ROH wrestler Steve Corino believes color commentary is the key to his longevity, looks back on a big moment in wrestling that overshadowed his WWE dark match, believes the Montreal Screwjob was a work

Kayfabe Wrestling Radio with Steve Corino
Hosts: Alan Wojcik and Spug
Airs Tuesdays at 9:00 p.m. ET
Interview available at WildTalkRadio.com

What loss was worse at the ‘SuperCard of Honor’ show: Matt Hardy’s loss or Steen losing the World Title? "Oh, no doubt, Matt Hardy. Matt Hardy is the most important part of Ring of Honor right now. The man has 800,000 followers. This guy is a legit superstar and the way that the Ring of Honor fans treat this guy is just horrendous. This guy is a legit star, I mean they done so many things with this guy. And the fans, if you hate Matt Hardy, you’re a bad person, you know? That’s what I’ve come to learn about Ring of Honor Fans. They boo him, for what? The call him names and everything like that, but he’s doing something right. I see his picture money every night, you know because I have to take 10%, and the guy is an absolute rock star. Ring of Honor fans should be pleased that this guy is going to be the next world champion."

Is he fine being the leader of SCUM or does he want to be in the ring: "No, I suggested this role. This is the role that I want. You know I’m almost 40 years old and these guys in Ring of Honor are such exceptional athletes. You think about it, from top to bottom. People can talk about Kevin Steen’s physique, think about it, this kid is 272 pounds and this kid can go 30 minutes without breathing heavy. You’ve got Davey Richards and Eddie Edwards, two of the finest guys ever. Michael Elgin is the strongest kid I’ve ever wrestled. You’ve got Mike Mondo that’s really fit into it. You’ve got Tommaso Ciampa coming back, Mike Bennett is back, Adam Cole is a superstar. Kyle O’Reilly and Bobby Fish, I mean Roderick Strong, Jay Lethal, all these guys, all these young guys are so hungry and so good.

"I thought to myself, where would I fit in the best? Where I can still contribute the best way I know how and this role is perfect for me because the best thing I can do is talk, you know? I’m a talker and it’s a dying thing in wrestling. To actually be a guy that can talk and can talk people into loving them or hating them, there’s so many things I can do in that role and I love it. I absolutely love it because it doesn’t take the physical toll on my body and I can still get out there and it gets to the point where people want to see me get beat up. They want to see that. They’re getting so into Nigel (McGuinness). This is what, and I can picture myself. The more color commentating I do, that’s stuff that’s going to be, and it sounds weird, but it’s career longevity. I can talk for 10 or 15 years, if I get the opportunity to. Lawler can’t live forever, right? Think about it."

His being at Madison Square Garden the night Austin first Stunned Vince McMahon: "How about that, him stealing my thunder! I won a dark match that night. Yeah, that should have been the big news, 'Holy Crap, Steve Corino won, like, this dark match and we should probably sign him.' And the Austin goes and stuns McMahon and everyone forgets about me. Unbelievable, story of my life."

His thoughts on the Montreal Screwjob and its validity: "That’s the thing, that’s what they wanted you to believe, that it was a total shoot, because the screwed WCW over. Amazing, absolutely. Whoever thought of it, whether it be Triple H, or Shawn, or Vince, or Bret - whoever thought of it, absolute genius. You know, I wish I could think of something 1/100th of something that would have had the impact that that did. That changed wrestling. We talk about how if it hadn’t been for ECW, there wouldn’t be the Attitude Era, but let’s face it, the Montreal Screwjob was the spark. They’d already come in with Austin and he was over, DX was getting there. They were already on the verge of the Attitude Era. But here’s my thing, Vince McMahon is the smartest businessman that professional wrestling has ever seen. You don’t think, for one second, that he would have just forget that those documentary people were there for ‘Wrestling with Shadows’? Come on! He knew it!"

You can follow Steve through his Twitter (@KingCorino), Facebook (www.facebook.com/ForeverHeel) or his homepage (worldofcorino.blogspot.com/) for the latest news, notes and blog posts concerning him and his upcoming matches. You can also see Steve and the other members of S.C.U.M. weekly as part of Ring of Honor; go to their Twitter (@ringofhonor) or their website (www.rohwrestling.com) for the latest on upcoming cards, roster of talent and the most recent news on the promotion.