Matt Taven Opens Up About Alex Shelley's Influence On Him And His Career
Last weekend wasn't all about SummerSlam and the WWE as there were numerous other wrestling events going on in Toronto. One of those was Ring of Honor's Summer Supercard which was headlined by ROH world champion Matt Taven taking on Alex Shelley.
Taven joined Wrestling Inc's Nick Hausman before the event where he talked about what Alex Shelley has meant to him personally.
"Alex Shelley is one of those guys that when I was getting into wrestling, I was watching Alex Shelley all the time. He's one of those guys that I modeled my career after because I thought that was the way to do things ? going to Mexico and Japan and learning all of these different styles. To me, I don't think he gets enough credit. People kind of sleep on his legacy," Taven said before crediting Shelley, Chris Sabin and Generation Me as trailblazers in the industry.
"To me being a big wrestling fan, this is a proving ground night since we're here in ROH. It's a big night to prove myself against a guy I have nothing but respect for."
Taven won the world title at the G1 Supercard in April and has spent over 100 days as champion. He needed just one word to describe his ongoing run as champion.
"Stressful! I've had more title defenses than anyone in history in 125 days," stated Taven. "Man, you work so long to get to MSG and your friends and family is there, and then a week later you are right back to defending the belt. You get no time to enjoy the fruits of your labor. But this is what I've wanted and this is the position I've wanted. As much as I jokingly say this is stressful, this is where I've always pictured myself.
"Now I'm about to defend it in Toronto against a guy I used to watch. It doesn't get much better than that."
Taven's interview was featured as part of last Wednesday's episode of our WINCLY podcast on the Wrestling Inc. audio channel, which you can listen to below. You can check out past episodes of the WINCLY here.
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