Dirty Dango shares some heated comments about the current generation of wrestlers.
Dango, formerly known as Fandango in WWE, had a lengthy run with the company before he was released in a wave of cuts in 2021. In recent months, he has been a featured member of the IMPACT Wrestling roster.
In a promo on the May 25 episode of IMPACT Wrestling, Dango took issue with the current generation of wrestlers and referred to it as the Gratitude Era.
“I grew up watching the Attitude Era, and I feel like right now, most of this locker room lives in the Gratitude Era,” Dango said. “So to me, they’re just happy to be here. They’re not trying to be stars. They’re not trying to take spots. They just like to take a picture with their opponent on social media after and post it and say it was such a pleasure to be in the ring with you. I don’t really need this job because I make money outside of here, so I don’t need to walk around on eggshells and just be happy to be here, like everybody in the back.”
Dango then detailed how the locker room has changed, as wrestlers eem more concerned with social media likes than the response they get from the reaction they get from the live crowd. With that in mind, he stated that the business is in for some hard times.
“The locker room that I grew up in, you’d come to the back, joke around,” Dango said. “I mean, we’d talk about girls, what we did the night before or just talk in general instead of staring at our iPhones and seeing how many likes we get on Twitter and Instagram.
“The boys now are more concerned about their social media likes than they are the live crowd reaction, which tells me this business is in for some hard times ahead. That might get me a little heat with the boys, but if they were men, like when I first started, I’d be a little bit concerned, but they definitely won’t say anything to my face, but they might tweet me later.”
The veteran continued by noting that people don’t pay to see generic wrestlers, they pay to see stars. Dango described how it doesn’t matter if he doesn’t love the wrestling business, as he’s a star, and he’s money.
“Take some generic talent who just loves the wrestling business. People don’t pay money to see him. They came to see a f— star, and that’s what you’re looking at right now. Because I can talk, I look good, and I can perform in the ring. Doesn’t matter if I don’t love the wrestling business. I’m money. Honestly, most of the shows I do now, I take more pictures in the back with the boys than I do with the fans. Times have changed. If I was 15, I probably wouldn’t want to be a wrestler. Just saying. The only cool guy I like is the guy with the hog mask [Taurus.]”
Dango also commented on his match with IMPACT Digital Media Champion Joe Hendry at IMPACT Under Siege and noted that he thinks it would be “funny” if he won the gold.
“At first, I kind of liked Joe. I thought he was one of the boys, or he had potential to be,” Dango said. “But just getting to know him, he’s just another stooge. He’s just like all these nerds. I think it’s a mockery that he has a toy belt, and I think it’d be ironic and funny if I won that. People don’t pay money to see arm drags, they pay money to see arms like mine.”
The full promo can be seen here:
Dango will challenge Joe Hendry for the IMPACT Digital Media Championship at IMPACT Under Siege. WrestleZone will have coverage of the show as it airs.
