SDCC: AEW’s Darby Allin on When He Realized Pairing With Sting Would Work, Historic Match With CM Punk

Author’s Note: The following Darby Allin interview clips were taken from a roundtable interview session with other reporters. This transcript has been edited for clarity and to include only 411’s questions and answers.

During the 2022 San Diego Comic-Con, 411mania was on hand for a series of roundtable interviews with the AEW stars in attendance for last Saturday’s AEW: Heroes & Villains panel during Comic-Con International. During the roundtables, we were able to talk with AEW star and former TNT Champion, Darby Allin. Allin has recently been involved in an ongoing feud with the House of Black, and the group’s Brody King has recently been targeting Allin at public meet and greets and fan signings.

With that in mind, we wondered if Darby Allin was concerned about another potential sneak attack last weekend at Comic-Con. However, that only made Darby Allin more suspicious of yours truly. Here’s what Darby Allin had to say when we sat down to speak with him:

Jeffrey Harris: You’re here at Comic-Con, the San Diego Comic-Con. Comic-Con International. How does it feel?

Darby Allin: It feels great. This is the biggest Comic-Con, right? This is the one. Yeah, it’s my first time here. It’s awesome. I didn’t get enough time to explore around. Like I said, I’ve been looking at that IMBD boat out there, that yacht, and I just — I want to jump off. I want to jump off and do something. I’m trying to jump off it, but the county won’t let me.

Jeffrey Harris: Now are you concerned since Brody King has come after you and targeted you at these public events where you’re meeting and greeting with fans? Are you concerned that Brody King might come out during the panel and try to get one over on you?

Darby Allin: Is he here?

Jeffrey Harris: I don’t know. I haven’t heard —

Darby Allin: Have you seen him?

Jeffrey Harris: I’ve not seen him.

Darby Allin: Are you trying to tell me something, that I should watch my back?

Jeffrey Harris: You should be watching your back because he comes after you at these things.

Darby Allin: I’m just gonna stop putting where I am online. I had this meet and greets where I was like promoting my clothing company, Hoodlum, that’s in Zoomies now and stuff. I was there a couple of weeks ago, and all of the sudden, clocked me from the side and put me through a table. Then he just disappeared into the f***ing food court!

Jeffrey Harris: I’m just saying, everyone knows you’re going to be at your Heroes your villains panel today at Comic-Con. He could come out through the crowd —

Darby Allin: Are you gonna be there?

Jeffrey Harris: I’m gonna be there.

Darby Allin: Are you gonna do something if he does? Come on.

Jeffrey Harris: That guy’s a walking tank! What am I going to do?!

Darby Allin: You guys, you’re gonna be my security.

Jeffrey Harris: Can we get Sting over here to help?

Darby Allin: He ain’t gonna make it now. His eyes are all messed up and stuff. You watched Wednesday, he got spit in the face.

Jeffrey Harris: When Sting came into AEW and you started interacting with him, I was skeptical that a pairing with you two could work. Were you skeptical at all, and when did you realize that you two had something together and this was going to work out well?

Darby Allin: The first day we talked. You know, honestly, I didn’t know what the plan was, and I didn’t know if they knew what the plan was. So, the moment we got paired together, and the moment we like actually started like really talking and started spitballing ideas, that’s when we knew it was gonna be something special. So, it’s just a matter of showing the fans that. And when we had the cinematic match at Revolution, you know, I don’t care what anyone says, that was the best f***ing cinematic match ever. Like, we were going for it there, and then the moment we – he debuted live in front of a crowd at AEW Double or Nothing, people thought he was never gonna – you know, after his neck injury in 2015 – no one ever thought he was going to be back. And then like to him to perform live in front of the crowd and to have the confidence with me, and he came to me after the match [and said], “I couldn’t have done that without you,” and I feel like any skeptics, anybody that didn’t believe that we weren’t — you name one mother****er that would fit with Sting in AEW. I don’t see it.

Jeffrey Harris: Does it ever dawn on you that when you wrestled CM Punk in his first match back in almost eight years, you’re in the history books? No one’s ever going to be able to take that away from you.

Darby Allin: Yeah, that one did only because the year he left wrestling was the year I started wrestling, and then in that time, I really like stopped and looked back at it. F***, man. I was homeless like working as a dishwasher, and it really set in like how far in that seven years I’ve came and to like put things into perspective, so it was like this crazy life-like moment. That day, I was like just so laser-focused because I was like, “Everybody’s gonna watch this match, and everybody’s like gonna be, ‘Yo! How’s Punk gonna be after seven years?!’” And then they’re gonna be people, like their first time seeing Darby. I was just really laser-focused, and I was ready to kill it that.”

Jeffrey Harris: That match wasn’t even a year ago, but people are going to be celebrating that match between you two. It was a classic.

Darby Allin: It was a big stepping stone, and a lot of validation for my hard work
that I put in with wrestling and all the sacrifices that we’ve done in AEW and everything like that. I honestly feel like going out there and you know, we had a wrestling match. It was fun.

Jeffrey Harris: Do you Brody King next, or do you want to go after Wardlow and become TNT Champion again, or do you want to go after Jon Moxley again? Because I think you got moxley’s number, and I think you’re a future world champion.

Darby Allin: I want to finish what I got with Brody. I’m not gonna let the
guy choke me out and beat me twice.

Jeffrey Harris: I just hope he doesn’t try to sneak attack you today.

Darby Allin: You keep saying that! I don’t know about this guy *motions over to me*. What are you doing over here dude? He’s saying that.

Jeffrey Harris: Getting to go to the Greensboro Coliseum, teaming with Sting and CM Punk. That was really special. What was that experience like for you?

Darby Allin: That was real fun. Like I remember it, and I remember like that was a crazy night. Main event, six-man tag. It was the first time people saw us all together, like me, Sting, and Punk in the ring as a team. And you know, I’d love to do more of those.

Unfortunately, Darby Allin was the victim of a sneak attack by the House of Black’s Malakai Black and Brody King at the end of the AEW Heroes & Villains panel at Comic-Con. I assure Darby Allin and the powers to be at AEW that I and everyone at 411mania had nothing to do with this heinous attack (see below).

WHAT IS HAPPENING pic.twitter.com/sXEAErirHV

— AEW on TV (@AEWonTV) July 24, 2022

Thank you to Darby Allin for taking the time to speak with us. You can check out the full video of our roundtable interview session with him in the player below. You can also check out 411’s full roundtable interview session video and transcript with former AEW World Champion Chris Jericho RIGHT HERE

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