‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey is happy that AEW exists to show fans that there’s more than one way to do pro wrestling.
Bailey is set to face off with Kenny Omega and Ricochet for the International Championship at AEW Dynasty. Bailey spoke with WrestleZone about both of his opponents, including the praise that Ricochet has been receiving as of late. Ricochet’s character and promos have been well-received, which wasn’t always the case with the latter.
Whether it’s fair or not, Ricochet has been criticized in the past for promo skills not being a strength. He is clearly proving otherwise in his current AEW run. Although he was taking a dig at him for making excuses after losing, Bailey did say Ricochet is a creative guy. He went on to note that he understands where it comes from in a way, but highlighted how the wrestling business is evolving, and a change of scenery helps.
‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey says there’s a lot more variety in pro wrestling fans, and styles
“To be fair, I get it too. I get a lot of criticism on promos and talking and stuff,” Bailey said. “Which I don’t think in the past, the format allowed me to do long-term promos and have really intense character moments. And that’s something I really look forward to being able to do in AEW. [I want to] really show some range in terms of promos and acting. The people who criticized Ricochet are the same people… imagine talking in professional wrestling as only one specific thing. And there is only one very specific way to do it.
“I think pro wrestling is changing. The audience is getting broader. Which means there’s a lot greater variety of people. There’s more kinds of people who want to see pro wrestling now,” Bailey continued. “And those people might relate to a lot of different voices than just the one voice we’ve heard in pro wrestling over the years.”
AEW Dynasty takes place at the Liacouras Center in Philadelphia on Sunday, April 6. Watch our full interview with ‘Speedball’ Mike Bailey below:
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