Imperium are all very happy to be in America.
In what was the final interview they did together before being split up, Gunther (formerly WALTER), Ludwig Kaiser (formerly Marcel Barthel), and Fabian Aichner spoke with Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp (seen above) about a number of topics including their move from Europe and impressions of the United States.
Gunther, who debuted with NXT UK in January 2019, would go on to become the face of the brand, carrying the Championship for 870 days before dropping it at TakeOver 36. He made the permanent move to NXT this January after only previously appearing stateside for special occasions. He commented on the move saying it was the right time to do it.
“I waited it out for a while. I really like living in Europe because it’s nice for all Europeans. It has its upsides. Business-wise it was smart not to. My whole career I never did that, just jump for things right away. But it was the right time now to do it," Gunther said.
Kaiser and Aichner began teaming together in January 2018, appearing on both NXT and NXT UK. Imperium would form the following year, and over the past three years, they have held the NXT Tag Team Titles twice.
Sharing what they love and hate about America, Kaiser began by saying that the way people drive in Florida is insane before detailing his pet peeve about drivers occupying the right lane when they're not turning.
"The way people drive in Florida, I gotta say. 100%. The way people drive in Florida is absolutely insane. What I love about driving in America is you can always turn right if there’s a red light, it makes so much sense. Even though people don’t really get it. That’s my biggest pet peeve, right? That’s my biggest pet peeve. Three lanes, I want to go to the right, everybody’s standing on the right lane even though they’re going straight. It’s stuff like that that really messes with me a little bit. But, no, especially Florida, I’m happy to live there. It’s awesome. I love the weather. Whenever I get away from a place with four seasons, I’m very happy. Obviously, we grew up in Hamburg, Germany. That’s north Germany. It’s cold, cloudy and cold again. So, yeah, Orlando’s awesome. America’s awesome. We’re all happy to be here," he said.
Fabian Aichner added that he had been looking forward to moving to the USA since he was a little kid and that sometimes it feels like he's living in a movie.
“Yeah, absolutely. I was looking forward to moving to the States since I was five years old after I saw Arnold on TV. To me, sometimes, when I drive around by myself it’s almost like living in a movie a little bit. So I really enjoy it. I can only add to what Marcel said, and Walter as well, we grew up in regions where it tends to get chilly in the winter, so we’re enjoying the sunlight and working on our tan constantly," Aichner said.
On the April 5 episode of NXT 2.0, Aichner inexplicably abandoned his partner during their match though no explanation was given. Just three days later, Gunther and Barthel made the move to SmackDown, debuting on the blue brand with the German sporting the new name of Ludwig Kaiser. Aichner, it appears, will remain in NXT for the time being.
Fightful provides live coverage of NXT 2.0 and SmackDown every Tuesday and Friday beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
