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Former TNA star, Matt Morgan did an interview with Raj Giri of Wrestle Inc. Morgan discussed his time in TNA, leaving the company and any possible interest of returning there. You can read the highlights below:
When you left and returned to TNA last year, you were basically gone for the summer and then you returned. Was there any kind of planned story line or angle for your return?
Matt Morgan: I absolutely do think there was a planned storyline in place. The whole point of me taking time off last summer was to get me off of television for the time being because I had consistently been booked for a three to four year window there. I never missed more than two back to back Impacts. Never. Ever. Being there consistently, and eventually with a guy my size, you could get overexposed to a point where you're doing a little bit more damage than you are doing good for yourself. With that being said, they definitely took me off television for that purpose, and when I came back they were going to have something for me a little bit stronger.
So when I came back, I think what they did is they tried to combine ideas between Joey Ryan having a storyline beef with the office and Matt Morgan having a "storyline beef" with the office. Our beefs were completely different. His beef was him just trying to get a job and my storyline beef with the office was I should be the poster boy of your company, that kind of thing with the over the top, arrogant, heel type stuff. So I think that's why they combined me and Joey as a tag team at first. We were off and running at first for a while there. I think they started to stray away from me and Joey as a team for me as a singles, to go in the direction with Hulk [Hogan]. Let me be very clear about this. When I went back, Hulk was really wanting to work with me, to do stuff with me, to help me improve and things like that to get me to where he thinks that I could be. To his credit he spoke up an awful lot for me.
Basically, what ended up happening was I ended up going from tagging with Joey to doing an angle with Hulk himself. The man can't obviously wrestle anymore with all the surgeries the poor guy's had over the years. He did his best to do what he could to present an angle with me and him. But at the end of the day, I never really had an opponent to wrestle while I was doing that angle. Promo wise, I learned a lot and it was really good for me. And again, I'm in the middle of the ring with, and I know everybody says it, but this dude here's like my freaking role model and one of my idols as a kid. My Mt. Rushmore of idols was Michael Jordan, Don Mattingly, Hulk Hogan and then as I got older, obviously The Undertaker took over that spot for me as a role model.
It seemed like you were just getting involved with the angle with Hogan and then you left TNA a couple of months later. What ended up leading to your departure from the company?
I just think it was... I was about to start a story line, a pretty major one actually. Unfortunately it just didn't materialize and they went in a different direction with another person's character. I 100% understand why they had to do it with this particular character, but as far as I'm concerned with my storyline, that left me odd man out where I was going to be taking some time off and sitting at home again.
I remember talking to Dixie [Carter] about it and her telling me to hang in there a little bit more and things like that. "I'm sure creative will come around, we can find something." The problem with that was, again, I was going to be sitting. I'm in my prime right now and I just felt it wasn't best for me and my family, most importantly, I have a kid on the way. I'm having my first child coming and I'm a nervous wreck about it as it is, let alone sitting at home doesn't make that any better, financially speaking. I had to do what was best from my family's financial standpoint.
Dixie, I can't say enough about the woman. She's the best boss I've ever had, someone to this day I still keep in complete contact with. It was tough, it really was because like I said earlier in this interview, I didn't expect to fall in love with TNA the way I did when I first started there. I was just looking out first for an opportunity, right? And then after that opportunity, I just kept improving and improving, whether it's promos and in ring, things like that to the point I was before I left. And I'm very proud of my career at TNA. I can't thank them enough for the opportunity that they did give me. So yeah, me and Dixie both thought that at the end of the day, that was what was best for Matt Morgan as well as for TNA at that moment. I just can't thank TNA enough for allowing me the maturation process of growing into the wrestler I am today. From starting off as having to prove myself as Jim Cornette's swearing bodyguard, to a singles baby face, and to learning to be a tag team wrestler for a while with Hernandez, to moving on to work in main event storylines. To being able to headline six or seven pay per views is a complete honor for me, something that I take very seriously and I'm very proud of. I'm very, very happy for the fact that TNA allowed me those opportunities. I can't say enough good things about the company.
I know a lot of people want to bury the company and talk down about it, which makes no sense to me when they're the only competition there is out there for WWE. I think people out there need to support, not just TNA], but all wrestling. Indy wrestling, Ring of Honor, you name it wrestling, my grandma's backyard wrestling for crying out loud. Fans should support it just because if you're a true wrestling fan, you really shouldn't give two craps too much about the backstage politics and who did this to this guy. And I understand how sexy and what kind of headline news that that makes on wrestling sites. I understand that wholeheartedly. I 'm a fan, but I was a fan growing up seeing those same headlines when I was younger when WCW was going around at the time. At the end of the day, whatever you think about the company [TNA], at least show your support of it, because that wrestling roster that they have there, I've never been on a better wrestling roster in my career, from top to bottom. The talent that the company had while I was there was insane. It's really rare to get a bad matchup. So again, just very, very blessed and very honored that I had the opportunity that Dixie Carter, Eric [Bischoff] and Hulk Hogan afforded me.
So it seems like the door is open if you want to go back.
I've never burned a single bridge there so I don't see why not. And yes, I would assume so. We shall see.
When you left and returned to TNA last year, you were basically gone for the summer and then you returned. Was there any kind of planned story line or angle for your return?
Matt Morgan: I absolutely do think there was a planned storyline in place. The whole point of me taking time off last summer was to get me off of television for the time being because I had consistently been booked for a three to four year window there. I never missed more than two back to back Impacts. Never. Ever. Being there consistently, and eventually with a guy my size, you could get overexposed to a point where you're doing a little bit more damage than you are doing good for yourself. With that being said, they definitely took me off television for that purpose, and when I came back they were going to have something for me a little bit stronger.
So when I came back, I think what they did is they tried to combine ideas between Joey Ryan having a storyline beef with the office and Matt Morgan having a "storyline beef" with the office. Our beefs were completely different. His beef was him just trying to get a job and my storyline beef with the office was I should be the poster boy of your company, that kind of thing with the over the top, arrogant, heel type stuff. So I think that's why they combined me and Joey as a tag team at first. We were off and running at first for a while there. I think they started to stray away from me and Joey as a team for me as a singles, to go in the direction with Hulk [Hogan]. Let me be very clear about this. When I went back, Hulk was really wanting to work with me, to do stuff with me, to help me improve and things like that to get me to where he thinks that I could be. To his credit he spoke up an awful lot for me.
Basically, what ended up happening was I ended up going from tagging with Joey to doing an angle with Hulk himself. The man can't obviously wrestle anymore with all the surgeries the poor guy's had over the years. He did his best to do what he could to present an angle with me and him. But at the end of the day, I never really had an opponent to wrestle while I was doing that angle. Promo wise, I learned a lot and it was really good for me. And again, I'm in the middle of the ring with, and I know everybody says it, but this dude here's like my freaking role model and one of my idols as a kid. My Mt. Rushmore of idols was Michael Jordan, Don Mattingly, Hulk Hogan and then as I got older, obviously The Undertaker took over that spot for me as a role model.
It seemed like you were just getting involved with the angle with Hogan and then you left TNA a couple of months later. What ended up leading to your departure from the company?
I just think it was... I was about to start a story line, a pretty major one actually. Unfortunately it just didn't materialize and they went in a different direction with another person's character. I 100% understand why they had to do it with this particular character, but as far as I'm concerned with my storyline, that left me odd man out where I was going to be taking some time off and sitting at home again.
I remember talking to Dixie [Carter] about it and her telling me to hang in there a little bit more and things like that. "I'm sure creative will come around, we can find something." The problem with that was, again, I was going to be sitting. I'm in my prime right now and I just felt it wasn't best for me and my family, most importantly, I have a kid on the way. I'm having my first child coming and I'm a nervous wreck about it as it is, let alone sitting at home doesn't make that any better, financially speaking. I had to do what was best from my family's financial standpoint.
Dixie, I can't say enough about the woman. She's the best boss I've ever had, someone to this day I still keep in complete contact with. It was tough, it really was because like I said earlier in this interview, I didn't expect to fall in love with TNA the way I did when I first started there. I was just looking out first for an opportunity, right? And then after that opportunity, I just kept improving and improving, whether it's promos and in ring, things like that to the point I was before I left. And I'm very proud of my career at TNA. I can't thank them enough for the opportunity that they did give me. So yeah, me and Dixie both thought that at the end of the day, that was what was best for Matt Morgan as well as for TNA at that moment. I just can't thank TNA enough for allowing me the maturation process of growing into the wrestler I am today. From starting off as having to prove myself as Jim Cornette's swearing bodyguard, to a singles baby face, and to learning to be a tag team wrestler for a while with Hernandez, to moving on to work in main event storylines. To being able to headline six or seven pay per views is a complete honor for me, something that I take very seriously and I'm very proud of. I'm very, very happy for the fact that TNA allowed me those opportunities. I can't say enough good things about the company.
I know a lot of people want to bury the company and talk down about it, which makes no sense to me when they're the only competition there is out there for WWE. I think people out there need to support, not just TNA], but all wrestling. Indy wrestling, Ring of Honor, you name it wrestling, my grandma's backyard wrestling for crying out loud. Fans should support it just because if you're a true wrestling fan, you really shouldn't give two craps too much about the backstage politics and who did this to this guy. And I understand how sexy and what kind of headline news that that makes on wrestling sites. I understand that wholeheartedly. I 'm a fan, but I was a fan growing up seeing those same headlines when I was younger when WCW was going around at the time. At the end of the day, whatever you think about the company [TNA], at least show your support of it, because that wrestling roster that they have there, I've never been on a better wrestling roster in my career, from top to bottom. The talent that the company had while I was there was insane. It's really rare to get a bad matchup. So again, just very, very blessed and very honored that I had the opportunity that Dixie Carter, Eric [Bischoff] and Hulk Hogan afforded me.
So it seems like the door is open if you want to go back.
I've never burned a single bridge there so I don't see why not. And yes, I would assume so. We shall see.