AEW's Darby Allin Opens Up About Indie Wrestling Show That Changed His Life

Darby Allin knows the difficulties of finding yourself in a world you're not tailored for. During a recent visit on "AEW: Meal & a Match," Allin was asked to answer: "If you weren't a wrestler, what would you be doing for a living?"

"That's really scary to think about," Allin admitted. "Because when I was growing up, I couldn't click with anything. Finding a job was damn near impossible for me."

After ending up on numerous dead-end roads, career-wise, Darby Allin's pursuit toward trying his hand at pro wrestling stemmed from an independent show, which he mentioned was not the most spectacular show he had seen. However, tying into his death-defining, skateboarding, launch from the rafters, and daredevil mindset, it would be pro wrestling that allowed him to take all his vested interests and display them for millions to see every week on AEW.

"I went to an independent wrestling show in Arizona, and I was like, this is the worst s*** I've ever seen. But it gives me the confidence that if they're doing it, maybe I can actually try this. That's why, like with wrestling, I think being a spokesperson for the younger kids...they can see me and relate," Allin noted.

Allin remains a viable contender for the AEW World Championship, a title that has eluded him since signing with the company during its launch in 2019. A successor of Sting, Allin has made his two-time TNT and single World Tag Team Title reigns relevant, as he is the only AEW star to hold the TNT Championship for 186 days, the longest singular run anyone has had with the title so far (his combined two-time reign is 214 days).

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "AEW: Meal & a Match" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.