Dutch Mantell recalls surprising backstage reaction after telling AEW star to tease retiring in kayfabe (Exclusive)
AEW Collision is stacked to the brim with top-notch talents across the board, and one of those top names is Samoa Joe.
The current Ring of Honor Television Champion has had a spectacular career thus far, with some of his best work taking place in TNA. WWE veteran Dutch Mantell recently spoke on Sportskeeda Wrestling's SmackTalk podcast about a pitch he had for one of Joe's best-ever feuds.
Samoa Joe and Kurt Angle collided at TNA's Lockdown 2008 pay-per-view. In the buildup to the match, both stars were kept apart for the most part and promoted the event via promos and vignettes.
To add some excitement to the bout, Dutch Mantell, one of the lead bookers in TNA at the time, asked Joe to say something in a promo that did not go down too well with his colleagues:
“We had it scheduled for Samoa Joe to go over. So I had him say on an interview one time: ‘If I don’t win, I’m quitting the business.’ Oh my God, you’d have thought I slapped somebody’s momma. Dixie [Carter] said, ‘Why did he say that?’ And Vince [Russo] said, ‘Why did he say that?’ I said, ‘I told him to.’ ‘Well, why?’ It’s just, ‘Is he winning or not? He’s winning, so what’s the deal?’"
While the other members of the creative team were caught off guard by this, Mantell's decision would later be justified:
“I mean, Samoa Joe is putting a stipulation onto himself. And the people will come – I’ve always believed this, the people will come to see the good guy win. They won’t come to see the bad guy win. And we did like 80-something, 85 thousand views.” [From 03:08 to 04:00]
Check out the entire video below:
Lockdown 2008 ended up holding TNA's record for pay-per-view buy rates, according to Mantell.
Samoa Joe's tumultuous run in AEW
Given his track record of amazing matches and engaging feuds, many fans were excited when Samoa Joe joined AEW last year. However, his run has not been up to the standard that many were hoping for.
The famous argument of AEW's bloated roster limiting opportunities for talented stars must be mentioned in the case of Samoa Joe. While he has managed to create a lot of memorable moments, he has largely faded into the shadows and competes primarily on Ring of Honor television.
That "Samoa Joe is my Tribal Chief" sign 😭😭
#AEWCollision #AEW https://t.co/fj88TCNNWC
However, with the introduction of AEW Collision, things seem to be turning around for The Samoan Submission Machine. His recent ongoing feud with CM Punk might just be enough to propel him back to the top of the industry.
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