Johnny Gargano Did Not Originally Think NXT Takeover Match With Andrade "Cien" Almas Was That Great
Former NXT Tag Team Champion Johnny Gargano was a recent guest on Edge and Christian's E&C's Pod of Awesomeness and discussed growing up as a wrestling fan, as well as his NXT match with Andrade "Cien" Almas and more.
Edge highly acclaimed him match with Almas, but received an unexpected response.
"Well, thank you," Gargano said gloomily. Edge and Christian would then burst into laughter for his reaction, and Gargano would add to why he said it that way.
"I don't know how to react to that, because I'm like, okay," said Gargano. "You know how it is, though. I mean, you guys know how it is. Like, you have great matches, and everyone else loves them, and everyone's going crazy over them. But for you, it's just like, okay. I think I did okay. I think it was fine. Like, I'm my worst critic, and I hate all my matches, but I'm glad I guess some people like it."
The three would then discuss how important the crowd reaction is to a match, and how it influences Gargano.
"Umm... it felt good in the moment," said Gargano. "You know that feeling where, okay, this is going well. Like, TakeOvers are very special, the atmospheres for TakeOver are always normally pretty crazy. So, in that moment, it was like, okay, we pretty much have them where we want them, the crowd's pretty invested. But, at no point did it feel like, oh, this is like match of the year we're having right now. Like, at no point did I feel that way.
"Just because I think, I don't know if it's the same for you guys, but I've done this for so long, and I've had so many matches where it's just like, especially on the indies for 10 years where I've gone out there for over 30 minutes and have done crazy things and have done ridiculous stuff and I've had crowds going nuts and things like that where it's just like, you kind of expect it of yourself. Like, if it's not there, you're kinda like, what's wrong with me?"
Gargano never felt in the middle of the match that it was "earth-shattering," but he just saw that things were going as planned. He did not think any differently of the match until he saw the reactions from the wrestlers backstage. He sat back and watched it in the airport, and felt the same reaction. However, he watched it for the third time, and thought that it may have been what people hyped it to be.
Gargano added that he tries to stay even-keeled about his matches, because he would feel like he failed if he expected everyone to give him an applause backstage, but did not get it. He appreciated that Triple H and Shawn Michaels spoke highly of the match, but feels that it is a scary thought that one day he will not get the reaction that he wants.
If any portion of these quotes is used, be sure to H/T E&C's Pod of Awesomeness via Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
Source: E&C's Pod of Awesomeness