Christian, real name Jay Reso, was a guest recently on The LAW: Live Audio Wrestling Podcast to talk about several topics, included his retirement from wrestling, the concussion he sustained in 2014 prior to WrestleMania and the success of the Edge & Christian Show on the WWE Network. They sent us these highlights:
What does he think about younger talent not being allowed to ad-lib in the ring?:
"When I started, there was a lot more freedom there to do that on the show when you're doing a promo or something to that effect. It seems like people should take a little more chances with that because that's how things connect. I watch Jericho, he still does that and there's certain guys that may do it but I definitely think sometimes you need to step out of the comfort zone a little bit and take a chance. Sometimes when you take a chance, you'll hit it out of the park and you're on your way."
How does he like doing The Edge & Christian Show (That Totally Reeks of Awesomeness)?:
"It's been great. You definitely need a creative outlet and a new challenge, something that's fun. Not that that's complacent wrestling or anything like that but you've done it for so long that sitting there before a match, there's pressure but not that you haven't done it, you know what I mean? You've been there a million times; you know how to deal with the pressure. This one was completely different because we're new to it and it was fun to learn, to do the writing, the producing and then acting in it. You need that outlet, you need that creative outlet and it did kind of fill a void for sure."
Did he know that he had a concussion after that 4-Way-Match on Raw in 2014?:
"I didn't know because I had just come back not even long before that. I was aware when it happened that something was up which is why – you're just trying to deal with it and trying to figure out is this something I can manage. As a performer, your mindset is to try to – how do I get to the next match or whatever it is, right? Yeah, you have to deal with it, roll with it, it is what it is. I've accepted it."
How did it feel to retire on his own terms?:
"The way that I look at it is if I was earlier in my career, I think I would have had a bigger problem with it but I have accomplished so much in my career. The only thing I didn't do was headline WrestleMania. That was the only thing I would love to have done but didn't get a chance to do. Other than that, I was 2 time world heavyweight champion, we have had how many great ladder matches, stole the show at WrestleMania, travelled the world – if I didn't have those experiences and didn't have the accomplishments that I already did, I think it would have been harder for me, you know what I mean? I definitely realized at the time that I was closer to the end of my career then I was to the start so I think that made it easier than if I had been 31 – 30 or 31 years old."
You can watch the full interview at the top of the page.
