Gino Medina on Leaving Dynasty, Facing Richard Holliday, and Training Under Booker T

On Wednesday, April 14, MLW wrestler former Dynasty member Gino Medina is going to step into the ring with his former stablemate, Richard Holliday, in a match for Holliday’s Caribbean Heavyweight Championship. Since the start of 2021, Medina has been on quite the role. Thus far, he’s unbeaten in MLW this year and is on the cusp of the biggest matchup of his career. 411mania recently had the chance to sit down with the Mexican born, Houston, Texas based athlete, who trained under WWE Hall of Famer Booker T. Medina opened up about leaving the Dynasty, the emotions on facing his former teammate, and a whole lot more. Here’s what Gino Medina, El Intocable, had to say when we had the chance to speak:

Jeffrey Harris: This matchup against your former stablemate, Richard Holliday, is probably the biggest match in your career to date. How are you feeling going into this match?

Gino Medina: I’m very excited because it’s my first title match in MLW, so it’ll be a good test to kind of see where I’m at. And I got a little feud going on with Richard Holliday, so I can’t wait to kick his ass and win some gold. So, I’m pretty excited to do that, and I’m pretty excited to have a big matchup in MLW. I’ve been kind of having a matchup here and there, here and there, but now I’ve got this big matchup, which I’m I’m very excited for; and I’ve been training really hard and working out and getting that cardio up to keep up there with Mr. Richard Holliday.

Jeffrey Harris: In October, you said you ditched the Dynasty. Dynasty said they got rid of you. Why don’t you tell us what really happened?

Gino Medina: So, you know, you know the Dynasty. They only talk about tanning, and coffee, and Holliday has daddy issues talking about his dad all the time. You know me, I don’t really care about all that. I wanted to talk about the mamacitas. I wanted to talk about the ladies, and you know, they weren’t about that. They weren’t on that, so we split. I left Dynasty. They said they fired me. You know, I just kind of let them run their mouth, kind of let them say what they got to say, but I know what’s true. I know the mamacitas know what’s true, and they know that I was with the mamacitas at a point, and they didn’t like that. So, it’s whatever. They’re going to say what they’re going to say, but the mamacitas know what’s true. And that’s all that really matters.

Jeffrey Harris: Did you ever feel like you truly belonged with the Dynasty?

Gino Medina: In-ring wise, I respect the hell out of Richard Holliday. For his in-ring work, Alex Hammerstone, I respect the hell out of his wrestling as well, and I believe I’m a good wrestler as well. I do believe from that perspective we’re pretty good. We’re all three just guys that are in there kicking ass, but personally, I feel like we never really clicked because of me having different priorities than them. Their priorities are coffee and tanning, and me, it was the mamacitas. So honestly? Nope, we never really clicked. I didn’t ever really belong with Dynasty.

Jeffrey Harris: You’re facing Richard Holliday, you’re a former member of the Dynasty, and the Caribbean Heavyweight title is on the line. Are there any hard feelings or heavy emotions there, or is there still anger going into this?

Gino Medina: Yes, I’m kind of pissed off because like I said, he claims that he kicked me out. I know that’s not what happened. He tells the whole world that he kicked me out of Dynasty. He basically tried and humiliate me trying to say that he kicked me out, so I’m a little pissed off that he’s out there running his mouth, which like I said. I know the truth, and I know I left Dynasty. But yeah, there’s still some heat there between Richard Holliday and I. I’m excited to finally get my hands on him.

Jeffrey Harris: You came into the group not long after MJF left. Do you think Dynasty was just using you and didn’t have as big of plans as they sold to you?

Gino Medina: Yes. Yes because I had two other offers. I had the offer of going with Salina de la Renta and going with Konnan, and they said that I would have this and I would have that. And it was cool when MJF was there, but as soon as MJF left, the mamacitas left too. So, it wasn’t a lot of fun after that, so yeah, I feel like they hyped it up kind of like we had that honeymoon phase at first. It was all cool and what not, but after that, it started getting kind of boring.

Jeffrey Harris: You’ve been undefeated since MLW returned to action after the hiatus from the pandemic. Do you think this proves you never needed the Dynasty in the first place to be successful?

Gino Medina: That’s what I was just thinking about. I’m better off without the Dynasty. Before the comeback, I had just lost to Mance Warner. I lost to Mance Warner. I lost to a couple of other guys, and you know, I wasn’t as successful. But now, I feel, by myself, I feel like more in general I’m more of a kind of to myself guy. So, I feel more comfortable kind of just being by myself, kind of doing my own thing and kind of trying to make a name by myself, you know? Kind of not trying to go off of them. And you know, I’ll give them some credit. They did kind of show me the ropes of how MLW works and what not, so as soon as I learned that, I know I didn’t really need them anymore. And as you can see, I’ve been successful ever since.

Jeffrey Harris: How frustrating is it that Richard Holliday is always going on and on about his coffee and his AirPods? Does that get on your nerves or what?

Gino Medina: Yeah, like I said, that’s all he talked about, his AirPods and his coffee and what not. I got AirPods now, and I don’t talk about them that much. And you know, it was just kind of annoying. All he wanted to do was just go get coffee with just the boys. And you know, like I said, I don’t like hanging out with just the boys. I like hanging out with myself, and if I want some company, I’ll invite a mamacita. But, not the AirPods, not the coffee, not the tanning. That’s too much for me. And like I said, we never really clicked on that part, on that perspective of you know, coffee and what not. I don’t even like coffee.

Jeffrey Harris: You’re about to face Holliday in a title match. Maybe this is a good way to take him off his game. Maybe you can steal his coffee, spike the coffee, or maybe steal the AirPods. That would certainly frustrate and upset him, don’t you think?

Gino Medina: Oooh, yeah. That’s a really great idea, actually. You know, he loves his coffee, so I never really thought about spiking it, you know, but if I do do it, I’ll give you some credit, alright man? I’ll say this guy gave me the idea!

Jeffrey Harris: Just like some hot sauce or mustard.

Gino Medina: Or some Nyquil. I’ll put some Nyquil in there *Laughs*.

Jeffrey Harris: You mentioned on working on your cardio for this match, but what can fans expect when you get into the ring with Holliday? Could this be a match that everyone’s going to be talking about, basically?

Gino Medina: Yeah because I haven’t just been working on my cardio. I don’t know if you’ve been familiar with some of my work, but I’ve got a lot of little tricks up my sleeve, which include a lot of kicks. I’ve been kicking the hell out of this dummy out there that I’ve got out at my house. I go to training, I spar with some guys, and I’ve got these little kicks that I got. And I got one with Richard Holliday’s name on it. I can’t wait to knock off the silly AirPods out of his head.

Jeffrey Harris: This fight will be for the Caribbean Heavyweight title. Do you consider this a legitimate title fight, and do you plan on keeping and defending the title after winning it?

Gino Medina: Well, he did steal it from Savio Vega, so I don’t know how official it is. But when I beat him, I do want to defend it. I’ll probably go to the Caribbean and go defend it over there. And after that, meet some mamacitas from over there. That’s what I was saying. Like this guy doesn’t defend it anywhere. He just tries to defend it in MLW. He should go down to the Caribbean, go represent over there. Go meet some mamacitas. Go show the culture and be the Caribbean Champion. And yeah, of course man, I want to defend it.

Jeffrey Harris: Would you offer a shot to Savio Vega and make sure everything is above board this time?

Gino Medina: No because I already beat him, so I don’t want to give him another shot. He’s had his shots. If he wants, he can give me a tour of the Caribbean though?

Jeffrey Harris: So tell me what 2020 was like for Gino Medina. MLW had that hiatus due to the pandemic, and what was it like for you as an active wrestler having to deal with that?

Gino Medina: I don’t like to be the type who’s like, ‘Yeah, I had it rough, and what not and this and that,’ because you’re just asking for sympathy out of people or trying to get people to go bat for you. But in my case, I feel like I had just signed with MLW, and stuff was starting to get rolling for me because I had just gotten to MLW. I was getting a booking here and a booking there. I was kind of going all over the place, but when the pandemic happened, it kind of just put a whole stop on that. And I couldn’t travel, I couldn’t do anything. So, I was kind of stuck in that perspective, but it did motivate to know that I can get to that point of traveling to bookings and going out of state, going out of the country and doing this and that. It just motivated me to kind of work harder and know that I got to be ready when I do get to that level again when stuff opens up a little bit more now, and I’ll be ready to go.

Jeffrey Harris: Since MLW has returned to action, from everything I’ve read and heard from other wrestlers on the roster, they have some of the rock solid, strongest protocols and safety precautions for COVID-19 and the pandemic. How would you speak about that from your experience?

Gino Medina: Yeah man. It was great because they constantly tested us. They made sure we didn’t leave our room and what not and like, I don’t know, there are other spots now that are very bad, but people try to ignore it. But yeah, MLW is great. They don’t let us leave our hotel and what not. We have a gym there at the hotel, so we can work out as much as we want. And that’s all you really need. You just need a hotel, maybe call a mamacita or two, and you’re good. But MLW is great because there are no fans either, which kind of throws you off your game a little bit, but you just kind of got to be able to really work in there and be confident that what you’re going to do in there is going to translate to the crowd when they see it. When they eventually see it, they’re going to like it, so it’s a lot of that. It kind of sucks not having the crowd around, but we know it’s not going to be forever. So hopefully soon, we get the crowd back in there though.

Jeffrey Harris: Have you heard anything about maybe bringing fans back [to MLW] in the coming months? Is there a timetable, or do you think it’s just going to be a while until everyone gets the all clear?

Gino Medina: Unfortunately, I do believe it is going to be a while before stuff gets back to normal because there’s a lot that goes into that. There’s a lot of people’s lives that we put in danger just doing that. I live in Texas man, and in Texas, they don’t really care at all. I just went to the gym, and I was probably like the only person wearing a mask. There’s a bunch of people who were not wearing a mask, and I’m the only one being cautious with my mask, with my gloves, but mostly because I got to be exposed to a lot of other people. So, I don’t want to be the one that exposes them. So yeah man, if it was Texas, they would’ve run a show here a long time ago, but there’s a lot of places who do take it seriously, which I respect. I’d rather have a place that’s like that, than being down in Texas where they don’t care.

Jeffrey Harris: In 2019, you signed your first multi-year contract with MLW. How did it feel when you got to sign that multi-year contract?

Gino Medina: It felt great because I’ve been in wrestling like full-time, I started wrestling when I was 16. I started when I was 14, officially. And at 16, I kind of started going out there on the road and what not. So, it took me like nine years to finally get a contract, so to me, it was a big achievement. And being somewhere like MLW, where it’s to me, they do take wrestling seriously. They don’t do none of the silly stuff. It’s a wrestling-based promotion, so to me, that was very exciting to be there. And just the roster, that roster is very packed. It’s very cool because you go there — I don’t know. Everywhere that I went in Texas, I’ve always adapted, and every time that I adapted, I ended up being one of the top guys. So getting to MLW, I’m sure that I can adapt to that style and that work ethic that everybody has there. Eventually, I’ll be a top guy at MLW too. I’m very excited to kind of make a name for myself there.

Jeffrey Harris: What were your big takeaways learning and training under Booker T; WWE Hall of Famer, living legend, and former world champion?

Gino Medina: Yeah man, I loved training down here at Booker’s because I was just talking to someone else about this. I was on Konnan’s podcast, and we were talking about Booker T. And he and Disco [Inferno] just asked me straight away, ‘Hey, who’d you get trained by?’ And I told them, ‘Oh, I got trained by Booker T.’ And they instantly were like, ‘Oh, so you know how to work, huh?’ And that because learning how to work and learning that old school style, it’s a lost art now. A lot of people don’t know how to work out there. So, it’s a very interesting and a very rare style because we’re in a style now where it’s very fast-paced and people are doing all this crazy stuff and what not. That’s not what Booker taught me. Booker taught me how to work and how to be an entertainer, and lot of the Booker teaches is Shakespeare and stuff. John Cena is on record on putting Booker over on that, saying that Booker taught him Shakespeare. To Booker, wrestling is Shakespeare, and it’s being more overt-the-top and learning how to manipulate the crowd and what not. I learned a lot from Booker on that perspective of like learning how to get a crowd into what you’re doing in there.

Jeffrey Harris: You’re undefeated this year. You’re about to face Richard Holliday in a title match. Is 2021 the year of Gino Medina?

Gino Medina: Yes sir. Like I said, last year, I didn’t get to make it my year because of this whole pandemic happened, but I do believe that in 2021, I can definitely take over and show the world who I am because I think for a while people haven’t been aware of me. And I’ve just been hustling man. That’s what I do man. I just hustle and hustle until I do get those eyes on me, and I’m ready. I’m definitely ready to take that stage right there and be a champion out of MLW.

Thank you to Gino Medina for taking the time to speak with us. He faces Richard Holliday for the Caribbean Heavyweight Championship on Wednesday, April 14 on MLW Fusion. The show will be available on YouTube, Fubo Sports, DAZN, beIN SPORTS and the Roku Channel.

And if you’re enjoying all of our recent interviews with names like Rob Van Dam, Richard Holliday, Dominic Garrini, Natalia Eva Marie, Jim Ross, Chris Jericho, the Von Erichs, and The Miz and want to support us getting more interviews with big names in wrestling, please leave us a 5 star review on Apple Podcasts, it only takes a few seconds to do and really helps us out!

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0:00: Intro
1:44: On how he’s feeling going into his match with Holliday
2:35: On his exit from the Dynasty and what really happened
3:44: On why he thinks he never clicked with the Dynasty
4:34: On his match with Holliday and if there are any hard feelings going into it
6:10: On if his undefeated streak proves he never needed the Dynasty
8:48: On fans can expect from the match
9:34: On his plans for the title if he wins, giving Savio Vega a title shot
10:43: On dealing with MLW’s hiatus due to the pandemic
12:05: On MLW’s safety protocols since they returned, possible timetable for fans to return
15:34: On signing his first multi-year contract with MLW in 2019
17:07: On his experience training under Booker T
18:37: Is 2021 the year or Gino Medina?
19:27: Where to find him online
20:32: Outro

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