Tommy Dreamer welcomed Impact Wrestling X-Division Champion Josh Alexander as his guest on the House of the Hardcore podcast.
Alexander talked about tagging with Ethan Page as part of The North, putting the X-Division on the map, and more. The interview was conducted before the Slammiversary pay-per-view.
Here are some highlights:
Alexander talking about the reason why he wears headgear:
“My ear (injury) didn’t really set me back. It gave me the blessing of the headgear, and gave me the notoriety and that look that I’m known for today, that thing that set me apart from just being that random blonde kid that was kind of in shape in a singlet. The headgear didn’t really set me back. I had a little surgery. I was out for maybe two weeks. I did an indie show in Canada. I took a head scissors from Matt Cross. He had a knee brace on and it hit my ear, and it puffed up like the size of a golf ball. I hadn’t had cauliflower ears before. When I got home, I drained my ear because I had an indie show the next day I was driving to in Ohio. This was like a big tournament for AIW. I went to that. In the first round, I was wrestling ACH. I said, ‘Hey man, just be careful with my ear.’ Somewhere in the match, he gives me an enzuigiri. It was like the most perfect kick possible to my ear. He just toe kicks me in my ear. Immediately, my ear swells up to the size of this head phone or larger, to the point where it splits, and my ear flats down off my head. There’s blood and everything all over the place. I had to go to the hospital. They had to cut it all off, scrape out all this scar tissue, and then pin it to the side of my head. They told me I couldn’t aggravate it for like three to six months. I can’t remember the exact time, but it was something ridiculous like that. I was like, ‘I have an indie show in two weeks. I have to go to Ottawa.’ I can’t remember if it was suggested to me, or thought I was going to try it out, but I remember ordering headgear and paying a ridiculous amount of money to have it shipped to me in time to get it for that booking in Ottawa. I wore it for that first show. I remember walking out, and people were chirping at me. People were barking at me like I’m Rick Steiner. I’m getting this Princess Leia chant. They were dogging it, and making fun of it. At the time, I’m trying to sell myself as this bad*ss pro wrestler. But by the end of the match, nobody doubted it. When I got to the back, I think it was Frankie the Mobster, Ethan Page, and a couple other people that said, ‘You can never get rid of this headgear. This makes the look. This sets you apart from everybody else.’ From there on out, I’ve never gotten rid of the headgear since.”
Tommy Dreamer shared an ear injury story that once happened to him:
“I had a severe traumatic injury to my ear as well. ECW One Night Stand, I got caned by Bully Ray. One of the greatest things a doctor has ever said to me, because I was deaf too. I couldn’t hear. He said, ‘Well, I got to tell you. We have to wait about 7-10 days. If the swelling goes down, because you’ve had such a traumatic ear injury, it will go down, or it will start to dry up and your ear will just fall off.’ I’m like, ‘What do you mean my ear will fall off?’ He said, ‘Well, no blood will get through it, and your ear could just fall off.”
Click below to hear the entire interview.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit The House of Hardcore Podcast with Tommy Dreamer with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMsHkL6h5eg
