Swerve Strickland recently appeared as a guest on the In The Kliq podcast for an in-depth interview covering all things pro wrestling. During the discussion, Strickland commented on what he feels is the reason for his success in AEW:
“I feel like the crowd understands that I don’t bring any bull crap to these shows. What you see is what you get with me. There’s a lot of authenticity to who I am and what I’m portraying on the show. People feel who I am. They understand who I am and what I’m about. I think there’s a lot of reality. When you can display actual reality to the fans, they truly invest a lot more and they can feel my presence. Then there’s joy. They feel joy when they see Nana and hear the music and the song. So there’s a lot to invest in with Swerve. That’s why I felt like I spent 2023 really doing this, getting people to truly understand and invest and feel who I am and delivering in the ring.
On what he feels Sting has meant to AEW:
“I think it was one of the best platforms for him to go out the way he deserved to go out in his career. I think the handling of Sting in AEW has been top notch, 100% perfect. I don’t transition to who I am now as a main-eventer, as a competitor in AEW without Sting and without Darby. Those guys are what really pushed and pivoted me. Losing at All In and being put in a coffin really altered the mindset and the psychology of who Swerve is. It took it to a whole nother level and I have Sting to thank for that even though I didn’t necessarily want to lose that match. Being put in a coffin in front of 80,000 people by an icon and a legend is nothing to scoff at. That’s really big and that’s a historic moment in pro wrestling. Sting choosing AEW and choosing to compete the way he does in AEW and to be influenced and open-minded to be with Darby and be influenced by us young guys and a new wave, a new crop of talent, and hanging in there and jumping in with us, that shows you the kind of man he is, not just a professional, but what kind of man he truly is. He’s going to be missed. I’m happy that he’s doing this here with us and going out with AEW.”
You can check out the complete podcast below:
(h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription)
