John Morrison Talks WWE - Lucha UG Differences, What He Didn't Like About Tough Enough, More
Lucha Underground star Johnny Mundo spoke to The News Hub recently about his experience on Tough Enough, as well as making the move to Lucha Underground. You can read the highlights below, and check out the full interview at this link.
Tough Enough:
"The best way to describe tough enough is to just call it an opportunity. In my opinion its best opportunity any aspiring wrestler could possibly have. It's a chance to learn from the best in the business and meet people who have achieved things in the business that usually take a long time and a lot of work to just be in the same room with. I think that it imitates what it's like to be on the road and that you're on Tough Enough and your walking on eggshells constantly everything you do in the ring, out of the ring affects who they select to win that show. I always thought it was a really cool show and I think it's cool that they are bringing it back and its one of my favorite shows to watch. It's always a little nostalgic watching that thing and me with Madcap Kelly up there with Al Snow and, Ivory and Bill (DeMott) was one of the most high pressured but also fun times of my life on Tough Enough.
"The only thing I think is a shame is I know they are looking for specifically aspiring wrestlers without a lot of experience and I can see how if you've been training for a couple of years and you apply for Tough Enough and you don't make it that it could be disheartening all I can say is that sucks. For me I was lucky enough to apply for Tough Enough before I could really start training and its one way to get your foot in the door as a pro wrestler but it's not the only way. I don't know who they've selected and I haven't been following it yet, but I will say that it's still a TV show. If they pick 13 contestants who have all paid their dues and are veterans of pro wrestling and the show is about learning to take bumps and you don't have much of a show. At the end of the day, every television show is a product. Of course, they are going to pick people with good looks and they are probably going to want people that who might even be dramatic or overly dramatic. There are people that are picked for a reason on that show. That's part of what TV is. If there is no conflict, there's no drama and at the end of the day you can't look at Tough Enough and say that these are the 13 most prepared people in the world to have a career as a professional wrestler, that's not what the show is. The show is people training to be a pro wrestler who are going to be interesting to watch learning. Just because you're on the show Tough Enough doesn't mean you have more potential than anyone else in the world, it just means you got a lucky opportunity and if you work hard you can make the most of it and probably have a career as a pro wrestler if you follow up and work hard continually."
Moving to Lucha Underground:
"I've been completely blown away by the professionalism, by the people and the talent of those on the roster on Lucha Underground. Being on the El Rey Network, being one of the companies that puts the vignettes together from Skip Chasen who is putting the backstage vignettes together to the other people the Lucha Underground people specifically that set up this interview. I've could talk about Lucha Underground for hours and hours and how great it is. The quick bullet points are that the vignettes, I love and I've been doing a bunch of movies since I left the WWE and loved where we were shooting the vignettes in the style of the gritty action film where we are doing coverage and I like that we are doing the vignettes in English and Spanish. I know it gets more views in Spanish than it does in English which is interesting and challenging.
"The in-ring psychology is faster paced and harder hitting then the WWE for example. I like that it definitely been a challenge for me physically and mentally because it allows me to reinvent myself and make Johnny Mundo relevant and a competitor in the style of Lucha Underground which I believe is a combination of Lucha, American pro wrestling and also Japanese and European pro wrestling. Everything is combined in Lucha and it's cool to revitalize my career and make me think about pro wrestling and it's made me excited about pro wrestling again and I'm super excited for season 2 and can't wait to come back."