#EddieEdwards talks about winning the #ImpactWrestling World Championship at #Slammiversary, goals for the future of the brand and mental health awareness. Soundsphere’s Dom Smith also talks about some of his memories of living in Eddie’s hometown of Boston, and going to college at Keene State in New Hampshire.
Being the current Impact world champion, Edwards feels blown away by the victory, “It’s still all pretty surreal, it’s a good feeling to have that’s for sure.” Being the main draw of Impact twice now, does Edwards feel that he has become synonymous with the Impact brand? “I guess I’m not the one to say whether I am or not, that’s always my goal like you said I said that before, that is my goal I want to be the face of Impact wrestling.”
Being the champion will help Edwards do that, with the years in the business he has, he should be up on that billboard. Edwards remains humble though, “Being the World Champion for the second time, especially in the climate that we’re in I think it says a lot, it definitely feels good for me, so I feel if anything it’s a step in the right direction.”
The 36-year-old hailing from Boston, Massachusetts has been involved in practically every professional wrestling event under the sun. He has been involved in New England Championship Wrestling, Top Rope Promotions, Maryland Championship Wrestling, Power League Wrestling and Impact wrestling. He is also married to Alisha Edwards ( currently signed to Impact).
We also ask Edwards about the UK, as he has spent time here over the years for Impact wrestling events. “The UK crowd was always next level, we’ve always had a great following there, so it was a great chance to go over there, get to interact and put on a show for you guys,” enthuses Edwards. He also talks about how he can’t wait to come back to the UK and tour with Impact, Covid- 19 permitting of course.
With this being the second championship that Edwards has won in Impact, what is there left for him to achieve? “For me, it’s the same job, as usual, it’s the same goal, I want to take Impact wrestling to the next level, whatever that next level is, whatever that next step is, I want to be a part of it, I want to be at the forefront.” Edwards wants to open up the Impact brand and take it to a bigger audience. He’s very passionate about this, and it shows, “It’s great to feel the confidence in the locker room as a collective unit right now,” he enthuses.
We can’t continue this interview without mentioning Slammiversary, which was built up with the hype, promos and as many vignettes as was possible. “Everybody in the back was pumped, everybody in the back was ready to go, it was just cool seeing people return and new stars coming in and it was nothing but positive feelings.” With all the positive vibes, surely there was pressure? There was a lot still riding on all of this attention, “I’m not gonna lie there was pressure, it’s a pay-per-view, its Slammiversary, it had a lot of hype behind it, so we all knew that we had to go out there and perform.”
We also ask how he has developed as a person, having been doing this for 17 years, Edwards as ever gives a well-thought answer, “In wrestling, the great thing is you’re always learning, you’re always trying to grow, you always have to evolve, you always have to adapt.” This goes hand in hand with success, which we also chat about. “To me, success is finding that happy place, your happiness is more important than anything, you can’t compare yourself.”
To end this rather lovely interview we ask if Eddie has a message for all of his dedicated UK fans, and he replies with, “Thank you for the support, and it means a lot to myself and a lot of other wrestlers.”
Interview: Dom Smith / Words: Brett Herlingshaw
