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We Spoke To Impact Wrestling's New Tag Team Champion Scott Steiner

We Spoke To Impact Wrestling's New Tag Team Champion Scott Steiner

Big Poppa Pump was on usual form.

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Conventional wisdom dictates that at 55 years-old, most athletes put their feet up and reflect on their glory days at the top of their chosen sport. 'Big Poppa Pump' Scott Steiner has never been one for convention.

During a smash-mouth career that has seen him lift titles in the NWA, WCW and WWE; the Michigan-born powerhouse has done things his own way. This past Sunday he teamed with Eli Drake to capture the Impact Wrestling tag team championships from LAX in a remarkable performance. He even dusted off the Frankensteiner, a hurricanrana-style move more suited to cruiserweights in their 20s rather than restaurant owners in their 50s. SPORTbible spoke to the former WCW World Heavyweight Champion to talk longevity, history, and why 55 is the new 25 when you're the 'Genetic Freak'.

To begin, we asked Scott how he has managed to perform at such a high level for so long in such an intensely physical business. The response we got was nothing less than what you'd expect from the heavily-muscled firebrand.

"THAT'S WHY I'M WORLD FAMOUS BITCH! I've trained throughout my career. The way I am in pro wrestling is the way I was in amateur wrestling. The first year I got into the University of Michigan, I had to train with the first American to be an Olympic champion at Greco-Roman.

"That was my first introduction to being a college wrestler. I trained with him for five years and that made me afraid of no one. I trained with an Olympic champion and one of the best in the world and I knew the sky was the limit. I've never really taken a day off. The one thing I wish I could do is stretch. But the freaks make sure I'm pretty limber. They don't call me the Big Bad Booty Daddy for nothing! There's positions these freaks want me to be in so they make sure I'm limber enough. Trust me they're satisfied."

Surprisingly for a man who has so bullishly continued to confound critics with his nimble performances for a man closing in on his pension, Steiner has considered calling it quits in the past. But wrestling offers a unique outlet for Scott that he cannot resist.

"Punching people has always been my motivation. A lot of people piss me off so there's great pleasure in punching people. I also love wrestling in front of the fans, in front of a crowd. There's no rush like getting in the ring and wrestling. That's really my motivation. The love of wrestling and the love of knocking somebody's teeth in."

When the WCW organisation, at one point the largest such operation in the world, closed its doors in 2001 Scott was at a crossroads. The 'Big Bad Booty Daddy' nearly hung up the tights for good. Luckily for wrestling fans still thrilled by his intense displays, that feeling did not last long.

"When WCW closed I actually retired then, but you'd be surprised how bored you get. I've taken periods of time off, but wrestling in front of the fans is addictive. The love of wrestling keeps me going. When I was young I was like 'I'm going to retire early' but what do you do to replace that excitement you know? That's the whole deal. How do you replace that rush? It's hard to do."

As well as the rush of fans chanting his name, pro-wrestling also allows the former NWO member to tap into parts of his personality that aren't conducive to everyday life.

"When I get in a wrestling ring that's the only time I'm free. Free from assault charges, it's not battery, you can beat anybody up. In the real world you can't just go and punch somebody. But in wrestling you can. You can steal a girlfriend, make love to her and he can't do shit about it."

Along with suplexes, hammering forearms and the Steiner Recliner submission hold; wild and untamed promos have always been a huge part of the Scott Steiner story. Whether its inventing "quick maths" long before there was a Big Shaq while calculating his opponents chance of winning, or his vitriolic spats with Ric Flair and DDP; Steiner talking usually gets everyone else talking. However the one major shift in big-league wrestling since Steiner's debut has been the rise of scripted interviews for wrestlers. Unsurprisingly, Scott is not on board with this modern practice.

"It's some of the worst shit you can do, to curb somebody's way to express their feelings and who they are. For the idiots that script interviews, it's a travesty doing that. You're having cookie cutter characters and the fans recognise that. People do not want to see scripted interviews. But that's just the way they control the wrestlers nowadays. But if they can't see that they're idiots."

The Impact Tag Team championship might seem an odd fit for someone who doesn't seem to play well with others. But Steiner had some very positive words for his new co-holder Eli Drake, a former Impact Wrestling world champion in his own right.

"He's very talented. He has the mic skills to back everything else up. He's definitely one of the top guys in professional wrestling today and he's going to be on top for a while. And that's coming from me. The potential is unlimited with Eli Drake. And I usually don't like many people but this one's good."

Tag team wrestling is of course how Scott made his name in the profession. In tandem with his brother Rick Steiner, he ruled the divisions of NWA, WCW and WWE with an iron bicep. The 'Dog-Faced Gremlin' is no stranger to Impact Wrestling rings either. Could a reunion be on the cards?

"A dog is a man's best friend and the Dog-Faced Gremlin is always near, always close to what I do. I can't say no for sure. There's nothing like tag-teaming with your brother. Nowadays I'm more like a paid assassin, people call me in, they know my background. I was one-half of one of the greatest tag teams that ever lived with my brother. If you're not my brother then stay out of my way and I'll do what I do."

So what next for one of the most dominant wrestling superstars this business has ever known? As he so often does, we'll let Scott Steiner have the last word on this one.

Crazy never goes out of style. People want to see what I do next and I can't predict what I'm going to do next. It's as much a surprise to me as it is to everybody else.

'IMPACT Wrestling airs on 5Spike every Friday night at 11pm in the UK'.

Words by Joey Mills

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Topics: Wrestling News, Wrestling, WWE