Matt Taven makes it clear that he's loyal to Roderick Strong.
Taven and Strong had a bond that goes back to their days in ROH. At the time, Strong was an established star, whereas Taven was just starting out with the company. Strong went on to sign with WWE, and Taven became one of ROH's top stars. They have reunited in AEW, as Taven and Mike Bennett have aligned with Strong since Adam Cole formed a dynamic friendship with MJF.
In an interview with Joel Pearl for Fightful, Roderick Strong came up in the conversation. Taven noted that they have a lot of history, as Strong was his mentor in ROH. He made it clear that he'll always be there to have Strong's back.
"Actually me and Roddy go way back. When I started in Ring of Honor, Roderick Strong was literally my mentor, the guy I’d go to. ‘Tell me I suck. Tell me what’s wrong. Tell me how to get better.’ He took me under his wing and I’m so unbelievably grateful for that. Something that’s been big in my life forever has been just loyalty. So when someone does that for me, I never forget it. I’m always here to have his back from here on out," Taven said.
Taven also commented on Strong's injuries, as "The Messiah of the Backbreaker" has been wearing a neck brace for a number of weeks. He stated that Strong is strong, as his name suggests, so he will get over the injuries. Taven also shared his belief that Strong likes the way the neck brace looks.
"He’s strong. Hence the name. So the injuries, he’ll get over them. I think he likes the neck brace. I think he just likes the look. He iced it. I think the foot will be alright by tomorrow," Taven said.
Taven continues to compete for ROH, and he maintains a recurring presence on AEW programming as well.
Check out Roderick Strong's comments about signing with AEW here.
In a previous interview, Taven commented on potentially reuniting with Adam Cole. Click here to see what he had to say.
