Dustin Rhodes has had enough of the tribalism in the world of professional wrestling.
All Elite Wrestling‘s Dusty Rhodes recently sat down with Denise Salcedo. When asked about being a veteran in the locker room and young talent asking him for advice, Rhodes said he’s always honored when that happens.
“I feel very honored when somebody comes up and asks me, ‘Hey, Dustin, can you watch my match? Or can you pick this apart for me? What did I do?’ That kind of thing,” Dustin Rhodes said. “And to be able to have an answer for that is pretty awesome because of my experience. And I love the kids, all of them; they’re doing some awesome things.
“I think they’ve just kind of taken me as one of them. We have a great, great locker room. Our camaraderie is awesome. It feels like a team, and sometimes we just all come together, and everything is perfect. We make magic, and the young kids are the future, right? So it is a young man’s game, and they’re doing amazing. If I can help them in any way make their characters better or make their move set better, I want to.
“And when they listen to me, and they go out, and they apply it, and it works. That’s the payoff for me, right? It’s not about money in that instance. It’s not. That’s the payoff for me because it’s like I told you so kind of thing. Not to be an asshole, but just like I told you so, man. Trust me, I know what I’m doing. I can get you there.”
Enough of the tribalism in pro wrestling
When asked how he thinks All Elite Wrestling has changed the industry as a whole, Rhodes said they helped create an alternative to WWE. But one thing he doesn’t enjoy is the tribalism that it has caused.
“I think AEW, we came in as an alternative, right? And it is an alternative to WWE,” Dustin Rhodes said. “I think we’re doing a hell of a job at growing and getting better. We still have a ways to go, just like any brand new company; even though five years is not like brand new, it’s still — we gotta grow just like everybody else, and everybody else has to be on the same page for it to happen. We have to come together as a team to make this thing happen.
“And right now, what I hate the most is the tribalism with our fans between AEW and WWE. It’s like just love wrestling, watch it or don’t, right? I mean, stop with the bullshit of I’m not gonna watch AEW because WWE is the best or vice versa; just enjoy wrestling. You get wrestling with us. You get entertainment with WWE. They’re two different things, and that’s what we said we were going to do. We’re going to wrestle, and that’s what AEW is; it’s pro wrestling, right?
“And yes, we have storylines. Yes, we have some funny segments and some backstage segments, and I think that’s good. We need those. But when it comes down to it, when you get in the ring, it’s about wrestling, right? And if you’ve got a character like Orange Cassidy who does these things and gets huge reactions, huge pops.
“You look at his YouTube viewers, and he’s got the most. He’s up there. It’s crazy. And that’s why he’s over because they love his character. And then you have people out there that just try to bring us down on Twitter, and it’s sickening. I’m so tired of it. It’s like enjoy wrestling or don’t.”
What do you make of Dustin Rhodes’ comments overall? Do you think the AEW locker room is in a good place right now? Do you also think there’s too much trbalism in pro wrestling right now? Let us know your thoughts by sounding off in the comments section below.
If you use any of these quotes, please credit Denise Salcedo with a link to this article for the transcription.
