Michael Elgin discusses IMPACT Rebellion, says he wants to face Rusev & Drew McIntyre [Exclusive]

Ahead of night two of IMPACT Wrestling's Rebellion event, I had the pleasure of catching up with one of the stars in the World Championship picture - Michael Elgin - thanks to IMPACT Wrestling UK & Ireland.

During the interview, Elgin claimed that he IS the title picture, before stating that, when he wins, he wants to take on Drew McIntyre and Naito in Champion vs Champion matches to put IMPACT Wrestling's World Championship at the forefront!

Elgin would also rhyme off a list of free agents he'd love to face in IMPACT Wrestling, naming Rusev as his dream opponent of everyone on the market right now!

Part two of IMPACT Rebellion airs on April 29th in the UK and Ireland via Fight Network UK, as part of their weekly flagship series. The event will also be repeated on 5Star.

You can watch the entire video below, or keep reading for more.

I feel like I've been asking this question literally every time I've been on a call with an Impact talent but I feel like I need to ask it. Impact, for me, over the last maybe year or two has been one of the most exciting shows that I've seen and every talent that I've spoken to seems really enthusiastic. Do you feel like there's a high morale in the dressing room? Is there something that particularly makes you enjoy working at Impact right now?

Yeah, you know, there definitely is a high morale. And I think that's because of multiple things. We all have one goal and that is to put Impact at the forefront and get people noticing the product, so I think that kind of helps. There's a family mentality that we are all striving for that same goal of making sure people know that there has been down times in Impact but this is a different Impact, it's a different roster, it's a different management and we have a different mindset than we've ever had before. Definitely, I think that mentality in the locker room is strong in everybody and that's why it's coming through on our TV that everybody is happy to be there, everyone wants to do something special that everybody's going to talk about.

Next Up: Michael Elgin says that he IS the title picture

The one thing that's slightly unfortunate right now is one of the best things about IMPACT recently has been the crowds have been really, really hot. Obviously everyone is in the same situation but what are your views on competing in an empty arena?

You know, obviously we're in a business that live crowds help the feeling of a match. They help reactions by wrestlers but I said a little bit ago, on social media, that, when I wrestle, it's real to me - meaning this is a prize fight. The prize is many things but the two things that I focus on is, one, being the best wrestler I can be and, two, the World Championship.

So, if I'm out there thinking of those things then it's the same for me. Obviously the crowd gives us a little edge for when people watch because you kind of get the reactions and it helps make things exciting but I feel like, as a wrestler, we can make it exciting without that crowd as long as we believe it and we don't forget why we became a wrestler in the first place. In front of no crowd, I think that's when I can really show my true colours and really show that I was meant to do this, and I'm at the top of my game.

There are a few reasons I asked that. I mentioned that you're pretty close to the title picture, I would say in the title picture. Obviously Rebellion is just around the corner and I actually saw a nice little quote online a few days back that said, "Years from now when people are looking back on champions in Impact Wrestling, Michael Elgin is going to be number one." Given that, I need to ask you, what are your thoughts on the title picture in Impact right now and Tessa Blanchard as champion?

You know, I think a champion should be presented as a world-class athlete and a great wrestler, and Tessa Blanchard covers both of those. But the fact is, I came to Impact to be World Champion and I came to Impact to be the best, and now that I've seen people mention, like how PWA doesn't recognise the Impact World Championship, and a lot of top reporters don't watch the show weekly to report on it.

Well, with me as champion, they're going to have to recognise that championship and they're going to have to watch the weekly show because I'm going to put out must-see matches time and time again and make that World Championship the most important championship in the world. So, as far as I'm concerned, I'm not just in the title picture, I am the title picture and the result will be me being World Champion.

Next Up: Michael Elgin says he's ready to fight Drew McIntyre!

Mike Elgin is ready to be the face of IMPACT Wrestling

When you win the World Championship, what is the first thing you want to do? Who is the first person you want to defend against?

You know, I don't really care who I'm defending against first. I just say that because we have a very talented roster, and I'm not opposed to defending it against anybody from anywhere, to be honest. As I've said, my goal is to put that championship back in high regard and to do that, I have to defend it against anybody and everybody. I don't care if Drew McIntyre wants to prove that he is the best world champion - because I'm here. I don't care if it's Naito. I don't care. Whoever the world champions are out there, if they want to claim to be the best world champion, well, I'm going to take on all these challengers.

I won't lie, I'm not sure if you can hear from my accent, I'm Scottish so I would be all in for Michael Elgin versus Drew McIntyre in a Champion vs Champion match!

Obviously, in Impact, there is a lot of young talent. One of the people I spoke to recently actually name-checked you as a dream opponent of theirs, it was Madman Fulton.

He said, when it comes to his size and ability, what he can bring, he feels like he wouldn't really be tested until he is tested against Michael Elgin. What are your thoughts on Madman Fulton?

I think he brings a lot to the table. We are in an era where there is not many people his size in wrestling, and I think that adds credibility to him, and he's been having great matches for us and he's someone who is gaining a lot of traction with Impact, which is good because we want eyes on the product and eyes on the individual talent. Wrestling him I think would be fantastic, to be honest. I think that's a match that could get people talking.

Next Up: Michael Elgin talks about the presence of legends in the locker room

It's not just younger talents making waves in Impact, there are so many legends in the locker room. You have the likes of Ken Shamrock, Tommy Dreamer, Rhino - what is your opinion on having those older heads in the locker room? Do you feel like it adds to Impact as a product or are you more like, "Oh, man, make room for the younger guys?" What are your thoughts?

I think it's a two-sided coin. What I mean by that is, obviously, they are taking spots that could be utilized for younger people but those younger people don't have the value that they do, so they're needed.

I don't mean that as a slight towards them, I don't mean that as a negative because if someone is flipping through the channels that hasn't seen Impact for a while and watched wrestling for a while - but sees a Rob Van Dam, a Rhino, a Tommy Dreamer or a Ken Shamrock, that might make them tune in.

Not only that, they have such experience and been to so many different places and learn from so many great people and they are in positions to be the best they are and the best they can be, so they can help the younger guys on the roster with knowledge to help us perform, you know? We have a young roster, like you said, which has a lot of people who don't have the experience of wrestling on a big stage, wrestling on a live pay-per-view, wrestling on TV weekly. But they have years and years and years, that can help provide inspiration and tools for the younger talent to be the best they can be on our product so I think they are very valuable to the company.

That kind of leads on to my next question that I need to ask. Impact Wrestling themselves put up a little post yesterday asking, because it was draft day, which free agents people would like to see in the company. Obviously there's a lot of former Impact wrestlers, I'd say some people that you would even say are legends of the company, have just become free agents in the likes of Kurt Angle, EC3, Drake Maverick. Who would you like to see in Impact or who would like to compete against in terms of free agents out there right now?

You know, I think that FTR, former Revival, would be amazing. I think we have a very strong tag team division and I think they would greatly add to it. For myself, personally, I think the number one of the free agents recently that have opened up would be Rusev. I saw so much in him in WWE that I think he can really do something special and obviously past greats of Impact Wrestling, EC3 and Eric Young, are now available and I would love to be able to show what I can do against guys who once helped put Impact at the forefront.

Next Up: Michael Elgin talks about the young talents to watch out for in Impact Wrestling

A lot of tasty bits of fantasy booking right there for everyone. In terms of people who are at Impact right now, we mentioned Madman Fulton, you mentioned the young roster. Who should people be looking out for? If they've turned over, they've seen Rob Van Dam or Tommy Dreamer that has made them think, "Oh, yeah, I'll watch this for a little bit." What young talents do you think people should stick around to watch?

I think The Rascalz, Chris Bey and Ace Austin are a group of young talents that's just starting to really explode. There's obviously other guys - I would consider Rich Swann and Willie Mack as young guys but I feel like they've had spotlights on them in other avenues so people know about them or are familiar with them. I think Ace, The Rascalz and Chris Bey - this is their first position to be seen by a wider audience so those guys are the ones that people are going to want to keep an eye on.

Most definitely. I have one last question, it's probably the simplest one I will have asked all night but what can we expect from Michael Elgin in 2020?

I think you can expect me as the Impact World Champion and having the best championship matches of any company in the world.

Thank you to Michael Elgin for chatting with me, and to IMPACT Wrestling UK & Ireland for setting the interview up. You can follow Michael Elgin here, and IMPACT Wrestling UK & Ireland here.

Part two of IMPACT Rebellion airs April 29th in the UK and Ireland via Fight Network UK, as part of their weekly flagship series. The event will also be repeated on 5Star.