Raven Not Calling It Quits On Pro Wrestling Career After Surgery

Raven made name for himself in Extreme Championship Wrestling in the 1990s. The former ECW Champion was known as an incredibly talented and innovative wrestler. He was known for his dark and brooding character, which was a departure from the typical “good guy” persona of most wrestlers. He was also a master of psychological warfare, using mind games and manipulation to gain the upper hand in his matches.

In addition to his in-ring abilities, Raven was also a gifted speaker and storyteller. He was able to cut compelling promos that drew fans in and kept them invested in his storylines and has won numerous championships throughout his career.

That being said, Raven plans to resume his career with MLW and explains why he likes it there. During a new interview with Sean Ross Sapp Raven addressed his likely return to the ring, claiming that after undergoing another procedure on his shoulder, he will feel at ease competing in tag team battles until the end of his career.

I’d been working off and on until I had my knees replaced. I had them replaced last year. [I gotta get my shoulder replaced. I had the left shoulder replaced in 2013. I gotta get the right shoulder replaced sometime in this year.

Advertising

Advertising

Hopefully, in the fall. Once my knees are healed up completely and my shoulder is healed up completely.] Once that’s done, I’ll probably still do tags. That’s what I’ve been doing. I don’t like being a babyface but on the indies, I have to be. The fans come to see the stars. It’s not fair to just turn yourself to make them boo you even though they don’t want to. Especially for a couple hundred people, it’s just not worth it.

“But as a babyface, I can tag with somebody. I come in on the shine, I beat the guy up, I don’t get touched,” he continued. “Then I tag in my partner in, he gets beat up, he makes the hot tag to me, I bump the other guys and go into the finish.

So I don’t have to take any bumps. But nobody knows because nobody realizes I’m not bumping because the way the storyline is set-up. Look at the Rock ’n’ Roll Express. Ricky bumped all the time and Robert just came in and got the hot tag. Instead of doing a bunch of false finishes, which everybody does anyway, I just go right to the finish.”

Raven admitted that he was avoiding doing his signature DDT due to the state of his shoulders. Even though he said that he’d perform a Drop Toe Hold onto a steel chair, one of his signature moves, to make up for the DDT, Raven claimed that his current situation allowed him to continue working smarter rather than harder.

“I don’t even use my finish, the Raven Effect DDT, because of the bumping in it, because of my shoulder. What I would do is, I would do the drop toe hold into the chair, which gets the same pop, and then I either let my partner do the DDT because he’s a local guy and he gets the rub or I just pin the guy after the drop toe hold into the chair. That way nobody’s going, ‘Oh, we didn’t get the DDT,’ you know what I mean?

So all the bases are covered. It’s all psychology. If you work smart, you don’t have to work as hard. You can have a career forever if you work the babyface in tags.”

Overall, Raven was a true pioneer in the world of professional wrestling. He was a gifted athlete, a compelling storyteller, and a generous mentor, and he deserves all the praise and recognition for his years of hard work.

What is your take on this story? Sound off in the comments!