Eli Isom on Getting Advice From Bully Ray, Training at the ROH Dojo, More

Eli Isom spoke with the Playard Wrestling Podcast for a new interview discussing his time in the ROH Dojo, working with veterans like Bully Ray and more.

On his persona: “For me, my wrestling persona isn’t too far off from who I really am. A hard-working, small-town kid from the Midwest whose trying to do right by his late mother. I feel like the lines are blurred between what’s real and what isn’t so much so in today’s wrestling, that if people can relate to the real me more so than an over the top persona then I’m happy to showcase the real me for the fans.”

On his time as part of the ROH Dojo: “So in 2016 I knew I wanted to get into wrestling but had no clue how to start. Being from a small town in Indiana there are not many options around me for wrestling. Then one day I was watching a WhatCulture video that had Jay Lethal, and he was talking about how ROH had a dojo in near Philly in Bristol, PA. I immediately went to go check to see if it was true and thank god that it was. I started saving my money after I found out and left pretty much everything behind in January of 2017 to start training. At this point, it was a month removed from my mom’s funeral so this was the most difficult time of my life by far. Thankfully the trainers at the dojo (Will Ferrara, Cheeseburger, and Delirious) welcomed me and made me feel at home even though they had no idea what I was going through.”

On his match against Cheeseburger: “That match was fun! It’s the only match we’ve had against each other in front of an audience, so that is actually one of my favourites too. Cheeseburger is awesome and I’m very fortunate I’ve gotten the chance to learn from him. Don’t judge him by how he looks. He’s a great wrestler/teacher and one of my closest friends. I’d do anything for burger.”

On working with veterans like Bully Ray recently: “It can be a little nerve-racking. You grow up watching these guys and now you have the chance to work with them. It’s a crazy and very cool situation to be in. The two things I’ve noticed that almost every veteran says is to not be nervous, and to make everything you do count. It’s very simple advice but it’s helped me so much so far.”