Frankie Kazarian on The Addiction, Ring of Honor and Kurt Angle Suplexes

Fred: This is Fred Richani of TSC News, and I have right here on the line one half of one of the best tag teams in the business, if not the best: The Addiction. I’m talking about Ring of Honor World Tag Team Champion Frankie Kazarian. Frankie, how’s it going?

Frankie Kazarian: Thanks for having me. It’s going great. And when you say “business,” you have to say it with three syllables, the ridiculous way Chris Daniels and I do it. It’s kind of a thing, but I’ll give you this one time.

Fred: I can’t do it as well as you guys, so I refrain. If I’m going to do it halfway, why bother?

Frankie Kazarian: I’m on board with that.

Fred: You and Chris have been teaming for almost five years. I remember when you first got linked up on screen in TNA, around the Claire Lynch storyline. Chris was apparently blackmailing you, and it was confusing stuff. Four or five years later, you’re maybe the best tag team in the business. Did you ever think it would manifest into what it is today?

Frankie Kazarian: We knew that if we were given the opportunity to be a tag team, something special could happen. It was our idea, given the landscape of what was going on in TNA at the time. We were best friends and traveling buddies for the better part of both of our TNA runs, and with the way we think inside and outside the ring, we knew it would work. It was just a matter of getting that opportunity, or taking it, and we made it work. It’s been one of the best things that’s happened in both of our careers.

Fred: You’ve always been talented in the ring, and I think you’ve been one of the more underrated guys of the last decade, one of the building blocks of TNA. But when you started teaming with Chris, we saw a more charismatic, outgoing side of you. Was that always in you, or did your best friend have to tap into it?

Frankie Kazarian: It was a matter of opportunity. When Chris and I got together and started doing backstage segments and in-ring promos, I had a greater opportunity to speak. Admittedly, early on in TNA, being a character who could deliver a promo wasn’t my strongest asset, but I knew there was always something inside me. Being out there with Chris forced me to keep up, which was good. It was the first time I was allowed to be me instead of playing a role someone forced on me that didn’t really manifest from within. Because of that, I developed what I consider a really good persona and a good promo, and I had fun doing it.

Fred: Ring of Honor has had a lot of great years, with Bryan Danielson, Samoa Joe and CM Punk as champions, but this year in particular ROH seems to be clicking on all cylinders, with the national time slot on Destination America. Do you feel a change in momentum?

Frankie Kazarian: Ever since I walked in the door, my experience with Ring of Honor has been nothing but positive, with the wrestlers, the production guys and the guys running the show. I’ve been there over a year now, and I can liken it to the very early days of TNA, when everybody was fighting the good fight for a cause, but this has even more steam and momentum. There’s a team environment, with everybody having amazing matches and trying to top the previous ones. They’ve really hit their stride from a production and booking standpoint. They’re not afraid to let angles build and give them the time they deserve, and the wrestlers they’ve built from within, like Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish, The Briscoes, Adam Cole and the homegrown guys, are kicking ass. People are getting to see it now because of the Destination America deal. I really think Ring of Honor is firing on all cylinders, and a lot of people may be becoming a little threatened by Ring of Honor, which is a good thing.

Fred: NXT used to be a developmental territory, but now it looks like it’s targeting the same hardcore fan Ring of Honor has a hold of. Is that competition motivating you even more?

Frankie Kazarian: If anything, it’s flattering. WWE takes the approach that there’s no other wrestling or talent out there, and that’s the approach they should take, because they’re the biggest and the best, and that’s not going to change. So when you see the big dog start worrying about the little dog, it’s kind of flattering. But I don’t think you can get a more motivated locker room than the Ring of Honor locker room already is. We’re just going to keep doing our thing, and nothing’s going to block the vision of the guys behind the scenes or the guys on the roster.

Fred: I’m old enough to remember your kick-ass feud with Chris Sabin, when you were both known as the future. Now you’re a veteran in a locker room with a lot of young talent. Is that surreal?

Frankie Kazarian: It’s kind of unsettling or flattering, call it what you will, when guys come up and say, “When I was in junior high, my friends and I watched TNA pay-per-views with you and Chris Sabin, or you and AJ.” It’s like I blinked, and 17 years of a career have gone by. Sometimes I have to step back, look at my body of work and realize I did do all these things. The survival rate in pro wrestling is very low, and to be active on television in a major promotion for the better part of 14 or 15 years says something. I’m very proud of that, and looking and feeling as good as I think I ever have is the icing on the cake.

Fred: You were trained by the late, great Killer Kowalski, who also trained Perry Saturn and Triple H. Great trainers seem like a dying breed. Everybody has a wrestling school nowadays. How important is it to pass on what you learned?

Frankie Kazarian: “Dying breed” is very much the truth. Wrestling schools by and large nowadays are a complete joke. There’s no governing body, and any guy who wants to can buy a ring, rent a location and train guys how to wrestle badly. That’s really upsetting. If you have a certain look or pedigree, WWE may pick you up and put you through its factory, which is obviously top-notch. Aside from that, you’ve got guys like the Dudleys in Florida, Lance Storm in Canada, Booker T and maybe a couple of others. Those are the places where you’ll really learn the ins and outs of the business. When you’re looking for a wrestling instructor, first look at what that instructor has done. If he was the heavyweight champion of some local backyard federation, you’ve got to question that. When I was seeking out schools, I looked at the Hart camp, the Power Plant and the Kowalski school, but only at ones I’d heard of. That’s the way the business has changed, at least from the point of view of getting into it and training.

Fred: Seventeen years in and you’re still going strong. How’s your body feeling?

Frankie Kazarian: I have my good days and my bad days. I’ve been fortunate enough not to have too many bad injuries. I tore my biceps and my triceps within months in the same year, and that kept me out for a long time, but aside from that I’ve been very lucky. I try to take the best possible care of myself. What bothers me more nowadays is the traveling, in and out of planes, cars and hotels. At 37, after 17 years with a pretty much full-time schedule, I feel probably better than I have any right to.

Fred: With all due respect to Kurt Angle, are you thankful you no longer have to take German suplexes from him?

Frankie Kazarian: I’m sure I’ll take a German suplex again, but I don’t know if I’ll take another one from Kurt. I’d love the opportunity to be in the ring with him again, because he’s a friend, he’s a legend, he’s a machine and he’s one of my favorite opponents. I couldn’t count all the Germans I’ve taken from him, but it has to be in the several hundreds when you factor in live events. Some nights they were a little rougher than others. Kurt’s got an aggressive style, and I love that because he brought that out of me. But yeah, I’m pretty relieved I don’t have to take five or 10 of them at a time anymore.

Fred: I remember the segment honoring Bobby Roode, when Angle came out and cleaned house and suplexed you, and it looked like you landed on your head. I was working at Spike at the time, and we were all like, “Oh my God, is Frankie all right? Is he alive?”

Frankie Kazarian: That one was particularly rough. Kurt had just come back, and we were dressed in our “Dumb and Dumber” tuxedos. I had my orange tuxedo on and my orange cane, and I swung it at him. When he locked in the waistlock for the German, I saw the cane in my hand, and I think that threw me off. He threw me really hard, I rotated a little too much, and I definitely felt that one. I guess it’s my fault for wearing that ridiculous tux and holding that stupid cane. It was one of the more memorable ones.

Fred: Are you saying we won’t see any more brightly colored tuxedos?

Frankie Kazarian: Never say never. Just because our show airs on Thursday, don’t think we’re done with the Throwback Thursday concept. We definitely have a lot of ideas in the holster, and I can promise you something special will be done regarding that at some point.

Fred: WWE’s tag team division has had a lot of dull moments over the last five years, outside of The Shield, The Usos and most recently Cesaro and Kidd, but in Ring of Honor and New Japan the tag division is booming. The Kingdom had some success going into Japan. Could you guys take a trip there and try your luck for the IWGP tag titles?

Frankie Kazarian: Absolutely. That’s something we’re working on internally and talking to folks about, maybe trying to get done soon. It’s uncharted territory for us as a team, and there are so many guys over there we’d love to wrestle. It’s definitely on our radar.

Fred: You also have your history with AJ Styles. Maybe a Bullet Club confrontation?

Frankie Kazarian: He’s been a friend for the better part of all of our careers, and our careers are always going to be intertwined. It’s always a fun day at the office when AJ’s in there, either as an ally or as an opponent.

Fred: Is it crazy to see him better than ever at this age? He was always great in TNA, but the last couple of years he’s risen to a different level.

Frankie Kazarian: I think that’s attributable to working with different people, especially a lot of the New Japan athletes and different people all over the world. AJ was always one of the best wrestlers on the planet in my opinion, but getting outside the TNA confines let him explore a lot more athletically. He’s doing some of his best work, and it doesn’t surprise me at all, because I know what he’s capable of as a man and an athlete. He’s showing the world right now.

Fred: We have a few fan questions. What are The Briscoes like in real life?

Frankie Kazarian: The Briscoes in real life are like The Briscoes you see on television. There’s very little, if any, separation between the characters and the guys. They’re sweethearts, and they’re a couple of chicken farmers. Those two may be the closest to their characters I’ve ever seen in the business. People say a good wrestling character is basically your personality amplified, and that’s absolutely the case with them. They’re awesome.

Fred: Who is your dream opponent, dead or alive?

Frankie Kazarian: I don’t wrestle dead people. I make it a rule. That’s just weird, and they’re very tough to move. But there are so many: Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart, two of the reasons I got into the business, plus Ricky Steamboat, Chris Jericho and Eddie Guerrero. I really love their styles, and they’re guys I can relate to, not small but very athletic and very innovative. As far as guys I probably won’t get the opportunity to wrestle, that would definitely be the answer.

Fred: You were in TNA for over a decade. What are your thoughts on everything going on with them and Destination America right now?

Frankie Kazarian: I pretty much know what everyone else knows. I still have a couple of friends there and I hear the good, the bad and the ugly, but not being there, I don’t have an inside perspective, so it’s hard to comment. I like Dixie. She’s a sweet lady and has always been good to me. I want TNA to succeed, because if TNA fails, I’d feel like it was partly my failure too. I was one of the guys who was part of the building blocks and the foundation of that company. I don’t know who’s making the decisions right now, but I hope things turn around and get better. I don’t want to see anyone fail in wrestling or in life.

Fred: Your WWE run was short-lived, and five or 10 years later WWE seems a lot more open to wrestlers of your style and Christopher Daniels’ style. If you came into WWE now, do you think you’d stick around longer?

Frankie Kazarian: Perhaps, yes, and perhaps because I’m a lot different as a person. I’m a lot more mature, and I know a lot of things I didn’t know back then about the business side. When I was there, I was a 26-year-old guy living by myself with not many responsibilities and a different attitude. We all change a lot in 10 years. You may not be a completely different person, but you have a different way of looking at things. So yes, I think things would be different.

Fred: Is it kind of funny that only now, after their success with CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, they’re really going after guys Ring of Honor or New Japan would normally sign?

Frankie Kazarian: I think they’re going after good wrestlers, and that’s the bottom line. They’ll still try to grab legitimate NCAA wrestlers, guys from MMA backgrounds or NFL guys with the quote-unquote wrestler look. But they know a good portion of the audience watches a wrestling show to see good wrestling, and Ring of Honor has been a proven breeding ground of guys who don’t just wrestle good, they wrestle great. They’ll keep going after guys who are good hands, and that’s a smart business strategy. If I owned a wrestling company, that’s exactly what I would do.

Fred: I interviewed “Headlocked” author Mike Kingston, who had a contribution from Christopher Daniels. Did you contribute too?

Frankie Kazarian: I wrote a story for his next book and finished it a few months ago. He showed me some of the artwork, and it looks awesome. Mike’s a friend and a colleague, and he loves and respects this business as much as any of the boys. He has a deep understanding of what we do and a passion for comics as well. When Mike’s next book comes out, still a few months away, you’ll see a story penned by Frankie Kazarian, which I’m pretty psyched about. It’s another creative outlet outside of pro wrestling and music that lets fans see a different side of me.

Fred: What’s your favorite comic?

Frankie Kazarian: Right now I’m reading the “Star Wars” and “Darth Vader” books. I haven’t picked up the Lando one yet. I fall behind really quickly on comics. If I read every book I wanted to, I wouldn’t have time for anything else. Chris Daniels picks up the slack for me in that department. He’s an encyclopedia. But I’ve really been digging what Marvel has done with the “Star Wars” books, especially “Darth Vader” and the main “Star Wars” series. As a huge “Star Wars” fan, that covers two of my deep loves.

Fred: I’ve covered a ton of the cons, and it’s amazing how they used to be for quote-unquote geeks, and now being a geek or a comic book lover is the in thing.

Frankie Kazarian: When I was a kid, “nerd” and “geek” didn’t have the endearing meaning they have now. If you were a geek, you were the guy who got beat up or at least made fun of for liking this stuff. Now all the geeks from our generation grew up, and they’re the same guys making the Marvel movies and writing the comics. It’s a whole revolution, and the comic book industry has been very good to us. We have our own comic out, and we’re friends with a lot of artists and writers, including a lot of guys at Marvel who are big wrestling fans. I’m very proud of that. It’s an easy crossover audience with pro wrestling.

Fred: You worked with Raven a little bit in TNA, and I heard he’s a legendary comic book enthusiast too.

Frankie Kazarian: He’s a creative guy who gravitates toward good stories, and certain comic book characters always have good stories behind them. I remember him and Chris talking comics a lot. A good portion of the guys either currently read or grew up on comic books and have a love and appreciation for them.

Fred: What’s the best piece of advice you could give aspiring pro wrestlers?

Frankie Kazarian: Learn the fundamentals. Crawl before you walk. When you get an opportunity to wrestle, wrestle as often as you can, for as many different promoters, in front of as many people and against as many different people as you can. Wrestling is a strange profession, and you’ll learn more on the job than you will just learning how to take bumps. Check your ego at the door and really respect the business. I don’t know that a lot of people teach respect for the business other than the guys I mentioned earlier, like Booker, Lance Storm, the Dudleys and the guys running the Performance Center. Work and learn from everybody you’re in the ring with. Don’t get comfortable. A lot of little guys only wrestle little guys because they can do cool high spots. That’s easy. Get outside your comfort zone and work with a guy who’s very green or very big. Work with everybody and try to learn every time you’re in the ring.

Fred: Where can fans find you online?

Frankie Kazarian: Twitter is pretty much the only social media I have, and I’m @FrankieKazarian. I keep people updated there, and I also sound off on a lot of political stuff, music and various other topics. I’m not like the average wrestler who just talks about wrestling, and that’s cool, because I get to engage with fans who like the same music I do, or who feel the same way I do politically, or the opposite. That’s what social media is there for.

Fred: Frankie, I really appreciate the time. Congrats on all your success.

Frankie Kazarian: Thanks, man. Appreciate it.