Johnny Gargano appeared on “Out of Character” Ryan Satin to talk about his return to WWE on the Raw brand.
Gargano on why he returned to WWE:
“I was on record even back in the day, like, I am a Triple H guy. I am a Shawn Michaels guy. When I left, I said, I will always, always be loyal to Hunter and Shawn for the opportunities they have given me, the friendship that we have, and the working relationship we have. It was nothing but great times. That’s a big reason, honestly, and everyone should know this about me by now, is why I was in NXT for so long, because I genuinely, genuinely loved working with those two and working with everyone in that environment. I loved working with everyone in the NXT locker room, everyone in the office, and the writing staff.”
“I said this in my final promo. My final promo that I did on air on NXT was all real. It was from the heart. I wrote it myself. It wasn’t like people were giving me things to say. It was literally like, hey, go out and have a chance to say goodbye and say the things you want to say. That is why it was my choice to be in NXT for that long, is because I genuinely loved the environment I was working in and it felt like a family. Coming back now, coming back on Monday Night RAW, like the environment, very much feels like a family again, and that’s pretty cool to be a part of.”
On if he had talks with other promotions before returning to WWE:
“Yeah, there were conversations for sure. I mean, we’d be dumb not to have those conversations especially given everything that was going on and the uncertainty around everything like, who knows what can happen. That the crazy thing about the wrestling business is literally everything can change in the blink of an eye.”
“So the fact that I was able to be incredibly patient, be in no rush to do anything, and that’s the big part, the big, I guess, gain I had of all this is I could sit back and kind of survey the landscape and make my decision on a timely basis. I didn’t have to be like, ‘Okay, I need a job right now. Where am I gonna go?’”
“I believe everything happens for a reason. The fact that I was able to have my contract expire in December, have the baby in February, and spend as much time with him as possible, and kind of just not be in any rush to do things, and also not be in any rush to reach out or say I need to come back now or I need to do this then. Like I said, from December to December, I was fine not doing anything, totally fulfilled not doing anything. Luckily, I have people around me that can have the conversation so I don’t have to think about business. I don’t have to think about wrestling. They can all talk about that stuff and all I can worry about is dad life. But like I said, I watch everything. I am a fan of wrestling.”
“For me, it just felt like I wanted to go to the place that not only could utilize me best, but also a place where I already have a relationship with Hunter and a relationship with a lot of people backstage. Like that was the big thing for me. I’m all about relationships. I’m all about familiarity, and as soon as the change happened, I think there was really only one option in my head.”
On his dream of being WWE Champion and wrestling Roman Reigns:
“Oh, boy. I will say, and this is no surprise and no one should be shocked to hear this, Roman Reigns is at the top of his game right now. Everyone knows that. He is absolutely untouchable when it comes to performance and everything around him right now. I would be honored to be able to have a match with Roman Reigns one day. He’s in that position for a reason and he’s been very, very good. I could have told you years and years and years ago that Roman Reigns is one of the best. He hit a different gear now. I think the dynamic between the lovable underdog babyface Johnny Gargano and the head of the table could be a fun one to look to one day.”
