Lance Hoyt Talks GFW, Working With Dixie Carter, His TNA Run, Jeff Jarrett, Ring Of Honor, More

I had the chance to speak to former TNA Tag Champion and newly contracted Global Force Wrestling Lance Hoyt recently regarding his TNA run, his tag team with Davey Boy Smith Jr, as well as his upcoming dates with Global Force.

You can also read part two of our interview, where Hoyt elaborates on his time in WWE, his personal interactions with Vince McMahon, and much more.

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Will you be at the next set of Global Force Wrestling tapings?

"Yes, myself and Davey Boy Smith Jr, the KES will be there on the 29th at the Orleans Arena."

How did the Killer Elite Squad team come about?

"I was working with New Japan for about a year, I was informed that Smith was coming in and they wanted us to be a team. I thought that was cool. I knew Smith from WWE working on opposing sides, but we didn't know each other extremely well. They put us together and decided we wanted a good team name and something to identify us, and we landed on Killer Elite Squad."

Do you think the fact that you had runs elsewhere has helped you?

"I think maybe to a small group, because they're like 'Oh yeah, that guy was in WWE, that guy was in WWE and TNA." What we're doing now, and what we want people to understand and recognize now is is what KES is all about and what we want to be known in our careers for. He had a decent run in the WWE as a tag champion with Tyson Kidd and all that. My run in WWE is what it was. It wasn't great or extensive. My time in TNA was about five years with seven different gimmicks. I had a good time at both places, but what I want people to remember me for is what I'm doing now, especially as the team is concerned. I want people to see exactly what we've created. We're just starting to dip our toes in the US market. We want people to see us for what we are and what we'll be in the future, and not for what we were in the past."

I had the chance to see that match you and Davey Boy Smith Jr had on ROH TV with War Machine. It's kind of a call back to some of the older, more physical tag teams. Were you surprised more didn't come out of that?

"It was the first time, and it was for Ring of Honor in my home state of Texas. It was a great opportunity. It was my first time working for ROH, same with Smith. To bring the team in, it was a cool experience. It's actually going to happen again in Brooklyn on the 22nd, KES is going to fight War Machine. That's what we like to call Killer War II."

What were your thoughts on your TNA run?

"For me, it was great. I was a young kid starting out, I had been on the independent scene for about four years. In March 2004, Jeff Jarrett gave me my first real opportunity on that next level stage to be a part of TNA and a lot of firsts that happened in TNA including the first show on Fox Sports, the first PPV, the first Lockdown, the first Bound For Glory, the first tapings for Bound for Glory. It was a cool experience. Jeff gave me a chance with TNA, and it's coming full circle because Jeff again is taking myself and Davey Boy Smith Jr, and putting us on a new American-based platform. It's kind of cool to see the same person taking two chances on you."

What are your thoughts on Jeff working with TNA again?

"That's their thing. I'm just worried about bringing KES to GFW."

What was it like working with Dixie Carter, and what are your thoughts about the current issues with the company?

"When I worked with her, she was very cool, her family was very cool. I got to know her father and and husband. I've been gone from TNA since 2009, so I don't know their current issues. I can read all of the same things that everybody else reads, but you can really only believe a portion of that. I don't know if it's good or bad, just what I knew when I was there, and I had a good time. I believe there could have been more capitalized on in a singles or a tag scenario, but that's in the past and part of making who we are now. "

How do you think the GFW shows will be now that they're working with TNA? Do you see it as a positive, negative, are you indifferent to it?

"Right now I guess indifferent, because I'm just focusing on KES in Global Force Wrestling. I can only control what I'm doing."

What teams are you looking forward to working with in Global Force?

"It's a whole new ballgame. I know they have several teams coming in, some of them we have a history with. The Bollywood Boyz are trying to make a name for themselves and on our behalf, which I'm going to keep from happening. It's going to be a cool, new tag division."

Are the doors open to return to those places you've worked in the past, like WWE and TNA?

"You never say never. I've left each place on good terms, and not said anything stupid to burn any bridges or upset anyone to the point where I'm not around. Sometimes when the WWE comes into Texas, I'll go by and see my friends and hang out, and I've never had any issues being there. A lot of times if you've left on bad terms, that's not something you're allowed to do. In this business, you never say never, and you never know what will happen."

When you heard Jeff Jarrett was starting a new promotion, did you see that as an opportunity?

"When I first heard GFW was going to happen, it was one of those situations where I had a good history with Jeff. I believe that if Jeff saw what I was doing now for New Japan with KES, he would see the value that we would present to him in GFW. The first time I got to see Jeff since TNA, I think I pleasantly surprised him as to who I was and how I've changed. Him coming to Japan and seeing KES together I think surprised him as well. It was cool, and I was definitely excited to come back to America to work on a more consistent basis."

For fans who haven't seen matches from Killer Elite Squad, is there one in particular that fans should seek out?

"We faced off with Hiroyoshi Tenzan & Satoshi Kojima in about nine different title matches. All of those matches were always really good. The first Wrestle Kingdom I got to be a part of, myself and Smith for the IWGP Heavyweight Tag Team Titles against Karl Anderson and Hirooki Goto. The whole experience was amazing, but that was a cool and fun match, and it was in the Tokyo Dome in front of thousands of people. It's one of those situations that involved the whole experience."

What are your thoughts so far on GFW, and how do you see it being different than other wrestling products out there?

"It's new and interesting with a new and interesting concept. We talked earlier about not just focusing on guys working with GFW, but guys who are pulled in from other places as well, from Japan, Mexico, independents, Australia. It's an interesting view of professional wrestling. I've heard a few people say it's not a good idea because they couldn't just say 'this is my guy all the time.' I think that's what gives GFW such a cool flavor. Your guy is going to be there at different times, but you'll see sporadic people and sporadic styles from strong-style to lucha. Things like that that keep GFW fresh, and when your guy comes back he can fight someone from Mexico, or New Japan or wherever they came from. That formula is what will keep GFW so interesting and keep people coming back wondering what they'll get any given week."

Where can fans follow you on social media?

"Most of my stuff is really simple, it's my real name, LanceHoyt. Facebook is Lance Hoyt, it's open, it's public, all my information is out there. There are a few fan pages, but mine is Lance Hoyt. My Instagram is LHoyt77. I have a Vine, but I haven't done a whole lot with it."

Also be sure to read part two, where Lance Hoyt goes into detail about his time in WWE, including his undefeated streak ending on WWE Superstars, and much more.