I've been pushing and training for Lucha Underground and AAA, as well as parkour and stunt training for my movie, and I've blended those styles together for my wrestling.
'Lucha Underground' really is the first episodic professional wrestling show. There are storylines in every promotion, but the way 'Lucha Underground' is crafted really is more of a TV show than your traditional wrestling show.
Hopefully, when people watch 'Lucha Underground' and WWE, Ring of Honor, New Japan, AAA, and any other promotion out there, they fall in love with pro wrestling. Pro wrestling, as it affects pop culture, is bigger than any one promotion.
My favorite part of working with 'Lucha Underground' is learning more Lucha, combining that with my WWE psychology, and taking wrestling to a place we've never seen before in the evolution of wrestling.
Those who have not seen wrestling before have probably tuned in to 'Lucha Underground' and go, 'Whoa! This is a TV series turned into wrestling.'
'Lucha Underground' is the evolution of wrestling. It's high-style, high-flying, fast-paced hybrid style wrestling, and we're actually paying homage to lucha libre for the first time.
'Lucha Underground' is like a combination of Lucha Libre, American Pro Wrestling, and gridy action films. It's got a lot of things I like - action, wrestling, and really good storytelling.
All the people who were on WSX Season 1 are the life blood of the alternative wrestling business, and now the mainstream wrestling business as well. That is what Lucha Underground is doing.
When I get into 'Lucha Underground,' now it feels like I'm part of a collaboration. And I'm talking about storylines; I'm talking about how we can put matches together, where we're going to go, what's going to happen to 'Lucha Underground' as a promotion; what's going to happen with my character; and I was back in suddenly.
If you've never been to a live wrestling show, you need to go to one. To understand 'Lucha Underground,' you need to watch it.
Wrestling ultimately comes down to what happens when the bell rings, and it comes down to athleticism, storytelling, and characters - and what we're doing in 'Lucha Underground' is the highest-quality wrestling out there.
Each time I'm training and sparring, I'm always pushing myself to submit my training partners.
'Lucha Underground' is a combination of new psychology, new moves, and a new take on wrestling: an evolution of wrestling. In my opinion, it is entertaining. It is the kind of wrestling I want to watch. It is the kind of stories I want to tell, which is why I intend to be part of it.
The creative autonomy in 'Lucha Underground' is more than I felt in WWE. There is more willingness from the creative and production team to listen to input from the wrestlers in 'Lucha Underground.'
I left for Fiji 36 hours after we wrapped 'Lucha Underground' season 4. The producers of 'Lucha Underground' had to bend over backwards to get me wrapped out of the season to leave for 'Survivor.'
I love the physical roles. I have the utmost respect for stunt people and stunt doubles, but I like to do as much as I possibly can with what's become some pretty significant training.
I've been training in martial arts since I was a baby running around the school. Everything from wrestling to muay thai. I started wrestling when I was 15.