During a recent interview with Alicia Atout, Austin Gunn commented on how it is learning under Billy Gunn, Arn Anderson’s advice to him, and more. You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
On his first AEW appearance at All In and eventually debuting for the company: “To take it back to All In really quick, I didn’t know I was in that show until maybe seven hours before the show started. We had an indy show to do the day before, so I was there and we did the indy show together. He was gonna take the reins on All In, and seven hours before, he didn’t tell me but he reached out and was like, ‘I really want Austin to feel what it’s like to be in front of that many people and see what it feels like.’ He got it approved and told me, and it was just unreal. The whole show, from start to finish, I was just so locked in and it ended up working out really well for me. I got the opportunity to debut January 1 for AEW, and from there, it was off to the races. I felt so at home at AEW. I’m wrestling with my dad, I get the knowledge of being with him 24/7 whether that’s in the gym, asking him questions – I get to be in the ring with him and see what a real match is supposed to feel like and the chemistry and the movement and everything. I’m so lucky to be in the position I’m in, and it all came from just All In and him asking if I could be in there for that one moment. But that one moment turned into where I am now.”
On learning under Billy Gunn: “Nowadays we have a healthy balance of some things I’m gonna do my way, and I’ll learn by doing them and they either work out and it’s great, or I’ll do them and they don’t work out. But that’s the beauty of learning is you have to be able to put yourself out there and fail and try new things to look back after the match and go, ‘That didn’t work out, I felt like an idiot there, and never do that again.’ That actually happened – I think it was one of our matches on Dark. He let me put the whole thing together and we went out there, and he was like, ‘Let me know what I gotta do, and we’ll do it.’ I was like, ‘I got this, I got this.’ I was super confident all day, and we went out there and it was just terrible. The whole time I was looking at him, and he was just shaking his head. But after the match, he took me to the side and said, ‘I didn’t wanna say anything,’ but that’s a situation where he has to let me be me. I’m not gonna be perfect, and I’m the son of a Gunn. But I’ve gotta learn on my own and try new things. So, that’s what I’m trying to do.”
On joining Nightmare Family and what Arn Anderson told him before AEW Dynamite main event: “It’s like I have the knowledge of my dad and that’s all I had before, but now I’m in a family swimming in knowledge. You have Dustin Rhodes, you have Arn Anderson, you have Cody, you have my dad – it’s ridiculous. We had that match, we debuted on Dynamite, we were in the main event – that alone, being there with Cody and knowing his past, and he’s a multi-generational wrestler and being with Dustin backstage. And then Arn being with me backstage, he goes, ‘Just go out there and have some fun.’ That took my nerves from here to right here and put me in the zone. They’ve been there before and now they’re watching me go through and be the rookie. It’s really cool to be surrounded by uplifting people. They’re so positive all the time, and if I ever have any questions, they pull me to the side and tell me what I can do better or tell me what I’m doing really well. So, I think it’s a great opportunity for me to learn. I’m just in the learning stage all the time, and it’s great to be surrounded by a family like that.”
(h/t – 411 Wrestling)
