AEW star and pro wrestling veteran MVP appeared on the Marking Out podcast, where he discussed various topics, including his advice for talents signing with indie promotions.
MVP said, “For you Indie wrestlers, don’t be so hyped on being signed. I’ve seen this thing where [people say], ‘I’m a signed talent.’ If you signed a contract to wrestle for a company and you still got to have a full time job, you ain’t signed to s**t. If you’ve got a contract where you’re making a few hundred dollars a month, and you are financially obligated to this company, don’t brag about being signed. You’re not signed to a contract that’s allowing you to live as a wrestler. You’ve still got to supplement your income working at the gym or whatever the case is.”
On the difficult spot that Indie talent are in:
“The problem with that too is when you’re on the come up, you’re still trying to figure out where you’re at, you don’t have any leverage. So, if somebody offers you an opportunity to wrestle for a company and they say, ‘We want to sign you to a contract, if you don’t sign, we’re not gonna use you anymore’, well, what do you do? You’re like, ah, do I take this contract and lock myself in with this company where at least I’m getting some type of TV time and I’m making some kind of money, or do I say, ‘Nah, I’m not doing that’ and I’m not on TV anywhere. It’s a tough spot to be in.”
On his issues with MLW:
“I famously fell out with Court Bauer and MLW because they were signing talent to contacts that I felt professionally was unfair. Brody King, who’s now with AEW, he came to me and asked me, ‘Hey man, they want me to sign this contract.’ I said, ‘I can’t in good conscience tell you to sign that contract because I don’t think it’s fair.’ I remember telling Court, ‘Give these guys a 90-day out.’ It won’t mess up your TV, you have 90 days to do whatever storyline you want to get these people out. Have them lose on their way out, whatever. But if NXT comes along and gives them an opportunity to make life changing money, you’re gonna make them stay with you for two or three years for a few hundred bucks a month where they’re not making a living as a wrestler. He and I fell out about that. To this day, me and Brody are real tight because he was like, ‘Hey dude, thanks for being real with me on that.’ I just couldn’t, in good conscience, tell him to sign that. But I understand the predicament that you’re in because if you don’t have any leverage, what are you going to do? That’s a painful choice to make but at the end of the day.”
You can check out the complete podcast in the video below.
(H/T to Fightful for transcribing the above quotes)
