On a recent edition of his “My World” podcast, WWE Hall of Famer Jeff Jarrett discussed Mexican fans taking things too far by attacking heel wrestlers, Konnan’s booking of AAA, and more.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On why working in Japan is better than Mexico for US wrestlers: “I would have to say Japan probably paid better overall. They also — I’m not saying guys stayed in five-star hotels, but it was all bus travel. The accommodations, comparatively speaking, Japan was a little bit better.”
On Mexican fans taking wrestling seriously and trying to attack heel wrestlers: “Dutch [Mantel] was often worrying in these early years. When we got up into 2010 and ’11 and I’m taking my wife, and Karen’s there. And at the hotel, this is when I would get like — again, this is BS [Before Sobriety]. So you have to take that with a grain of salt that is not the most clearest-minded sometimes. But many times I’ve been called at the hotel before the show, and they said, ‘Hey, Jeff, why don’t we let the show get started? And then we’ll bring you in?’ And you go, ‘Okay?’
“And sometimes I’d say, ‘No, screw that. Come get me now. I want to get over there, I want to–‘ And you just kind of — as you’re coming in, and they’re pounding on the car, and this and that, and you get stopped. And Karen’s looking at me like, ‘I told you we should have waited,’ or different things like that. In these early years, [Antonio] Pena took care of me. There was heat, there because he was kind of a strategic thing. We waited about an hour and a half after the first debut, and Pena was like, ‘Just let the people leave,’ and all that kind of stuff. It’s a different deal, it’s not like you jump in the black suburban and whisk off. And once you get three miles from the building that, ‘Hey, you’re okay.’ It’s just a different culture.”
On Konnan looking out for talent despite overseeing AAA creative: “[He understands both sides] because he’s operated on both sides. Again, he is so unique — I don’t want to just call him a talent, because that puts him in the talent bucket. He’s such a unique individual because he can put on his executive cap. He can put on his — we’ll call it agent, promoter, producer cap. He can wear multiple hats very, very well. But he also kind of knows from the streets, if you will, ‘If I don’t stay true to myself, ultimately the machine or the animals wind up eating you alive.
“So, he was — look, he doesn’t have a perfect record. Nobody does. He had so much trust with guys because he shot straight with them. If you’re — pardon the French, if you’re the s**s in the ring, Konnan had no problem saying, ‘Hey, dude, your work got to get better.’ Not, ‘Hey, man, I saw your match, pretty good!’ and then move on. No, he’d say, ‘Come here. Dude, you got to get a lot better. You’re the s**s right now.’ They just respected speaking the truth. And also, ‘Hey, you’re not worth that kind of money. You’re not getting it.’ Just that kind of street cred… I’m just saying he’s such a unique individual. He’s not [a bulls**ter], but he goes even — yeah, not a bulls**ter, but he’s also got vision. He’s got innovation, creative, and talent, and he can cut a promo like no other, and he’s bilingual. And we go on and on.”
