Exclusive Interview with AMW

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AN EXCLUSIVE TNAWRESTLING.COM INTERVIEW WITH AMERICA'S MOST WANTED

 

On the upcoming "Best of America's Most Wanted" DVD, the special bonus match is the never-seen-before June 2002 tryout match between Harris and Storm - a bout which, on the DVD, Don West credits as the reason he signed with the new promotion. TNA officials were also in attendance that night scouting potential talent, and saw something special in Harris and Storm. That's when the successful story of America's Most Wanted began, and they quickly became one of the greatest tag teams in wrestling in the process. In this exclusive TNAwrestling.com interview with AMW, referee and website contributor Andrew Thomas sat down with Harris and Storm to talk TNA, each other, their private lives and so much more!

 

AT: America’s Most Wanted – Wildcat Chris Harris and Cowboy James Storm – thanks for joining us. Where are both of you originally from?

 

STORM: I’m originally from Franklin, Tennessee. It’s about 20 minutes from Nashville.

 

HARRIS: I grew up in Ft. Wright, Kentucky, which is near the Cincinnati area.

 

AT: Were you involved in any sports in school?

 

STORM: I did amateur wrestling – I won a State Title with Franklin in high school. I went to college on a basketball scholarship.

 

AT: What weight class did you win the states in?

 

STORM: 152 pounds

 

AT: How about you Chris?

 

HARRIS: Well, I was kind of a wuss in high school (laughs). I didn’t do a whole lot. I was always a wrestling fan, but my high school didn’t have a wrestling team. But I got tired of being small, so I hit the weights and started putting on some size and did my own brand of wrestling (laughs)

 

AT: So what do you mean by your “own brand” of wrestling? Did you have your own promotion?

 

HARRIS: Of course! We did it all. There were a bunch of us who were wrestling fans in school that would get together and have fun wrestling. Nothing hardcore or any of that backyard stuff. We were all interested in watching it and learning about it. I went to college for a few years…

 

AT: Where did you go?

 

HARRIS: I went to Northern Kentucky University. After two years in college, I still didn’t know what I wanted to do. I told myself that if I was serious about this dream of wrestling, I had better go after it before it was too late. So I left college and started training.

 

AT: Who trained the both of you?

 

STORM: I was being trained by Wolfie D, who was also known as Slash here in TNA, at a local wrestling school. But I broke my shoulder and when I was ready to come back they had shut the school down. So I had to find somewhere else to train and I met up with a guy named Shane Morton. He took me around the independents with him and got me some matches, so it took off from there.

 

HARRIS: I started out in Marion, Ohio, with Charlie Fulton and Kid Collins. Some may know Charlie Fulton from the old WWF days. I trained with them for about a year and then I finally found a place closer to home back in Cincinnati with a guy named Roger Ruffin who had years ago worked with the WWF as a referee. He completed my training and fine-tuned everything I needed to become the wrestler I am.

 

AT: So how many years have you both been involved in wrestling?

 

STORM: Almost nine years now

 

HARRIS: Going on ten years

 

AT: Before TNA came along in 2002, where did you both wrestle?

 

STORM: I wrestled for every independent show around here – Kentucky, Georgia, Tennessee. You name it and I’ve wrestled there (laughs).

 

HARRIS: I was pretty much the same. I spent a lot of time wrestling in the Cincinnati area, as well as Kentucky, Ohio and Indiana. I also wrestled in West Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia.

 

AT: Didn’t you have a WCW developmental deal at one point?

 

HARRIS: Yes, there was a group of about ten guys – including me and Storm – that were with WCW in 2000. We worked as security on television and wrestled WCW World Wide and WCW Saturday Night matches. Then six months later it was all over when WCW got sold.

 

AT: Before TNA, did you ever wrestled against each other?

 

STORM: We had wrestled each other maybe four or five times before, but the TNA tryout match in June of 2002 was the one that stood out to us.

 

AT: So how did James Storm and Chris Harris become “America’s Most Wanted”?

 

HARRIS: A few days after the TNA tryout match, we both signed contracts to wrestle on the first seven or so broadcasts. But in the back of our minds, we thought we would be singles stars (laughs). When we showed up for the first broadcast, TNA officials came to us with the idea to be a tag team. Well, everyone who knew us back then knew me and James couldn’t have been more different from each other. It was kind of change for us at the start and we honestly weren’t crazy about it, but it was a huge opportunity. We had to suck it up and be the best tag team we could, and that’s what we did.

 

AT: How did you get the name “America’s Most Wanted”?

 

STORM: It depends on who you ask (laughs). At the time, I was in a little trouble with the law – nothing major. But I was talking to someone about it one day and they jokingly said “If you don’t be careful, you’ll end up on America’s Most Wanted.” I liked the name and ran it by Harris and he liked it.

 

AT: Did you ever imagine you would end up multi-time NWA World Tag Team Champions?

 

HARRIS: When we started? Not at all. The titles were the furthest things from our minds because we were working so hard to make the tag team work. We were so occupied with being successful on the Pay-Per-Views and making a name for ourselves. But after that first title win, we knew we had something special. From then on, we decided that whatever we had to do, we were going to be the greatest tag team in wrestling. From then on, it became a confidence thing – we knew we could do it if we wanted it.

 

AT: As far as having great matches, AMW is regarded as among the best by many people. How do you respond to that?

 

STORM: We’re just doing what we were taught in the wrestling business. It’s how we were trained. If people like it, great.

 

HARRIS: I take it as a huge compliment. Like Storm said, our mentality is and always was that no matter where you are or how many people are out in that crowd, we put on the best possible match we can.

 

AT: Question for you James…in the ring you’re the Tennessee Cowboy. Does this carry over into your private life?

 

STORM: Yes, it carries over. It’s all me. If someone comes up to me and ring and wants to go at it, I’m gonna punch them out. That’s the way I am outside of the ring. If someone wants to talk trash to me, I’m not going to take it. But I also grew up on a farm and I love to ride horses, drink beer, beautiful women and fighting. It’s just me.

 

AT: Chris - when Curt Hennig passed away, it devastated a lot of people who work in TNA that had known him for many years, but you took it a lot harder than others. Can you talk about that a little?

 

HARRIS: I first met Curt back in WCW and then we worked together for another promotion a few years back and I really got a chance to hang out with him and get to know him. He was a mentor to me at the time. When he was hired by TNA, it was great to see him again but the special part about it was that he really took me under his wing for some reason. At times, I asked myself why he chose me – Curt Hennig, one of the greatest wrestlers ever. He was at the top of the mountain in this sport. He helped me with my wrestling and my interviews – everything. We would also go to the clubs and bars after the shows, talk on the phone on the road…you can never really put a price on something like that. I was very close to him the last six months he was with TNA. To be honest, he went too soon. I still miss him and think about him. But all I can do now is cherish the time I had with him and consider myself one of the lucky ones to have known him.

 

AT: In addition to competing in TNA’s first-ever cage match against Triple X, you also recently competed in the first-ever Six Sides Of Steel match. How did it feel to be a part of that?

 

STORM: Honestly? It hurt! (laughs). Plain and simple, anytime you’re in a cage match you go in expecting to get hurt. You’re gonna get busted up. But it’s also a testament to TNA’s value in me and Harris to put us in big matches like that. I actually think it’s one of the better matches we’ve ever had, despite the outcome.

 

AT: I’m going to end the interview by throwing out some names and I want to get your reaction. Let’s start with The Naturals…

 

(Both Harris and Storm make “fart sounds”)

 

HARRIS: (laughing) No, seriously, the truth is they’re two of the best athletes we’ve ever wrestled. We spent so much time fighting them on the independent scene that it was almost a dream for both teams to fight each other on a Pay-Per-View so we could show off our talents. We got our dream – we got to fight them in a main event on a Pay-Per-View and it was great.

 

AT: Team Canada

 

STORM: You got Eenie, Meenie, Miney and Moe right there. Eenie is Eric Young, Meenie is Petey Williams, Miney is Bobby Roode and Moe is Johnny Devine. And Scott D’Amore…well, I better not say it in this interview (laughs).

 

AT: Triple X

 

HARRIS: When people talk about great feuds in TNA, they always talk about Triple X and AMW. I wouldn’t consider it as intense as the fights we had with The New Church or Diamond and Swinger, but we were always outnumbered against Triple X and had to fight against the odds. I’ve always felt Christopher Daniels and Elix Skipper are two of the most talented guys in TNA, and Daniels is also an incredible ring general.

 

AT: Lastly, the 3Live Kru

 

STORM: They’ve actually helped us more than anyone lately. After a match, BG and Konnan will always talk to us and school us on some things to help us improve. They are very good at getting a reaction from the fans and it’s great to have two veterans like them around to give us knowledge.

 

AT: Last but not least, what does the future have in store for America’s Most Wanted, or better yet, what do AMW have in store for the TNA fans?

 

HARRIS: First of all you’re going to see more title reigns. We’ll get in there against whoever it takes. We’ll always try to have great matches for the fans, but I think you’ll start to see a little more aggression from AMW.

 

STORM: And to all those opponents…Sorry ‘Bout Your Damn Luck!