Rocky Romero is glad that NJPW and IMPACT Wrestling have been able to rebuild their relationship.
Romero is practically the human "forbidden door", as he has competed for ROH, NJPW, AEW, IMPACT, and MLW. Outside of the ring, he has been instrumental in the collaborative process between NJPW and other promotions. In recent months, NJPW and IMPACT have frequently worked together as Jay White and a number of other stars have competed in an IMPACT ring.
Speaking to Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp, Romero was asked about bridging the gaps and connecting wrestling companies. He described how, in his mind, having promotions work together helps deliver the best product possible, which is what the business is all about.
"I don't think about it too much, I'm a pretty humble guy. I think wrestling is always better when people are working together in some form or fashion. There is good business to be done between different wrestling companies and why not? The people who win the most are the fans and that's what really matters. We're catering to the fans that pay their hard-earned money to come watch good wrestling. Why not try our best to give them the best product we can? That's what it's all about," he said.
When asked about the relationship between NJPW and IMPACT Wrestling, Romero noted that collaborating with Scott D'Amore has helped mend the relationship between the two companies, which had been rocky for a few years.
"That relationship was ice cold just a couple of years ago," he said about the previous lack of collaboration between NJPW and IMPACT. "There was some business stuff that happened with Jeff and IMPACT and New Japan at the time that wasn't very clear. Things worked itself out. Scott D'Amore has been awesome to work with. Anthem being their parent company and owning AXS television, New Japan coming back to AXS was a big deal as well. Scott has been the guy. As much credit as you want to give to me, you have to give as much credit to Scott D'Amore and doing a great job and making the relationship really work. Thursday night is really awesome on AXS. You have a few great hours of wrestling television and not only that, IMPACT has a great roster with the Good Brothers coming back to New Japan. Josh Alexander and Moose. Alex Shelley, Chris Sabin, Speedball Mike Bailey, who I'd love to see more of in new Japan because he's incredible. You see Rocky Romero in IMPACT, David Finlay, Juice Robinson, Hikuleo, two Bullet Club members in Chris Bey and Ace Austin. It's cool to see the companies work together and not just 'Hey, here is a guy.' Now we have angles happening on IMPACT or Japan or angles that happen in Japan effect IMPACT like Ace turning on Zayne in Japan and joining Bullet Club and then they have their match in IMPACT. It's good for the fans because it gives you a reason to watch all the product as opposed to their separate worlds."
When asked whether NJPW getting pulled off AXS may have hindered the company's relationship with IMPACT, given the latter's prominent link to the channel, Romero noted that he wished the situation unfolded differently. That being said, he's glad the two sides have been rebuilding their connection.
"I wish that had never happened and maybe if I was involved a little more at that time, maybe it wouldn't have," he responded. "Scott has been so great to deal with and I wish it didn't get that far. AXS did a great job promoting New Japan and New Japan putting such a great product on AXS. They were really working together and gelling for many years. We really found our sweet spot right before we ended up getting pulled. I wish it didn't happen, but here we are and we get to rebuild the relationship brick by brick with IMPACT. They have a great fanbase that tunes in every week and we're getting exposed to that fanbase. I'm glad we were able to mend the relationship."
Romero concluded by highlighting the way D'Amore understands NJPW and Japanese wrestling, saying, "Scott has been in the game so long and understands and respects Japanese wrestling and New Japan. He understands the value of it. I don't think the old regime really understood or valued New Japan in that way, which I don't understand because a lot of those guys came from WCW and New Japan was such an important part of WCW. Scott totally understands it and has been supportive in every way. We're always talking 'how can we do more? How can we make Thursday nights a destination for wrestling fans?'"
Most recently, NJPW's KUSHIDA made his IMPACT debut. Plus, Bullet Club will represent NJPW when the group faces Honor No More at IMPACT Wrestling Emergence. More information is available here.
Fans can check out the full interview with Romero in the video above.
