Gunner Talks About His WWE Goals, Working At The Performance Center And More

– In an interview with WWE.com, Chad Lail (the former Gunner) spoke about his time in the WWE Performance Center, his goals during his time in WWE and more. Here are highlights:

On his time at the Performance Center so far: “Honestly, WWE is where I wanted to be since day one. I had my tryout two years ago and finally got a chance to get down here and learn from all the coaches. We’ve got so much knowledge right here in this building, between Head Coach [Matt] Bloom, Coach Norman [Smiley], Coach [Robbie] Brookside, and all the people here. With me being a little bit older than some of the people here and having been in sports-entertainment for 15 years now, it’s a great opportunity to really learn the WWE way and be where I want to be. I’ve been a part of a lot of teams, playing sports in high school and obviously being in the Marine Corps, but there’s nothing I’ve ever been a part of like at the Performance Center.”

On his military background: “I was in the United States Marine Corps from 2002 to 2006. It was probably the best decision I ever made in my life. I was a motor transport operator by job title, but a lot of the times what I would do overseas was called the “ring mount.” That’s the guy on the top of the truck operating any type of weapon that may be on top of the truck. I have a family history of being in the military. My dad was in the Army, uncles are Army and Navy, and there were only two other Marines in my family. I told myself that if I was going to go into the military, in my eyes, the Marines had the toughest training. It was definitely the toughest thing I ever went through in my life.”

On his time in the independent scene: “Once I got out of the Marine Corps in 2006, I started with a promotion called NWA: Anarchy. It used to be called NWA: Wildside, and that’s where guys like AJ Styles performed. That was definitely a big point in my career, as I started learning from and competing against better talent. I started traveling with the NWA. I held their national title for two years, and began traveling out of the country as well. From about 2006 through 2009, I was really busy with the NWA, and that’s around the time I met Terry Taylor. He helped me get my foot in the door with other promotions that helped me build a name. In 2015, I left another company and had kept in good contact with guys like Dash Wilder and Edge, and they put me in touch with William Regal. Mr. Regal got me a tryout in 2015, and I think he just wanted to get a look at me because he heard from Edge that, “Hey, you might want to take a look at this guy.” Edge helped me out.”

On his long-term WWE goals: “I guess the child in me says WrestleMania. That’s my ultimate goal. During that two-year wait when I wasn’t with WWE, I had opportunities where people would come up and ask me, “WrestleMania’s in Orlando, do you wanna go?” I’m stubborn. I’d say, “Nah, man.” I always said I’d never go to WrestleMania unless I was part of WrestleMania, and I’ve stuck to that.”