Eric Young went from unused to indispensable in a matter of months.
After not having a good run on WWE main roster TV, Young was released from his WWE deal in April. He rejoined IMPACT Wrestling, and in under two months became World Champion. Young holds no ill will, but told Fightful in an exclusive interview that he believes Vince McMahon failed fans.
"I’ve said what I said about Vince, I don’t think the decision of me being in that position was anything personal. He was always polite to me when we spoke. He’s got way more wins than he’s got losses. In the end, he didn’t fail me, he failed himself. That’s what I have to say about that. He failed himself. He failed the roster. He failed his shareholders. More importantly, he failed the fans. I think every week on IMPACT!, or anywhere that I work, I’m proving that. I was never in that position. It had nothing to do with my abilities. It had nothing to do with my history. It had nothing to do with my skill set or anything that I had done or said. It was just one person’s opinion. I’m not the first person that he missed on, and I won’t be the last. He doesn’t care. He’s just going to go on making billions of dollars. He’s winning. He’s definitely winning," Young reiterated to Fightful.
Young would reiterate, saying that he considers McMahon's use of him one of the biggest mistakes the man has made.
"I don’t think it’s anything personal. I’m not mad at him. I would never hold it personally against him. But, it was a mistake. A big one. Maybe one of the worst ones he’s ever made. That’s just my opinion, but my opinion won’t change. He made a huge mistake. His mistake is the wrestling world’s and IMPACT! Wrestling’s advantage. If that didn’t happen then I’m not sitting here talking to you. I’m not the World Champion. I’m not part of a wrestling company that’s growing during a global pandemic. It’s a very exciting time to be Eric Young and to be part of IMPACT! Wrestling," Young said.
His time under Triple H was viewed much different. After accomplishing all he has in IMPACT and TNA, he looks at NXT as one of the best times he's ever had. So much so, he continues a bond with Triple H to this day.
"My run in NXT, I loved it. I still talk with Hunter today. I was talking to him on Monday. Me and him are very friendly. The opportunity he gave me in NXT I will never forget. It was two of the fondest years of my life in wrestling. I loved it, working for the WWE, winning the World Tag belts, being part of War Games, match of the year. Sanity was one of the number one acts in NXT. Everyone, if you’re listening to this, you’re well aware of what happened on the main roster. If I could erase that, I would. But, I’m a very experiential person. I believe everything happens for a reason. I want to experience everything. Good, bad and indifferent. The main roster run was definitely not a success. But, it happened. It’s just part of wrestling. It’s part of the business. I’m moving forward. It’s cool to be with IMPACT! in a time of growth like this. I want to be a big part of, and be responsible for, its growth being a household name. That’s the plan," said Young.
Young's 17 years on wrestling television also led him to experiencing various iterations of IMPACT Wrestling. He's pretty confident in the one they have now, with him leading the charge.
"I’ve gone through—at TNA itself—ten, fifteen, twenty different changes of the guards. I was there for twelve years. So, I’ve seen it all. I started there when we were working just on the Wednesday weekly pay-per-views. I was there when they went to FOX Sports. I was there when they went to Spike. I was there when they lost the deal to Spike. I was there when they went to Destination America. I was there when they went to Pop. Now I’m back and they’re on AXS. I feel AXS is such a good fit for them right now. It’s in a ton of homes. Their signing the deal with Pluto, which is a huge international platform. The brand is growing. It’s growing like crazy," Young said.
You can see our full interview with the IMPACT World Champion Eric Young above, and check him out every week at 8 PM EST on IMPACT Wrestling, airing on AXS.
