Michael Elgin Talks Training With Edge & Christian, Signing With ROH
Zach Takes and Zach Grigg recently spoke with ROH wrestler Michael Elgin on Shotgun Wrestling Radio. Here are some highlights:
His start in pro wrestling: "I'm the youngest in my family and hanging out with my cousins, they were big wrestling fans. One of the first pictures I have as a kid is of me sitting in a wrestling ring with the rubber LJN figures. When I was 14, ifound a school that would actually train 14-year-olds. It wasn't the best place, but knowing I wanted to wrestle, I jumped at the chance to start training.
"I was there 'till I was 16, and then from there I joined Squared Circle Wrestling out of Toronto with Rob Fugeo, who broke in with Edge and Christian. That's where i really began leaning my training. We would have Edge and Christian come in quite often when they were in town. The trainers I had were just amazing to be able to learn from."
If his parents objected to him wrestling: "They were very supportive. I do remember telling my mom, 'I'm going to Detroit for the weekend' and she was all for it. But the day I would leave she would get moody and nervous and she would do that often, because at 14 I couldn't wrestle in Canada because we had an athletic commission."
How he came into contact with Ring of Honor: "I had worked with a lot of people who had worked for Ring of Honor such as Jimmy Jacobs, Jimmy Rave and BJ Whitmore all within a span of a couple months. I had asked them how I get into Ring of Honor, and they told me to contact Gabe. In January of 2007 I asked if I could come out to the shows, and I showed up. Jimmy Jacobs and BJ Whitmore introduced me to him and that weekend I had my first tryout match."
If he was nervous for his first PPV: "My first PPV was the 9th anniversary in Chicago. I had been there a couple months... I can't say I was nervous, but I was ready to prove that I had earned a spot in Ring of Honor."
Elgin also talked about Sinclair buying ROH, managers in wrestling, tag team wrestling and more. You can check out the full interview by clicking here.
Zach contributed to this article.