Former WWE Superstar and current Impact Wrestling star Alberto El Patron (a.k.a. Alberto Del Rio) recently did an interview with Sports Illustrated’s “Extra Mustard” to talk on a view pro wrestling topics. Here are the highlights:
His work with Impact Wrestling:
“I am so happy to work with Impact Wrestling. I have nothing but respect for them. Unlike another company, who I don’t watch, I don’t follow, and I don’t even look at their tweets. I have some real beef with some of the people in that company.”
WWE being dramatically larger than any other promotion in pro wrestling:
“It’s horrible for the business, but you cannot blame that company. That company is doing what a company is supposed to do—monopolize, get the best talent from everywhere, and try to destroy the competition. They’re smart, you cannot blame them. The problem is with the talent. Just going there to be there with the promise of being on TV, but not even charging good money for your work, is not good business. We as wrestlers need to remember that this is a business. We started because we love the business and we stay in it because we have a lot of passion for it, but you have to be rewarded for your work. I was there and saw some of the main guys, new top heels and new top babyfaces, get paid nothing for their matches. The new talent joining NXT is taking pay cuts to work there, sometimes even 80 percent less. You need to be rewarded for your work in a business.”
What his goals are moving forward in his career:
“I’m planning on retiring in two years. I’m still good to go and I don’t have any major injuries, but I always promised myself I would leave on top. I started wrestling when I was eight years old with the amateur wrestling team in Mexico. I love the business with all my heart, but my body is getting tired. It’s all the travel. I’m going to do my last two years with Impact Wrestling. I’ll continue to do some indie shows here and there, and I have a lot of projects outside the business. I am going to continue running Combate Americas, the MMA company that I work for, and I am going to start a soap opera in Mexico in two months. We also have a reality show produced by Combate Americas that was sold to Amazon. People should be able to see that in three more months. I opened a restaurant and bar in San Antonio in November. We are the place to go on Fridays and Saturdays. God is blessing me. I’m getting married pretty soon. We changed the date twice, but we’re getting married in the last week of July, so I am keeping very busy outside the business.”
You can check out the full interview by clicking this link.
