Former WWE Tag Team Champion Trevor Murdoch is featured in a FOX News article, discussing his time in Billy Corgan’s NWA and the professional wrestling industry.
Below are some of the highlights from FOX News’ interview with Murdoch.
If he has a favorite moment in the NWA:
“Here in the NWA, I don’t have any major, like, favorite moment. The whole thing to me is favorable…I’m getting into the ring with like-minded individuals that, I may get crucified, they’re not a bunch of f—ing p—ies…I don’t know how to explain it. I apologize for my language, but I’ve hit some of these guys really hard, and they didn’t come back complaining and whining. They wanted more. And that’s the type of wrestling that I want to deliver to the people. That hard-nosed, bring them to the woodshed, just knock the crap out of each other, old-school pro wrestling.”
His thoughts on Billy Corgan and the opportunities he has in the NWA:
“I always, as a wrestler, have always wanted the company that had a boss that just trusted me. To give me opportunities, to let me fail. Billy (Corgan) and the NWA have done that...
“They have given me the opportunities to go out there, and I tell them what I can do and what I’m gonna do in these matches. And they go, ‘OK, go do it.’ And they give me opportunities to prove that I’m a good wrestler. That I’m willing to go out there and put on a hell of a show and entertain these folks. Whereas, when I’ve worked for other companies, I haven’t gotten those opportunities...
…The other situation too is, like, they talk to me. They ask guys’ advice. They treat me like I’m a part of the team. And when you treat me like that, I become the most loyal individual you’ll ever have. I’ll take a bullet for you. If I know that you’re willing to be there for me, to work hard for me and give me every opportunity, then I return that in loyalty. That’s where I’m at with the NWA, and I’ll probably most likely end my career here.”
He also gave his thoughts on the NWA and the pro wrestling industry with the current number of promotions:
“NWA is definitely a different slice of pro wrestling. We take pro wrestling and bring it back to its original form, and that’s two opponents going in there and beating the hell out of each other,” he said. “Whereas, with a lot of wrestling you watch today, it’s very acrobatic. And those guys are great athletes. Wonderful, great, great athletes. But you lose a certain sense of believability when you take a big bump and get right back up, and you’re running around like you were never affected…When you watch an NWA match, first and foremost, you can look at the opponents and know that they’re adults and that they got some experience in life and that they’ve been somewhere. And then most likely those two adults are going to go in there and beat the hell out of each other. And who don’t like watching that?”
“Right now, pro wrestling is probably the hottest it’s been in 20-plus years, 15-plus years. There used to be a time when there was only one real wrestling to watch, and we all would have to watch it if we wanted to because we ultimately had no other choice. That was WWE after they took over WCW, and there was a long period of nothing but WWE…
…Now, though, you’ve got all these varieties of pro wrestling. You’ve got New Japan, you’ve got Triple A, you’ve got AEW, you’ve got WWE, you’ve got NWA, you’ve got Impact. As a wrestling fan, it’s the greatest time because literally if you have a certain style of pro wrestling, even that hardcore s— from that deathmatch stuff, you can go on TV and find your style of pro wrestling and watch nothing but that. Whereas before you didn’t have those options. With having so many places, so many wrestling companies, there’s plenty of places for wrestling to work. And that’s good for everybody.”
Murdoch is best known for his time in WWE in 2005 to 2008, when he teamed with the late Lance Cade, where they won the WWE Tag Team Championships three times. After he left WWE in 2008, he spent one year in then TNA Wrestling as The Outlaw” Jethro Holliday. After he was released by TNA Wrestling, he spent time in the independent scene up until his retirement in 2018.
Murdoch came out of retirement in 2019, joining the NWA and appeared in the company’s very first taping of their YouTube show “NWA Powerrr.”
The 42-year old Murdoch has held the NWA Worlds Heavyweight Championship on three different occasions.