Nick Aldis thinks Alex Shelley could end up being a transitional champion following their match at Slammiversary.
IMPACT Wrestling‘s Nick Aldis recently sat down with WrestleZone’s Managing Editor Bill Pritchard to discuss a wide variety of subjects. When asked about trying to establish himself in IMPACT this year compared to who he was as Magnus, Aldis said he doesn’t think he has to establish himself because he already has, and that’s the character IMPACT wanted, not Magnus.
“I don’t think there’s a chip on my shoulder … Let me make this clear. I’m not trying to establish Nick Aldis. Nick Aldis is established. IMPACT Wrestling wanted Nick Aldis. They didn’t want Magnus,” Nick Aldis said. “They wanted Nick Aldis, and that’s a testament to my body of work. Also, hats off to them because there was absolutely no discussion of referring to any of the past other than, other than just as an interesting footnote, as an interesting sidebar.
“You guys might remember this guy because this is who he was before, but let’s face it,” Aldis explained, “when I showed up, it wasn’t like anyone went, ‘Oh, it’s Magnus.’ No, this is Nick Aldis. We know who this guy is.”
Aldis went on to state he believes that IMPACT World Champion Alex Shelley is actually the underdog going into their match at Slammiversary.
“I’ve worked very hard to achieve that sort of credibility and that cachet,” Nick Aldis said. “Now it’s just time to see it through because I don’t know, maybe this is just me, maybe I’m speaking out of school, but I think the interesting thing about the main event at Slammiversary, the worlds title match is that champion, I feel like is the underdog. I think if Alex Shelley beats me at Slammiversary, it’s a bit of an upset.”
“And boy, does he have a tall order for his first title defense? I hate to use the phrase transitional champion, but oops. Here we go. This will be the ultimate test to see whether Maclin was off his game and whether Alex Shelley did just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Because if he beats me, then his world title reign is solidified as legitimate.”
When Pritchard joked that he didn’t have to pull teeth for Aldis to call Shelley an underdog, Aldis stated that he was just telling the truth, and some people have a problem with that.
“I don’t mince words; I’m telling the truth,” Nick Aldis stated. “Some people find that — in a business full of liars, people who tell the truth are often ostracized and demonized. I think we’ve seen that in other places recently. But there you go. It’s another story for another day. I’m well aware of what I bring to the table.
“And like I said, what I bring to Slammiversary is the toughest test that [Alex has] ever faced because. Whereas he has had a very good career and a very storied career, and he certainly has his fingerprints on a lot of people in the industry, he doesn’t have the big match experience that I have. He certainly doesn’t have the experience of the pressure of carrying the entire brand and the entire company on his back like I have.”
You can check out our complete interview with Nick Aldis below:
What do you make of Nick Aldis’ comments? Do you think he’ll defeat Alex Shelley for the IMPACT World Championship at Slammiversary? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below.
READ MORE: Nick Aldis Can Finally Be Real Again, Finds Himself In A ‘Love To Hate’ Situation
