Rhino officially returned to Impact Wrestling at the promotion’s latest set of tapings in Windsor, ON, Canada after possibly having appeared at Slammiversary under a mask. This is his 3rd stint with the promotion, though much is different since the last time he was there. He spoke to the Sporting News recently about why he decided to sign with Impact.
“It’s a company on the right path for almost two years,” Rhino said when asked what signing with Impact meant to him. “They have been moving in a direction where wrestling fans want a company to go in terms of letting the talent be the talent, having bookers booking the matches on the card opposed to writers.”
The 43-year-old won the NWA World Heavyweight Championship as a member of the TNA roster in 2005.
“I think a lot of fans are drawn to a promotion like that. Not speaking against other promotions, but you other promotions doing it differently because they’re very successful. But I think there’s nitch where you have to let talent be talent and have enough talent where it’s not drowned out too much and where you don’t have enough TV time and run enough shows to use them. It’s up to the talent, whether to sink or swim. And Impact because guys have more control when their contracts are up.”
Rhino On Dixie Carter’s Impact Wrestling
He was also asked about his previous runs with the company including working under Dixie Carter.
“I had a lot of fun. I got a chance to work with guys like AJ Styles, Abyss, Sting, James Storm, even to Rob Van Dam, who was one of my last feuds there. It was a lot of fun. Look at Van Dam now. He’s still so talented.”
Was That Rhino At Slammiversary?
When asked if that was him at Slammiversary giving Michael Elgin a Gore, Rhino wouldn’t answer directly.
“I cannot confirm or deny. But I will go on the record of saying I was still under contract no matter who I worked for. Whether it’s my word or a contract, I will do it justice. But with that being said, Rob Van Dam was also under contract when he appeared on Monday Night Raw for the Reunion show,” Rhino said.
“So, does Impact and WWE have some sort of backdoor understanding type of agreement? Or was that not me? Or was that me? Did WWE allow me or give my blessings? Because at the end of the day, what are they going to do? Fire me? But at the end of the day, doing business is one of the essential things in wrestling. I try to stress that to younger talent. It’s always beneficial to do good business because it ends up being best for the wrestling business and the fans.”
The full interview can be read here.
