Swerve Strickland Aims To Bring 'Barbaric' Style Out Of Adam Page At AEW WrestleDream

After some intense confrontations over the last several weeks, "Hangman" Adam Page will take on Swerve Strickland this Sunday at AEW WrestleDream. The match is taking place in Strickland's home state and during an appearance on "Under The Ring," the AEW star shared what he plans to do to Page when he comes to Washington this weekend.

"His style — it's almost barbaric if you look back at a lot of his historic matches," Strickland said. "The death match with Jon Moxley, then with Lance Archer, which is probably one of the most underrated, brutal matches in the company's history. You look back at just those two, you can see how barbaric and dangerous this dude can be. And somewhere along the lines, I feel like he hasn't shown that in such a long time, so leave it to me to be the agitator and bring that out of him."

Strickland stated that he wants Page to be at his best to ensure there are no excuses when the Mogul Embassy leader comes out on top in their upcoming match. The AEW star said that, with this feud, he intends to prove all of his doubters wrong.

The lead-up to Sunday's match has featured several memorable segments with Strickland and Page going toe-to-toe on the mic during recent episodes of "AEW Dynamite." While Strickland may seem like a natural during promos, the AEW star said that aspect of the job is the one he finds the most challenging.

"It wasn't easy at all," Strickland continued. "For me, I feel like the toughest part of this industry is being able to just speak, you know? Like speak in a believable way, speak in a way that's original, speak in a way that is not so cliche and formulaic."

Strickland laid out the difficulty of finding one's own voice when so many have come before and given iconic performances in wrestling, and the AEW star pointed out this is the most time on the mic he's been afforded in his entire career thus far. Now, however, Strickland seems laser-focused on his opponent for this Sunday, recalling a brief encounter with "Hangman" from earlier in their careers.

"I knew he was talented," Strickland said. "But when he started ... venturing out and really becoming the 'Hangman' Page persona, that's where I was like, 'Okay, this guy's definitely on the next level.'"