AEW's Taz Recalls Sabu Walking Out Of ECW For New Japan

Wrestling legend Sabu passed away earlier this week, and many wrestlers have been sharing their memories of him. AEW commentator and former ECW wrestler Taz speaks on "Busted Open Radio" about an important time in their careers – when his former tag partner Sabu suddenly left ECW to wrestle in New Japan.

"He made the decision to go [to Japan] and yeah, that definitely ticked me off and created some heat," Taz said. "If anyone was jealous of anyone, I was jealous of him, he wasn't jealous of me. He was getting a better push than me, he was making a lot more money than me. But, I started getting a little more envious of him. We kinda had some arguments here and there, but nothing crazy, no fistfights."

What started as a real-life job decision turned into an exciting wrestling story when ECW boss Paul Heyman created a storyline about Sabu leaving. Taz played the role of the loyal ECW wrestler who felt betrayed when Sabu left, setting up what would become a famous feud when Sabu finally returned.

That return moment – when Sabu appeared from the darkness to confront Taz in the ECW Arena – is still remembered by many wrestling fans today. 

"The first thing I thought when the lights came on and I heard that pop was, thank God this worked. You can write the angle, the workers can perform that angle, it doesn't mean the audience is gonna take the angle, especially in that building at that time," Taz said. "I said to myself, oh my God, I think the building is shaking. And the third thing I thought was, I knew homeboy [Sabu] was over, but man, now he's over over, more than ever now."

The rivalry that followed helped make ECW famous and made both men important parts of wrestling history.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Busted Open Radio" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for transcription.