In a recent interview with Sports Illustrated, The Young Bucks discussed their rivalry with FTR and their upcoming match at AEW All In 2023.
The Young Bucks (Matt & Nick Jackson) will challenge FTR (Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler) for the AEW World Tag Team Championships tomorrow at Wembley Stadium in London.
You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
Nick Jackson on having COVID before their first match with FTR: “Not many people know this, but I had a really bad case of Covid a month or two before that first match, and I had trouble breathing for a long time. Cardio-wise, it took me a while to get healthy, so that match was probably the hardest match I ever had to get through. The second match I felt a lot healthier, but it was on TV so we didn’t get a lot of time. What excites me most is having that extra time and having a beat to be able to tell the best story that we possibly can.”
Matt Jackson on how big the rivalry is: “It’s like the Celtics and the Lakers. It’s a rivalry between the very best dynasty teams, but there’s an undeniable respect that is present. Any competitor who sees another competitor as a threat, aren’t inviting them over for a cup of coffee. At least not now, while we’re in the middle of it. Maybe one day when we’re all old men, we’ll sit down, reminisce and realize how much we all actually have in common. But for now, they’re the enemy and they’re after the things I want. And one of those things are the tag team titles, and the other is to be labeled the greatest tag team of this generation.”
Matt on wanting the tag titles: “Dax said it best in our sit-down interview. When you have the tag team titles, you earn the right to call yourselves the best tag team in the world. For a while now, we’ve taken a backseat to the tag team stuff, and have been focusing on trios matches and eight-man tag matches. We sort of let them have their shine, and we watched them go on a run. I think it’s clear that it’s time to take back what belongs to us. It’s time to sit back on our throne.”
Nick on the success of AEW and All In: “Wrestling fans craved something new. They wanted to see change. That’s what All In was. Giving wrestling fans an alternative. AEW is the alternative. It’s given jobs to hundreds of people who might not have income coming in every week. It gives fans a different look at how wrestling can be done on TV every week. In that regard it for sure has that spirit still.”
Matt on Cash Wheeler’s arrest and doubt the match would happen: “Any time distractions happen beyond your control, it’s a bit frustrating. But we have a task at hand, and we plan on delivering.”