One-half of Team 3-D, 22-time World Tag Team Champions (including one-half of the current IWGP World Tag Team Titles), & TNA superstar, Brother Devon, was one the special guest on this past week’s live edition (02/02/09) of Monday Night Mayhem, hosted by The Big Mosh & Blade.
You can feel The Mayhem live & in streaming audio every Monday night (at 8PM ET/7PM CT), exclusively on The Monday Night Mayhem Radio Network (www.MondayNightMayhem.com, www.ITunes.com, www.AudioWrestling.com, & www.MySpace.com/MondayNightMayhem).
Brother Devon’s third-ever MNM appearance (his first in three years) is now available for free in Windows Streaming Media, or via the official Monday Night Mayhem podcast on ITunes:
February 2nd Monday Night Mayhem Streaming Audio: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/waxfiles/020209.wax
February 2nd Monday Night Mayhem Podcast On ITunes: www.mondaynightmayhemarchives.com/feb09/020209.mp3
Here are some highlights of Brother Devon’s interview on the show, provided by The Mayhem’s host, John "The Big Mosh" Masiulionis:
The Big Mosh, Blade, & "Wild" Bill Brown welcomed Brother Devon to the show, who said he was getting used to getting back to sleep on a normal schedule in US time after TNA’s recent "Maximum iMPACT" tour in the United Kingdom. With quite possibly his biggest singles match of his illustrious career happening in mere days, Mosh asked Devon how he feels heading into his TNA World Heavyweight Title Match this Sunday at TNA’s Against All Odds (vs. Sting vs. Kurt Angle vs. his Team 3-D partner, Brother Ray). Devon said that it has been an honor to team with Brother Ray for so long & win all of the World Tag Team Titles that they have. In regards to people doubting how he can put up with Brother Ray, Devon said that after putting up with it for so long, "you kind of tune him out," and then he can laugh about it.
Devon went on to say that as Team 3-D, they have accomplished pretty much everything that they can, after their most recent IWGP Tag Team Title win, so going the singles route is a "new venture" that they can try out, while still teaming elsewhere. Devon said that he will be looking forward to going after his first Heavyweight Championship at Against All Odds. Blade then asked if he will be hitting his brother over the head with a steel chair like Matt Hardy did to Jeff at the recent Royal Rumble Pay-Per-View. Devon answered saying that anyone who watched ECW will know that he has already done that to Brother Ray a couple of times, "so if I do it again, what the hell….It’s like two siblings fighting over the last biscuit. And looking at Brother Ray, he’s had one too many biscuits."
As part of The Mayhem’s preview coverage of TNA’s Against All Odds PPV leading into this weekend (and leading into The Mayhem’s seven-year anniversary special this Monday night), The Big Mosh & Blade will be giving away an official Monday Night Mayhem/TNA prize pack, featuring a DVD copy of the 2007 Against All Odds PPV (courtesy: www.TicketRelief.com), plus an official Mick Foley/Genesis PPV T-Shirt (courtesy: TNA Wrestling). Give us your AAO PPV predictions/thoughts by e-mailing The Mayhem Crew @ MondayNightMayhem@hotmail.com, or by contacting Mosh & Blade via the program’s official MySpace page (presented by www.TicketRelief.com), located @ www.MySpace.com/MondayNightMayhem.
Most fans of Brother Devon that if he is successful at the PPV this Sunday night & heads into the singles ranks, it would not be the first time he competed without his fellow Team 3-D partner. Bill Brown asked about Devon’s last singles run in the WWE as Reverend D-Von, & whether he liked it or not. Devon said that both him & Brother Ray were against it at the time, thinking that it was too soon to split them up, which he agrees with now looking back in his personal opinion. Devon said that when it first started, "it was weird not having Bubba in the corner to tag in & out, and vice versa," but he was getting comfortable after awhile. In regards to where he thinks it went wrong, he said that it was Paul Heyman’s vision for the character, instead of his vision that made the character "go south." He mentioned how the character resembled Brother Love, who was originally behind the Reverend D-Von character, but after Paul Heyman took over, it started to make him feel uncomfortable. He added that with the two different opinions on the character, not being able to come to a "happy medium" caused the downfall of the character. The Mayhem Crew & Devon then joked about what exactly the money collected during that time period actually went towards.
The Big Mosh mentioned the current TNA Frontline vs. Main Event Mafia feud, which is the backbone to this Sunday’s TNA World Heavyweight Title main event. Mosh & Blade asked Devon if he thinks it will be easy or difficult to get his hands wet in singles competition & how he is approaching the match/his mindset. Devon said, "Mentally, I can go." He added that he loves working with Brother Ray & all of the success that they have achieved together, but said that he has always made it a point to try to branch off into singles competition, after they achieved all that they could to see what they can do on their own. Devon added that regardless of whether or not people think he & Ray should stay together as a team, he personally could not go on with his career without knowing whether or not he could be "equally as successful in singles as we did in a tag…and if it doesn’t work, at least I know I tried." This Sunday night on Pay-Per-View at Against All Odds, Devon said there will not be a Brother Ray to tag out to, so this is his chance to show the world what he’s capable of.
The Mayhem Crew then discussed the award nominated film that the wrestling industry is raving over, Darren Aronofsky’s "The Wrestler." Mosh asked if Devon has had the chance to see it yet & his thoughts about it. Devon said that he was at the premiere in England when TNA was there recently, and that he "enjoyed it." He added that after talking to Mick Foley about it, Mick described it the best saying there’s "a guy on top of the world, in his prime, doin’ what he’s doin’, when all of a sudden age catches up, and time passes by — making it hard for that wrestler to have to adapt to today’s style."
Blade then asked Devon how he thinks Mickey Rourke would do in his WrestleMania match against Chris Jericho, if (or when) it happens. Devon then issued out an open challenge of his own:
"Forget Chris Jericho. Why don’t you tell Mickey (Rourke) to come on down..you post this…you tell Mickey (Rourke) to come down to TNA, and get in the ring with Brother Devon. Let him be my first opponent. He wants to be tough and big & bad on the screen, you tell him I said forget WWE, forget Chris Jericho, come to TNA. That’s an open challenge to Mickey (Rourke), if you think you got it you come on down & get in the ring with Brother Devon. I’ll probably have to whoop you worse than Chris Jericho could, cause I’ve whooped Chris Jericho numerous times. Now it’s time for me to go out there & do what I gotta do."
Bill Brown then asked Devon to tell a little bit more about the Team 3-D Academy. Devon said that the school is located in Kissimmee, FL (Writer’s Note: I actually got the chance to see the building of the gym before it was transformed into the Academy, and it is definitely a superb place with a full gym located in the same building…all a trainee needs inside four walls.) He said that they have a one-year training program, with the option of continuing to train once that year is up, which is split up between cardiovascular work & the in-ring training itself. Devon said that they got tired going to indy shows & seeing countless wrestlers who did not even know how to do even the basics correctly, and wanted to give back to the business by starting the school. Check out www.Team3DAcademy.com for more details on the school.
The Mayhem Crew shifted gears into their own predictions for Against All Odds, admitting with their luck, it’s best to go against the guest, so they actually have a chance in winning their match. Brother Devon told Mosh, Blade, & Bill that Wesley Snipes once said "If you have to bet, bet on black," and told them to start betting on him, since he will be new TNA Heavyweight Champion this Sunday.
More in this exclusive Mayhem interview with Brother Devon, including if he is indeed tired of the internet rumors about Team 3-D heading back to World Wrestling Entertainment (and why you will not see that happening anytime soon), being associated with Batista at the beginning of his WWE career, why he said "I’m glad I don’t have to ask myself if I’m gay when I look at my boss in TNA," & much more!
If you missed this past Thursday night’s iMPACT, you are in luck! Be sure to check out the replay of TNA iMPACT (this Saturday morning @ 9AM ET/8AM CT). Witness Team 3-D teaming up for the final time prior to the AAO PPV to defend the honor of The Frontline against The Main Event Mafia’s Kurt Angle & the TNA World Heavyweight Champion, Sting!
Log onto www.TNAWrestling.com this Sunday night, as TNA proudly presents have the Against All Odds PPV pre-game countdown show: featuring backstage access to the Pay-Per-View hosted by Lauren, beginning @ 5PM ET/4PM CT. Call your local cable or satellite provider to order Against All Odds this Sunday night LIVE from Universal Studios’ iMPACT Zone in Orlando, FL
