wrestling / News

Santana Talks Being In Stadium Stampede Again at AEW Double Or Nothing

May 27, 2021 | Posted by Jeremy Thomas
Santana AEW Dynamite 10-10-19 Image Credit: AEW

Santana is set to be part of his second Stadium Stampede match at AEW Double Or Nothing this weekend, and he discussed what to expect and more. The Inner Circle member spoke with PWInsider for a new interview, and you can check out the highlights below:

On competing in Stadium Stampede: “I mean, firstly it’s going to be great, like you said, to be a part of both Stadium Stampedes. And like you said also, last year was just critically acclaimed and everybody was talking about it and it was just something that 10 guys with similar mindsets and creativity and stuff just putting together some of the best stuff we can, and just hitting on all aspects of the spectrum and giving something serious, something funny, and just mixing it all up and having some fun, but this year is definitely going to be something totally different. As a lot of people have seen the story with the Pinnacle and the Inner Circle has been something that’s pretty violent and pretty intense. So of course you could expect the same thing from this year’s Stadium Stampede. Don’t expect a lot of funny and haha stuff to be going on. This one is going to be a totally different world and a totally different attitude. And the good thing is that we’re bringing a different style to the Stadium Stampede. So just keeping it fresh, and keeping it entertaining and exciting, and that’s our goal, man.”

On the reception to last year’s Stadium Stampede: “Actually, to be honest, me personally, I definitely felt like it was going to be something special. It was something totally different. And we all just kept saying to each other, “Man, this is going to be something very special because it’s something that’s never been done, of course.” And we were giving wrestling fans, like I said, something different with every scene that took place in the match. You know what I mean? And hats off to production honestly, because they were literally editing the match as we went on through the night. One scene was finished, the production team was already on it, editing it and putting it into place, so huge hats off to those guys. They’re the true MVPs of it, and it was something that the day before, all 10 of us got together in the middle of the stadium and we started shooting ideas and seeing what we wanted to put out, and yeah. Then the next day, we all met up that night and he filmed from, I think it was 9:00 at night till about 6:00 in the morning…and then we had to take a short break because it started storming, and all the cameras and everything, we had to pack up really quick. And then we were also racing against time and the sun coming up. So it was pretty intense and pretty exciting at the same time. And yeah man, everyone did their part, everyone put in work. And again, it was 10 guys with the same mindset of wanting to do something special and something different. And man, we gave them exactly that, and just the validation of seeing how well it did and everyone talking about it and how excited everyone was for it. It was definitely a humbling moment.”

On being able to be mentored by the likes of Chris Jericho, Christian, and more: “I think it’s been the greatest experience of our careers. Like you said, we were the top of our game on the Indies and we were those guys that were offering our advices, and trying to help the younger generation step up and get to where we were, but now, just going back down… Because as everyone knows, wrestling is constantly evolving and there’s always something new to learn and something new to figure out. And man, the beauty of us having so many veterans at our disposal that are so willing and giving, to give their knowledge and they want to see the business grow and they want to see the younger guys grow, and I think it’s just been amazing. And like you said, you named Christa Cage, and Jericho, and Paul White. These are guys that have cemented legacy. These are Hall of Fame names, and the fact that we all get to have these guys with us and teaching us,, and guiding us, and showing us how to create a legacy the same way that they did, I think it’s been amazing. I never want to stop learning. What we have always told ourselves that no matter how old we get, no matter how far in the business we get, we constantly want to keep learning because that’s what’s going to keep you fresh and that’s what’s going to keep you motivated. There’s always going to be younger guys coming up that are smarter or faster, and you want to learn from that as well. Everybody has something to learn from somebody, and that’s been the beauty of all this.”

On if there are any teams in AEW he’s looking to get in the ring with: “Honestly, Ortiz and I have had this conversation recently, and our entire careers, we’ve always just wanted to wrestle everyone, and we’ve been blessed with the opportunities to have wrestled so many people that we’ve looked up to and some of the best tag teams from all around the world, but I think we just want to wrestle everyone. We want to show and bring out the best in everyone, not just ourselves. Like you said, the tag team at AEW is just so stacked and there’s so many talented guys, man. I can’t even really pinpoint off the top of my head who exactly we want to work with, but I can definitely say that our plan is to work with every tag team on the roster. That’s the goal. And yeah, of course everyone is dying for us to wrestle the Lucha brothers again and continue that. A couple of years back… I think there was one year where we rested each other at 23 times all around the world. And it was amazing. We had such an amazing run with them. I know for a fact that fans have been dying to see that at AEW. And of course, to see us against the Bucks now that the roles are reversed and we’re facing the inner deals. That’s been a big thing that people have been wanting to see. But honestly, man, we just want to mix it up with everybody and bring out the best in everyone and have everyone bring out the best in us. That’s the key, everyone working together for the common cause of elevating each other and elevating the company. Once everyone has that same mindset man, forget it. It’s unstoppable.”