During a recent appearance on the “Shining Wizards” podcast, Karl Fredericks commented on deciding to sign with New Japan Pro Wrestling (NJPW) over WWE, his experience at his NJPW tryout, and more.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On his experience at the NJPW tryout: “The three-day tryout in LA was awfully hard. As opposed to, both times I went to Florida, it was hard, but different. The whole nature of what type of pro wrestling it is obviously dictates that style. I had the nerves I would like if I was going to a big football camp, ‘Alright, you have to play well. If you want to be seen by one of these coaches, you have to play well.’ Being in that environment, I performed and showed more in that sparring.
“I assumed the whole reason they were going into that camp is because they were trying to sign people and opened a Dojo. I was going in there to get a job. I had already been in the hiring process with WWE for a full year. February 2017 was the last tryout I had. September is when they called me, ‘Hey, we’re gonna try to bring you in and do the background checks.’ Then it was ‘play it by ear,’ waiting for them to say, ‘Come report to Florida.’ They were cool about it. They called me every three months or so and kept in touch like, ‘Maybe after Mania.’ A year had passed, now it’s summer 2018, I happened to be in LA for four days, I wrestled two shows and did three days at the camp.”
On his decision to sign with NJPW over WWE: “I was waiting forever and I knew I had to make something happen because I was starting to feel stagnant. On the Indies, all the guys I came up with like Jungle Boy, Brody King, Jacob Fatu, Jake Atlas, those guys were on the Indies and thriving huge. I was sitting in a spot, knowing I was on my way out, allegedly, thinking, ‘It’s a matter of time and my ship will take off.’ It wasn’t happening, so I had to do something.
“Went to the camp, it was easy knowing the way I felt and enjoying what we were doing. Meeting Katsuyori Shibata and him telling you on the spot, ‘I want you on the team.’ It felt like, I could win the National Title at Alabama, sit for four or five years and maybe play the last season or go somewhere else, start, and win the National Title myself. When discussing things with WWE, it was still projected like another six months. Maybe in January. ‘Guys, I can’t do that. I’m broke. I have no money.’ I had to take a leap and it was an easy leap to make. When anyone says, ‘we want you,’ you have to do it. It’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”
(h/t – Fightful)
