What’s the story?
Former ROH World Champion Jay Lethal is one of the big names left on the independent scene that as yet hasn’t been snapped up by WWE and NXT, and the man himself has been speaking to Comicbook.com about the possibility of such a move and more.
In the interview, Lethal stated that whilst his initial dream was to make it to the WWE (a dream that began by seeing Ric Flair win the 1992 Royal Rumble), over time his ambitions have changed.
Lethal said that a conversation with his father opened his eyes. His father apparently said, ’if you don’t make it to the WWE, I think that you’ve made it in wrestling in general’.
Elsewhere in the interview, Lethal talks about the differences between ROH and TNA, stating that he has a lot more freedom in the former as opposed to the latter. The main focus of this freedom is promos, with Lethal stating that the only time he was ever allowed to cut a live promo in TNA was during his program with Ric Flair.
The entire interview is to be posted on Comicbook.com’s Over the Ropes podcast later this week.
In case you didn’t know...
Jay Lethal is a former six-time X-Division Champion, a belt he has held more times than anyone with the exception of Chris Sabin. On top of this, Lethal also won tag team gold in TNA, before returning to Ring of Honor to take his career to new levels.
In ROH, he held the Television Championship for over a year, before winning the ROH World Championship (whilst still holding the TV Title) and holding that for a year as well. Simply put, Black Machismo is one of the most successful performers in independent wrestling today.
The heart of the matter
Despite this, Jay Lethal has never really been subject to rumours regarding a possible jump to WWE. Lethal is only 31 years old, and as such could yet have his best years ahead of him, but in many ways, he is associated with a generation of independent wrestlers that are being passed by a newer generation.
Time is running out for Lethal to make it to WWE, but as the interview states that may no longer be the definition of ‘making it’ in professional wrestling.
What next?
The likelihood is that Lethal will continue along his path in 2017, putting in excellent performances wherever he works. Lethal turned babyface in ROH after Bullet Club shaved his head bald, opening up a host of new matches for the former ROH World Champion.
Sportskeeda’s take
Whether or not he ‘makes it’ to WWE, Jay Lethal has already had a long and successful career in professional wrestling, winning multiple championships and having memorable feuds with peers and heroes alike. He can look back on his career with a whole lot of pride.
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