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Pro wrestling star Austin Aries is looking for gold.
Aries will face Blue Panther for the Major League Wrestling (MLW) National Openweight Championship on “MLW Fusion” Saturday night in one of his biggest matches since returning to the ring.
He told PK Press Club Digital in a recent interview that he plans to leave the ring with the title around his waist and that he respects Blue Panther for being able to compete for so long.
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Austin Aries makes his way to the Major League Wrestling ring. (MLW)
“I mean, that’s the plan. I mean, look, talk about longevity, right? I’m 48 years old and I think I’m doing pretty well. I’m still out there competing at a high level and then you see Blue Panther. And he’s 65 and he’s diving out of the ring,” Aries said. “The respect I have for him – not just what he’s meant for Lucha Libre over his career, but just as a man watching another 65-year-old still take risks, continue to compete because he loves it.
“So it’s going to be a little bittersweet to have to take out the old man and take his championship. But that’s the nature of the game, right? When you’re the champion, you have a target on your back, everyone wants what you have. And for me, winning the freeweight championship and I won’t call it the national freeweight championship. I’m going to start referring to it as the world freeweight championship because I’m world class and I want to take this on a journey. championship around the world Once I beat Blue Panther, that solidifies me as one of the pillars of MLW and as long as I have a championship around my waist, they should continue to book me.”
Aries returned to the ring against Paul London at Slaughterhouse last year and was most recently in the ring against Trevor Lee to start the new season of “MLW Fusion.”
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Major League Wrestling’s Austin Aries rallies in the ring. (MLW)
He said getting back into the ring was initially a test to see if his body could hold up.
“It’s been great. I stepped in there to be a color commentator and I got a little itchy,” he recalled. “They asked me if I was interested in doing the Opera Cup last year. And so, yes, I stepped up to do the Opera Cup and there was some really great talent – guys like Kushida, Paul London and Místico.
“It was a real test for me to see where I was physically at this point in my career. I felt good. I felt like I had a lot left in the tank. I can still perform at the high level that I expect of myself. So I was able to harness that over the last year and I’m back as a full-time wrestler with MLW and it’s been a lot of fun.”
Aries has taken a beating during his career and being out of the ring for almost three years can show signs of ring rust or open the door to a more serious injury.
But Aries said his competitive spirit was one of the reasons he wanted to try again.
“I’m a competitor. I’m an athlete. And we all realize that after this, we all have a day where that window closes and it can’t be opened again,” he said. “So I’m very lucky even after 26 years. I don’t have any really nagging injuries. I’ve been really lucky that way. I’ve definitely had my share of injuries over the years but I’ve stayed relatively healthy given my style of wrestling and you don’t take for granted that you’re always going to be able to do it and so when the opportunity presents itself and, hey, let’s first see if my body responds and can I still perform at a high level.
“And once I knew these things were achievable, I was like, let’s go full steam ahead, let’s go 100%. I say as long as I enjoy it and as long as someone is willing to pay me, let’s keep doing it.”
Austin Aries enters the Major League Wrestling ring. (MLW)
Why fans should watch MLW
Major League Wrestling is one of many promotions vying for the attention of professional wrestling fans. With top athletes and interesting matches, MLW has managed to capture an audience looking for something they might not get from the bigger companies.
Aries said the fact that MLW is free for viewers is a huge factor.
“I think the cool thing about MLW is the accessibility,” he told PK Press Club Digital. “We now have a few different platforms that you can watch it on and it’s free. It’s hard to get good free content these days. More and more, it’s a little pay to play so to speak. You can go to the MLW YouTube channel to watch Saturday night, at 6:05 p.m. ET, a new episode of “Fusion.” We’re on the Veeps streaming service. We’re also still on beIN Sports and we just announced that we’re on New Japan World.
“And then, live events. Fifteen dollar tickets to start with. It’s getting more and more expensive to attend live events in any type of entertainment. So it’s very important to us that our product is accessible to the average family of four.”
Aries also highlighted a star-studded roster that includes wrestlers from Mexico and Japan and the MLW roster that includes Killer Kross, Matt Riddle, Paul Walter Hauser and others, as well as the ability to keep fans interested.
“What I think MLW is doing really well right now is really, A, presenting pro wrestling in a way that, for me, I can appreciate the art of pro wrestling, but it’s also just a good mix. We’ve built relationships with CMLL with the Luchadores, with Stardom and a lot of Japanese talent. We have a great tag division. We have some familiar faces that you’ll remember from WWE or other companies,” he declared. “We have a lot of up-and-coming new guys trying to make a name for themselves. We have legends like Blue Panther. We have crossovers with guys like Paul Walter Hauser. So we have a little something for everyone.
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“If you want your big pro wrestling match to be bell-to-bell, that’s what Austin Aries does. If you want big, meat-slamming guys, you’ve got guys like Hammerstone. We’ve got mixed MMA guys with Matt Riddle. We’ve got a guy like Killer Kross right now who’s the world champion. We really have something for everyone and I’d like to think we’re not insulting the intelligence of the viewer. We’re trying to keep the suspension of the disbelief that I think makes the pro I wrestle good.”
