Earlier this week we reported that former WWE Superstar Justin Gabriel, who now wrestles as the “Darewolf” PJ Black in Lucha Underground, suffered serious injuries after a base jumping accident that could have been fatal.
The 36-year-old South African star spoke with Interactive Wrestling Radio shortly after the incident to provide some first-hand insight into his condition and exactly what happened. He also spoke about being a part of Lucha Underground, making the decision to leave Global Force Wrestling, and being contacted about a potential return to WWE for their 205 Live brand.
PJ Black on the severity of his recent injuries:
“The short version is, I jumped. My body position wasn’t perfect. The parachute opened with a 180-degree turn, so instead of flying away from the building, I flew straight into the building. I managed to kick off one of the ledges and flip myself around, but in doing that I broke my ankle, and then while I was flipping around my finger got caught in a satellite dish. It ripped the tip of the finger off. I’ve got two titanium plates in my leg, and a pretty messed up finger, but I’m alive so that’s pretty cool.”
The current timetable for his return to the ring:
“The South African doctors told me three to four weeks, non-weight-bearing. So I’m still on crutches and I can start walking pretty soon, obviously with a moon boot on. But the American doctors found some extra arthritis and dead bone in my joints. So they recommend crutches for about three months. So anything between six months and twelve months, depending on how quickly I recover. I guess the arthritis and the dead bone is from my 20 years of wrestling.”
On leaving Global Force Wrestling as their top star to join Lucha Underground:
“It was a very tough decision, for multiple reasons. Jeff Jarrett was like, ‘you’re gonna be my guy.’ I could literally do anything I wanted, and he was good to me. We shared the same vision, which is very rare for me and a promotor these days. It was very hard. Lucha Underground contacted me for the first season, but that was the like the week I left WWE, or maybe the same month. At the time I didn’t want to sign with anyone. TNA called, ROH called, all these companies and I was like, ‘Listen, I just want to do my own thing for awhile. I’ve never done the indies in the U.S., so let me see what that’s about.’ I told the guys at Lucha, call me back a year from now. And in that year I started watching the show, and I was like ‘Holy crap, this is amazing! How did I say no to this?'”
“They actually called me back exactly a year later and I was like, ‘Yep, sign me up! Whatever you guys are offering, I’ll just sign it. I’m happy with that.’ I told Jeff [Jarrett] it was something I had to do. If the Global Force show got picked up on the TV it might have been a different story, but I know how these things work. It was going to take awhile before it got picked up, and it still hasn’t gotten picked up, so I guess it was the right decision.”
On the content he recorded for Global Force:
“I’ve seen some of the stuff we recorded. We recorded a whole season in Vegas. The crowds were phenomenal, the storylines were really good, and the talent… It was a very different show. All the wrestling on TV these days, apart from Lucha, is very the same. Global Force actually did something different, so I kinda hope people get to see the season that we filmed sometime in the future.”
On being contacted to return for WWE:
“Never say never. It’s a huge possibility, especially with the way things are run now. They actually have contacted me a few times for 205 Live, but obviously I’m signed to Lucha first of all. Second of all, I weigh 220 pounds right now, and with 205 being a legit 205 – they actually do weigh-ins and stuff, and were actually going to make stories about people trying to drop weight. I’m not willing to lose the weight; I kind of like being a heavyweight. Never say never. Especially now with all the guys going back, and I know a few more friends that are gonna go back very soon. If they do offer me something, it’s going to be hard to say no, but we will see.”
Check out the complete interview with PJ Black in the YouTube player below, for more on his experience in Lucha Underground, growing up watching wrestling in South Africa, his time in WWE, the original idea behind the NXT reality series and more!
