Val Venis spent weeks promising that he was going to show up outside AEW Full Gear and challenge fans face-to-face. Well, he actually showed up — and it didn’t take long before one fan made his feelings about Venis very clear.
Just hours before Full Gear on November 14, Venis took to Twitter and uploaded a video, revealing he was outside the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Arizona, where AEW is holding tonight’s pay-per-view. He was carrying out the “man-on-the-street” interviews he first advertised back in October, when he said he wanted to debate AEW fans about political issues.
One young fan approached Venis and started things off pretty casually, saying, “What’s up Val Venis, how are you doing today?” Venis then asked the fan what he thought about the sign he was carrying. The fan wasn’t exactly bothered by it and responded:
“It’s not bad, I can’t lie.”
Venis quickly turned the conversation toward abortion and asked whether the fan considered himself pro-choice or pro-life. The fan explained that he was only 18 and hadn’t really gotten into politics enough to have an answer. That didn’t stop Venis from giving him his own take.
“I can tell you, 75 million unborn human eggs were slaughtered in the wombs of women since Roe vs. Wade.”
While Venis was talking, another AEW fan passing by noticed the former WWE star and had a considerably less friendly response. The fan flipped Venis off before yelling:
“Get the f*** out.”
Venis didn’t get into it with him and instead sarcastically thanked the fan as he continued with what he was doing, saying, “Thank you brother, appreciate it.” This wasn’t some random decision by Venis to hang around outside Full Gear. Back in October, he announced multiple times that he intended to be at the November 14 event specifically to interview AEW fans and challenge what he described as the “leftist” portion of the audience.
“Time for a step into something new. I am going to do some man on the street interviews with folks. Time to expose leftists for who they really are.”
Venis later doubled down and gave fans the exact date, time and location where he planned to appear. He also made it clear that he wanted people willing to argue with him rather than simply stop by for a wrestling conversation.
“Hitting the streets for some man-on-the-street interviews. Curious how rational AEW fans stack up against the leftist ones. Starting 👉 Outside AEW Full Gear: Saturday, November 14, 2026 (4:00 PM) at Mortgage Matchup Center, downtown Phoenix. Looking for fans ready to actually debate real issues.”
Venis has spent months taking shots at AEW and its audience online, but Full Gear was supposed to be the point where he took that whole routine into the real world. He followed through on the first part by showing up, and judging by the middle finger and four-word sendoff he received from one passing fan, he certainly found somebody who wasn’t interested in debating him.
Do you think Val Venis will get more heated reactions from AEW fans outside Full Gear tonight? Let us know what you think in the comments.
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.
