Celebrity Autographs And Celebrity Addresses

Mick Foley talks about ROH, Samoa Joe feud, Wrestlemania and much more



Mick Foley on Between the Ropes Recap

by Richard Trionfo



This week on Between the Ropes, Fritz, Dickerman, and Vito DeNucci were joined by wrestling legend and number one best selling author, Mick Foley to discuss his recent work in the WWE and Ring of Honor, Wrestlemania, working in Iraq, Ric Flair, Wrestle Reunion, and many other issues.



The interview began with talk about Wrestle Reunion and how it is going to be a big show and the fans will not lose out with the people announced. Mick mentioned that there are a lot of people who are not remembered, but when the name is announced, they remember their careers. They talked about Jake Roberts being there. They also talked about how Lex Luger will be the guest of an exhibitor. Mick talked about the Charlotte show last year and how it was successful, and he hopes that this one does well because it will help future ones. Mick mentions that doing a few a year will provide a good financial cushion. Mick says that he hopes Wrestle Reunion will be jammed with wall to wall people. Mick says that he will be cheerful, answer questions, and sign autographs. Mick mentioned that he will be in a Q&A at Wrestle Reunion on the Saturday of the show with Terry Funk and other wrestlers.



Mick talked about a convention in Indianapolis where the promoter spent a lot of money to get a lot of 80s wrestlers to appear, but did not have a lot for promoting the show. Mick said the promoter said there were 1,500 tickets sold, but Mick said that there must have been 1,350 people dressed up as empty chairs. Mick said that he felt bad as he took his money for the show. Mick says that this guy learned a lesson.



Talk moved on to Ring of Honor. Mick says that it is not on television, so it is not like Ring of Honor is competition the same way people could consider TNA to be competition. Mick says the fans will always see him as a WWE guy. Mick talked to Vince about appearing at Ring of Honor, and Vince asked Mick to look at the talent while he is there. Mick says that he was blown away by some of the workers. Mick talks about how some of the guys are smaller, so that is a strike against them. Mick says that it is like a big party because people travel hundreds of miles for the show. Mick says that it is a lot of fun.



Talk moved on to Samoa Joe and CM Punk and whether they can fit in with the WWE style. Mick says that they could work if brought in the right way. They cannot be brought in on Velocity, and he wishes that if they come in, he would be involved. Mick was asked if we will see Foley vs. Joe in Ring of Honor. Mick said at the show that every time he wrestles for Vince, he gets a big fat six figure check. He asked Joe if he would wrestle him in Boston in the National Guard Armory. He said that he beat up Joe for a minute, but he could barely walk the next day. Mick says that he has some ideas for Joe, including the ‘mystery guy’ to beat him up.



Mick was asked about comparisons between ECW and ROH with the fans. Mick says that he did not think some of the fans appreciated the work, but they were rabid fans. The fans love the technical wrestling, the English style, and the hard hitting style. It is not the type of style to do week in and week out. Mick talked about Samoa Joe and how he told Joe to tone things down because it would not work in the WWE.



Mick was asked about Wrestlemania and whether he will be able to appear. He says that he is willing to listen to ideas, but there are rumors of Rock, Austin, and Hogan coming back. Mick would rather be on a show where he could contribute something big. Mick says that he really liked the long program with Randy Orton, and wants to do something like that, but he does not know if he would get twelve weeks for an angle again. Mick would not mind refereeing or being involved in some capacity. Mick was asked about Wrestlemania XX and how the series with Orton helped put him over the top, and whether he was disappointed with what happened to Randy after he turned. Mick says that he was in New York City, and a fan asked him about Orton and the fan told him that Evolution beat him up. Mick wondered why because it was shortly after he won the title. He wonders if Orton is thinking ‘why couldn’t it have been me’ when looking at Batista right now. Mick suggests a team of Foley and Orton could help set the fire for Orton. Mick was asked if Randy Orton has ‘it’ as a face since he has the heel persona so naturally. Mick says that it is hard to be a cocky face.



Mick was asked if people would be brought in from Ring of Honor to the WWE, and if they would be able to bring in a different style to the company. Mick says that style has changed to a more ground based style, and that is what helps with Ring of Honor. Samoa Joe booked right with training vignettes and the right guy (maybe Foley) could set him apart. Mick says that the first time he saw Joe on the packaging and wondered how he could be the champion, but when he saw him in the ring, he saw the package. Mick says that CM Punk is able to tell a story with a cool persona. It is not like a Christy Hemme on caffeine character. It is a laid back charisma that Punk has.



Talk moved on to Ric Flair. Mick was asked about the latest incident. Mick says that Flair snapped a little. He says that it appears that respect is a big deal with Flair. Mick feels that Flair thinks that people stepped on him and screwed with his career, and he does not want to be disrespected. Mick says that he was not going to shake his hand, but asked him to sign his book. Mick says that there was no good result because if he signed, Flair would look like a jerk. Mick says that he was shocked that Flair hit him. IF there was a camera, he could have been in the main event of the next three Wrestlemanias based on what Flair said. Flair says that he would not fight someone Flair’s age, and especially not someone who he idolized. Mick says that Flair was on the offensive. The only thing missing from what Flair said was the ‘Woooos’. Mick was asked if the punch hurt more from Flair or the Goldberg kid in the second book. Mick says that Flair did not get his best shot in. He talked to Vince after the incident. That it was like a giant hideous boil. Either you can ignore it, patch it up, or lance it. The confrontation got the ugliness on the surface and avoided some things from happening in the future. Mick was asked about a Flair versus Foley match at Wrestlemania 21, and if the money was right. He says that he would like to hear some of the ideas and whether it would help the buyrate or just energize the people who are going to already buy the pay per view. Mick says that he was hurting after dealing with Samoa Joe. Mick talks about how the Wrestlemania match was not a great match. He is not as opposed to it as he stated before. He does not think it will happen, but it is not an impossibility. It was suggested that with the mic skills of both men they could get the match over with the fans in a short time period. Mick suggested that it might work on a smaller show where 50,000 buys are important. Mick says that he is not in the best shape right now, and he has not done much training since Backlash.