Chris Jericho has spent 36 years taking bumps, and he doesn’t want AEW’s younger wrestlers destroying their bodies because every move has to look crazier than the one before it.
The subject came up on Wrestling Observer Radio while Dave Meltzer was discussing wrestlers such as Kyle Fletcher and Mike Bailey taking major physical risks. Jericho said part of his current role is passing along lessons he learned from veterans including Pat Patterson, Shawn Michaels, Terry Funk and others who taught him that a wrestling match doesn’t need to be one giant stunt sequence. Jericho specifically explained what he tries to get across when he works with younger talent.
“Even with Kevin the other night, I’m teaching these guys. Remember, Pat Patterson taught me so much. Not every single thing has to be some kind of sweet reversal. Not every single thing has to be some kind of a hard-hitting bump. Sometimes you can just do a punch to the face. Or how about instead of some kind of roll-through, turnaround, bamboo, sweep the legs — why don’t you just sweep his legs? You learn little things like that to where you start slowly eliminating the element of danger.”
Jericho acknowledged that his own wrestling style has never exactly been risk-free, but said experience teaches wrestlers how to keep delivering without constantly putting themselves in positions where one mistake can change everything.
“You still are doing it with an element of safety, as safe as you can be in wrestling. But you need somebody that’s been there, that’s had 36 years on the job and still can run and walk and swim and plank for eight minutes twice a day. Not every single thing has to be on the element of danger.”
Jericho then pointed to Will Ospreay and Kenny Omega as examples of wrestlers who changed after injuries forced them to think more seriously about longevity. For Jericho, slowing down the danger doesn’t mean slowing down the quality.
“Hopefully they get a chance to work with guys like Will and I. When I worked with Will, I think Will finally got it when he was getting it, and then when he hurt his neck and came back, he’s a different performer now. Kenny, after he came back. You have to be that way or you lose your longevity.”
“That doesn’t make you any worse of a worker. It makes you a smarter worker, and you probably can have better matches that way because you’re not worried about there’s an element that something could possibly go wrong. It can always go wrong. It’s wrestling. But you want to keep the odds as close to you as possible.”
Jericho’s point is pretty simple: spectacular doesn’t have to mean reckless. After more than three decades in the ring, he sees learning when not to take the huge risk as one of the biggest differences between having a short run and staying around for decades.
Do you agree with Chris Jericho that modern wrestlers are taking too many unnecessary risks, or is that physical style simply where wrestling has evolved? Drop your thoughts and leave your feedback.
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