MVP has been making a living in professional wrestling for more than 25 years, and he believes the finish line is finally in sight. While reflecting on his career, the veteran revealed that he currently expects next year to be the one where he officially hangs up his boots.
Speaking on the Marking Out Podcast, MVP reflected on the decision to leave WWE years ago and “bet on himself.” He explained that it was never about proving he could become a bigger star elsewhere, but believing he could continue entertaining fans and bringing value to whatever company he worked for.
“I bet on myself that no matter where I go, I’ll be able to be somebody who’s entertaining, that will be able to engage fans, draw interest from the fans, and to some extent contribute to the overall product of wherever I was at.”
Looking back, MVP said his longevity speaks for itself. He noted that wrestling has been his full-time career for over two decades and that he’s never needed another job since making it in the business.
“And as I’ve said, man, I dude, I got 25 years in the business. Longevity. I haven’t had a job outside of wrestling since wrestling became my full-time job.”
He also remembered Vince McMahon and Kevin Dunn once telling the WWE locker room that the average wrestler’s career only lasted around five years. Comparing that to the short average career in the NFL, MVP said he’s proud to have lasted as long as he has while continuing to make money doing something he loves.
“I mean, you know, the average career of a WWE wrestler when I was there… Five years, the average career. So the fact that I’ve been able to make money in this space for two and a half decades, I think that speaks a lot.
So I bet on myself and I was able to succeed everywhere I went. And here I am all these years later, still succeeding, still making money in wrestling, still contributing, and I’m having fun still.”
As the conversation turned toward the future, MVP admitted he’s already thinking about the end of his in-ring career. While he didn’t announce an official retirement date, he said he believes next year will probably be the time to call it quits.
“And now we’ve talked about it, like I think next year I’m hanging the boots up for good.”
He then joked with podcast co-host Dwayne Sees, telling him he’d better get into wrestling school soon because MVP wants them to have a tag team match together before he retires.
“So we got to get you to the wrestling school and get you some bumps and get you training, too. So we can get our tag match in before I hang them up.”
MVP hasn’t officially announced a retirement match yet, but it sounds like he’s already looking ahead to how he wants to finish his career. If this really is his final year, he’ll be wrapping things up after more than two decades in the business—a run that’s taken him through WWE, NJPW, TNA, AEW and plenty of other stops along the way.
Do you think next year is the right time for MVP to retire, or would you like to see him wrestle a little longer? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
