-TNA publicist Lindsey Bynum opened the call by hyping this Sunday's Slammiversary PPV before turning the call over to questions.

-Bully was asked about how being "the guy" changes his approach to preparing for major events. Bully said he channeled the pressure into the performance. He said he has been under that pressure in tag teams in the past an now it's just him and he's honored he's headlining TNA's second biggest PPV of the year.

-Bully rejected the idea that the Shield was a copycat of Aces and Eights and said that WWE offers a different brand of sports entertainment/pro wrestling than TNA offers and he's very proud of their product and feels it’s the best brand out there.

-Ray said he was a tag team fan first and always loved tag team wrestling more when he came into the business. He said he wanted a legendary tag team that people would talk about forever and he and Devon reached that goal. He said he wouldn't say they were the best tag team ever, but they are the most successful ever.

-Ray said when he first transitioned to a singles wrestler his goal was to get to the original version of himself that debuted in ECW, the most hated guy on the roster. He said it was only after he realized that people were really getting into his character that the idea of becoming World Champion started to form.

-Bully made of point of saying that TNA allows guys to be who they think they should be and that's why they are able to connect to the fans as well as they do.

-He said his desire to get into better physical shape came from wanting to change his appearance when he had to reinvent himself as a singles wrestler.

-Ray said the Team 3D Wrestling Academy's slogan is "old school rules with new school tools." He said they ground all of their students in the old school way of teaching respect and then use the new approaches to in-ring work and getting over and they are very proud of what they do there.

-Magnus and Rockstar Spud were the two guys Ray felt had the biggest futures ahead.

-Ray put over all of his bosses over the years, Paul Heyman, Vince McMahon, and Dixie Carter, as teaching him something. He said Paul and Vince taught him more about wrestling, but that Dixie had shown him something he never thought of before.

-Ray lamented the state of tag team wrestling everywhere. He said TNA had some good guys in the division, but there weren't enough teams for TNA to build a division around and the same was true in WWE.

-I asked Bully Ray about his success potential as a babyface and he said he had thought about this and felt like he couldn't be a top babyface because of the emotional ride he put people on over the past year. He said if it were to work, it would take a lot of time and effort to convince the fans.

-I also asked if he had any concern about the end of Aces and Eights considering how large factions tend to end poorly. Ray said he felt like as long as they were generating the heat they generate now the sky was the limit. He asked me who I thought drew the most heat in wrestling right now and I admitted it was him. He said that was the answer to my question.

-Bully said there is only one piece of advice to anyone who wants to get picked up by a major wrestling company, "Get over." He said it didn't matter how you did it, just get a reaction and get over and then a company will be begging you to work for them.

-Ray put over going live and going on the road as both necessary and a good thing. He put over Devon vs. Joseph Park and AJ Styles vs. Kurt Angle matches as the two most interesting matches to him on the Slammiversary card. He also put over Sam Shaw as a Team 3D student and wanting to see him win.

-Ray said he felt there was a place for blood in pro wrestling, but he also understood the concerns. He said if a company had proper testing in place he didn't understand why there wasn't a place for it and saw the push against it as the watering down of everything today.

-Lindsey Bynum thanked everyone for their questions and closed the show.

Shore's Slant: Great interview time with Bully Ray. He was very personable and came across as genuine, whether he was giving an in-character answer or not. I personally ended this call looking forward to his match on Sunday because he sold me with his personality and force of will.

That's why TNA (and everyone else) should do more of these. I say that not because it helps me, but because this is just another way for fans to connect to the performers. Many people will tell you they like a particular actor because of an interview they saw. There's no reason wrestlers can't enjoy that option as well. TNA is to be commended for being the only company that does these, and I hope they see how well it works for them and expand the number in the future.

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