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TNA Wrestling veteran Rhino has revealed the surprising moment he was sold on his alcoholism storyline with James Storm.
The 49-year-old star, who rose to fame in ECW and later as Rhyno in WWE, will be inducted into the TNA Wrestling Hall of Fame at Bound For Glory on October 26, and he has been reflecting in three decades in the business.
Speaking exclusively to Metro.co.uk, Rhino recalled the plot in the mid-00s which saw TNA’s Storm pour beer into his mouth, triggering a storyline-addiction relapse.
‘It was great because I pitch an idea, I go, “How about you don’t see me for like, a month, and you don’t know where I’m at? I pitched that idea so I could have a month off of work,’ he laughed.
As part of the storyline, Rhino suggested TNA should air skits showing Storm looking for him in bars, which was inspired by ECW rival The Sandman.
‘That stemmed from Sandman getting a cigarette flicked in his eye. He didn’t answer the phone, didn’t answer the door,’ Rhino said. ‘Not me. I went out on the boat!’
Bosses immediately loved with the pitch, and essentially gave Rhino a ‘month’s vacation’ without realising how happy he was with the arrangement.
‘”We love it. Thanks for being so sacrificing. We’re going to pay you.” So I got a month vacation. That was the last time I actually had a month off. So that’s why I was on board,’ he quipped.
He acknowledged the serious issues of the storyline, which he thinks was pitched by Vince Russo.
‘I was never a big drinker. I drank maybe three years of my life, but I think it’s nine years since I actually last drank,’ he said. ‘But it’s a pretty big issue in a lot of people’s lives. I’ve had a quite a few buddies that struggle with that.’
It’s been quite the career for Rhino, who admitted his Hall of Fame induction ‘definitely hasn’t sunk in’ as he looks back on the past 30 years.
He came into wrestling during a ‘cartoon-like’ era for the business with larger than life character, and ‘it just felt natural’ despite going against what all his friends were doing in their late teens and early 20s.
‘All of them are chasing skirts, and you’re chasing a dream,’ he reflected on those early days.
It’s a job that’s let him travel the world, and he’s be back in the UK this weekend with big matches set in Manchester and Cardiff for FutureShock and Slammasters respectively.
‘I always like wrestling in the UK,’ he admitted, especially with the added joy of meeting fans at signings and hearing their favourite memories. ‘It’s fun. It’s exciting!’
It brings back his own memories of previous trips, with a couple of untelevised bouts with Booker T in Liverpool 14 years ago still standing out.
‘We were up third,’ he recalled. ‘The crowd was just insane!’
Rhino’s latest stint in TNA saw him reunite with former WWE tag team partner Heath Slater, who he was paired with an in ‘odd couple’ style tandem which really resonated with fans, and has taken up around five years of his career at this point.
‘Before that, I didn’t hang out with him, so I didn’t know it was going to be that big of a fit. It was just one of those things where it’s like, “We’ll put these guys together”, an “opposites attract” type deal,’ he said.
‘Opposite personalities were really attractive to the fans, and we became great friends, and it was a big part of my career.’
Having recently celebrated his 49th birthday with the big 5-0 coming next year, Rhino is still keeping himself in fantastic shape, which is no mean feat considering his hectic schedule.
‘You get up, you go work out, you try to eat as clean as possible,’ he said of his fitness regime. ‘I have two businesses that I own and operate, so try to fit that in, plus I wrestle and produce with TNA, and I wrestle full time independent schedule too.’
Although Rhino pointed out there are ‘a lot more opportunities’ for wrestlers to work behind the scenes when they retire – particularly when ‘this is only going to last for so long’ – he isn’t focusing too much on the idea of hanging up his boots.
‘It’s not that I’m not chasing one more great match or “Oh, I can make it to the top” and, “I can do this or do that,”‘ he explained.
‘It’s not about me. Whether it’s an independent show, TNA or wherever it may be. You know, it’s helping that that product out.’
For the time being, Rhino is enjoying the thrill from stepping between the ropes while he still can.
‘I’m very blessed,; he smiled. ‘And I know the window’s closing. So I’ll ride it till I ride it and, and that’s that!’
Rhino is in the UK this weekend. Today (October 19), he takes part in an Extreme Rules Six-Man Tag Match for FutureShock Wrestling in Manchester. Tomorrow (October 20), he teams with Wild Boar against ‘The Brilliance’ James Ellis and ‘The Whisky Chaser’ Martyn Grant at Slammasters Wrestling in Cardiff.
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