Drew Gulak did an interview with Newsweek where he discussed his long journey in the WWE that culminates with an upcoming intercontinental championship match against AJ Styles. Take a look at the highlights below.
On having the opportunity to win the Intercontinental Championship:
It’s crazy man. I keep thinking about it. The Intercontinental Championship has always been a highly regarded and prestigious title, especially amongst wrestling fans. People who love the sport of wrestling and the competition of everything. I’ve always been a fan of that. I think back to Shawn Michaels and Razor Ramon fighting for the Intercontinental Championship and watching that growing up. Now, I have my first shot on SmackDown. This is huge for me, personally.
On his experience working on 205 Live:
I came right in with the Cruiserweight Classic, which was an homage to great tournament wrestling and I came straight in from the independent scene. And then went to 205 Live and Monday Night RAW before going to 205 Live full time until I won the Cruiserweight Championship and held the title until it was time for me to move to SmackDown. I’ve just been steadily climbing. This is a perfect story between an old lion and a young lion. Coming up, trying to take that spot. I’m not afraid to go at it with anybody. The journey has been everything. It’s just been how it’s been for my entire life. People counted me out, I’d survive and I outlast them and succeed.
Working with Daniel Bryan:
He’s awesome. He’s a really great person. Super passionate about wrestling. If there’s anyone who is as passionate as me about wrestling it’s him. We can talk about it non-stop and our passion never wavers. Someone like AJ Styles I feel like his passion is kind of wavering, which is the dichotomy of the two people. It’s been great working with Bryan.
On Daniel Bryan supporting the wrestlers that are often not given opportunities:
It means a lot to the locker room in general. Daniel, even though he’s been at the top ever since I started wrestling, much like AJ Styles, he understands that people with opportunities really come down to timing more than everything. When Bryan had his neck and head injury and took time off he called the Cruiserweight Classic and he saw a ton of talent from all over the world who may or may not be given the same opportunities he had. He could have been wrestling these guys and they would have been making him better, he would have made them better, the entire locker room better and WWE and the fans would have had more fun to enjoy. I think that’s a really legitimate motive for him.
On what kind of Intercontinental Champion he wants to become:
Bryan said in his interview before his championship match with AJ Styles that he wanted to defend it every week on SmackDown. It will be the “wrestler’s” championship again and he will have these classic matches against everyone he missed out on having a match with. I feel very strongly the same way he does as far as I want to be a fighting champion and I wouldn’t mind defending that thing every week, every night if I had to just so I can create opportunities for other people. I think that’s one thing where me and him would be different.
You can read the entire interview here.
