Johnny Gargano recently spoke with Uproxx to promote NXT TakeOver: WarGames event in Los Angeles, California at the Staples Center on the WWE Network. Here are the highlights.
His current role in NXT:
“Yeah, it’s all over the map, and I think that’s the pretty cool thing about it though, is kind of everyone’s picking sides, and all the sides kind of have to do with my side, so it’s all, “Oh, we want Johnny Wrestling, we want the Johnny Failure, boo, why Johnny why, oh I get it, oh, I don’t get it. Why’d he do this? Why’d he do that? Oh, he shouldn’t have done this. Oh, maybe he should’ve done this.” It’s so all over the map, and I think that’s kind of the atmosphere I get when I perform now, too. I’ve only done one show since that, but I think The Staples Center is going to be madness. I think it’s gonna be wild. And I think that’s kind of the beautiful thing about NXT, is we can kind of tell stories like that, because at the end of the day, in real life, the world does change people. Certain situations do change people. I’m not the same person I was, same person I am now, that you saw wrestling back in whatever, 10 years ago. I’m not that person. Things have happened that have changed me. I’ve grown, I’ve changed, I’m different. And I think characters need to change too, based on things that happen in their lives. For me, I feel like I’m still the same person, I’m still the same guy. I feel like I’m very justified in my actions, ’cause in my head, in my mind, I made a mistake, and Tommaso Ciampa’s NXT Champion because of me. It’s my fault, I’ve owned up to that, that’s my mistake. But it’s my mistake to fix. I’m gonna be the one to fix it. I have to be the one to fix it. Aleister Black unfortunately just got in the way. It’s a two person story, it’s me and Tommaso. Aleister Black was not supposed to be involved. Did I mess up by costing him the NXT Championship? Yes, but I was going to fix it. In my head, the ends justify the means. The end is me defeating Tomasso Ciampa, for the NXT Championship, everyone celebrating, everyone going nuts, you’ll be happy. That is the end. If one person had to be jumped in the parking lot to make that happen, I’m sorry Aleister, you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. That’s basically what it comes down to.
On Becky Lynch’s injury:
“You can never control injuries. Accidents happen, that’s just how things go. But I feel like WWE, and as much crap as they get for whatever, I feel like they always make the best of really bad scenarios, and I will point the Tommaso Ciampa going away. I feel like it made people wait for me and Tommaso’s inevitable match. I feel like it made the story longer. And the thing is, I feel like in this day and age, we’re such a, “We want it now sort of culture.” Like I’m watching a YouTube video, and I fast forward if it’s … if there’s a 30 second ad, I’m losing my mind. I don’t want to sit and watch an ad. We’re such a, “We want it now,” culture, so when you make us wait for something, we kind of throw a fit like children. ‘Cause we’re like, “We don’t want to wait, we want it now! They’re screwing up! Give it to us now!” Sometimes, things are worth waiting for. And I feel like it worked out really well with me and Tomasso, and I feel like it may work out really well with Becky Lynch, ’cause Becky Lynch has made the best of every situation she’s been given, and she’s the hottest thing right now in WWE, there’s no doubt about that in my mind. She’s been doing amazing work, and I feel like they’ll make the best of this as well. And things will turn out for the best.”
