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WWE’s Wade Barrett discussed in-ring return for dream match with NWA champion Nick Aldis
Nick Aldis has revealed he and WWE star Wade Barrett discussed having a dream match in the National Wrestling Alliance.
The current Worlds Heavyweight Champion opened up about the British wrestler’s time as a commentator in the NWA last year before moving behind the announce desk on NXT last year.
Asked whether he and his countryman – whose real name is Stu Bennett – ever talked about getting in the ring together, he exclusively told Metro.co.uk: ‘Yeah, it had been tossed around.
‘It had been one of those things we’d kept in the back pocket as a “maybe down the road”, yeah. Stu and I broke in – not broke in together, but we were both at the same wrestling school for a while.
‘Even though he’s a few years older than me – don’t rub it in with him – but there’s always that thing where I was in TNA running hard and he was in WWE, there was always that thing of, “What if those two wrestled each other?” ‘
Barrett has been open about the fact he’s in better shape now than he was when he decided to take a hiatus from wrestling back in 2016, and has entertained the idea of stepping back in a WWE ring again in the future.
It could have been very different though, as it’s also no secret how much the Preston-born grappler loved his time in the NWA before the pandemic hit.
‘Stu absolutely adored being part of that show,’ Aldis confirmed. ‘He would reach out to us prior to that and be like, “I love the show, this show is so great”. When he came, he was just so happy to be involved in it.’
Another NWA alum that applies to just as much is Eli Drake, who captured the Television Title in the revived promotion – which is owned by Billy Corgan – and made his own jump to NXT earlier this year, where he now works as LA Knight.
‘[Eli] did genuinely have a passion for what we were doing, and loved they way that we did our show – because it was a perfect outlet for a guy like him,’ Aldis said.
‘I don’t wanna speak for Eli, but I dare say had it not been for the fact that obviously you can’t turn down WWE money, I dare say if the NWA and WWE were offering the exact same money, he may have stayed put.’
Back to Nick, with the man himself days away from defending his world championship against Aron Stevens – known to WWE fans as Damian Sandow – at NWA’s comeback show Back For The Attack on March 21.
Although he became the first Brit to hold world title gold when he captured TNA Wrestling’s top prize in 2013, Aldis is keen to point out he doesn’t limit himself as a ‘British wrestler’.
‘I think of myself as a wrestler. I’m a citizen of the world, and that’s why I wanted to be world champion,’ he proudly pointed out. ‘I believed that I could represent the industry better than anyone else, and anyone who’s a world champion has to think that way.
‘They have to believe that they can represent the industry better than anyone else.’
And that’s exactly what the 34-year-old champ wants to do in NWA, particularly after Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy ‘took a risk’ and bet on him as the face of the brand.
‘If you’re gonna own a promotion, you don’t just bet on yourself, you have to bet on a few people too. You have to take a few people that you trust,’ he explained.
‘Billy had to take the risk and part with a six figure deal for me and a few others. He’s betting on us – OK, I believe in that.’
He pointed out that four years after severing ties with TNA Wrestling – what went onto become IMPACT – in 2017, he feels a similar level of gratitude for then-owner Dixie Carter.
‘I believed in that with Dixie. I will still defend Dixie to this day when people try to deride her because I go, hey look. She put food on my table, and she bet on me,’ he said.
‘I don’t take that lightly. I don’t take someone’s money and then when it’s convenient, go round and bury them. That’s bad business, and that’s bad karma.
‘If somebody bets on me, they’re gonna get 100% of everything I have to offer until they don’t want it anymore. That’s the way I do business.’
*NWA returns with Back For The Attack on Sunday (March 21) at 8pm on pay-per-view via FITE TV and Virgin Media.
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