to reopen and start running shows again
4:06: On growing up as a wrestling fan and how he ended up pursuing a career in the industry
5:29: On his biggest trainers and mentors in wrestling and the origin of his ring name
6:34: On how Al Snow has changed OVW, training under him and lessons he’s learned from Snow
9:15: On if the pandemic makes a case for an off-season by giving people time to heal up, the difficulty of getting back in ring form after time off
12:00: On working with Corey Storm and their chemistry together in the ring
13:35: On which wrestlers informed his ring style and inspired him
14:40: On his goals in wrestling and aspirations for WWE or AEW, wanting to help build up OVW
16:15: On if Storm is going to take it personally that he made Storm hand over the Rush Division title, a possible rematch
18:34: On how the wrestling industry may look following the pandemic, the importance for OVW to be one of the first companies back
20:43: On where to find him online, his charity work during the pandemic
23:13: Outro

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