Insight with Chris Van Vliet - Darby Allin On CRAZY Moments, Climbing Mount Everest, Sting Friendship, TNT Champion

Episode Date: February 24, 2026

Darby Allin (@DarbyAllin) is a professional wrestler currently signed to AEW. He sits down with Chris Van Vliet at West Coast Creative Studio in Hollywood, CA to discuss climbing  Mount Everest, crashing through a pane of glass during Sting's last match, getting launched onto the announce table by Claudio Castagnoli, whether he sees himself becoming AEW World Champion, whether he thinks his spots ever go too far, winning the TNT Championship, breaking his foot in the ring, getting hit by a bus in New York, and more! Please support our sponsors: HELIX SLEEP: Flash sale! Go to https://helixsleep.com/cvv for 27% off sitewide! COZY EARTH: Go to https://cozyearth.com/CVV for up to 20% off! BEAM: Go to https://shopbeam.com/INSIGHT and use code INSIGHT for up to 40% off Beam’s Dream Powder DELETEME: Use the code INSIGHT to get 20% off your DeleteMe plan at https://joindeleteme.com/INSIGHT FACTOR: Get 50% off your first box, plus Free Breakfast for 1 Year with the code INSIGHT50OFF at https://factormeals.com/INSIGHT50OFF  PURE PLANK: The future of core fitness! Use the code CVV to save 10% on Pure Plank designed by Adam Copeland & Christian: https://gopureplank.com/cvv SEAT GEEK: Use my code for 10% off your next SeatGeek order*: https://seatgeek.onelink.me/RrnK/CVV Sponsored by SeatGeek. *Restrictions apply. Max $20 discount NORDVPN: Exclusive deal! https://nordvpn.com/cvv Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee! PRIZEPICKS: Download the PrizePicks app today and use code INSIGHT to get $50 bonus credit in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup! For more information about Chris and INSIGHT go to: https://chrisvanvliet.com If you have ever enjoyed any of these episodes, could I ask you to please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcast or Spotify? It takes less than a minute and makes a huge difference in helping to spread the word about the show and also to convince some hard-to-get guests.  Follow CVV on social media:  Instagram: instagram.com/ChrisVanVliet Twitter: twitter.com/ChrisVanVliet Facebook: facebook.com/ChrisVanVliet YouTube: youtube.com/ChrisVanVliet TikTok: tiktok.com/@Chris.VanVliet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Chris Man, it's great to see you. Howdy. Good to see you. We go way back. Yeah. I announced you at indie shows way back

seven, eight years ago. Yeah, I remember Fort Lauderdale. Yes. I'd see you a lot back then. Blueprint Pro Wrestling. Yeah. Yeah. Look at you now.

Yes, sir. Look at me. Still alive. Are you shocked by that sometimes? No. No, absolutely not. I know what I'm capable of. Have you walked right up to that line?

Yeah. Honestly, people ask me, like, why do you do all the things you do? You find out what's most important in life when you're actually at death's door. So when you're constantly there, it keeps you grounded and level-headed of what's actually important. Because I see a lot of people concern of such stupid shit, such stupid shit. Like the drama or the gossip. And I'm like, is any of this going to matter when you're actually at your deathbed? But if I'm constantly, at my deathbed, I feel like it keeps everything in focus of what's really important. So it keeps me very grounded. So yeah, I like being there. What do you feel like your relationship with fear is like? I love it. I love it. Dude, honestly, goes back to when I was in middle school, I would look at the wall in my room and just think my whole, my life's going to amount to nothing.

and I was so just life's over. There's nothing to look forward to. I had no confidence in the world at all. But the more fear, I like went straight on and started doing crazy stuff. It gave me all this confidence. And it made me believe anything was possible. So fast for all these years later, I'm doing the most crazy stuff like Everest and everything. But I feel the most confident and I feel the most at peace with myself.

So that's why I constantly, I love fear. Where did that shift and change for you when you were growing up? Where'd you go from having no confidence and thinking you would amount to nothing to becoming who you are now? Dude, when I would just go crazy, I'd do all these random stunts in high school. I'd be known as the kid that would, at the top of the, in our city, there was just like Taco Bell. And there's like this giant hill by the Taco Bell. And I would front flip off it. And then there'd be like a group of people watching like, yo, look at this dumb ass.

He's going to jump off the Taco Bell. but, you know, it kind of gave you an audience and then everyone's like, I would never do that. I was like, okay, that kind of got the wheel spinning because in wrestling, you can politic and you can, you know, lie and kiss ass all you want, but I never wanted to be that guy. And it's not just in wrestling. It's in day-to-day life, all types of businesses. There's a lot of ass kissers and politickers, but I figured when you do something like Mount Everest, you can't politic you can't politic your way to the top because you'll die trying. You know, you actually have to put the work in. And that's what was so great because I was sick and tired of just being around fake ass fucking people.

And then I was like, I'm willing to risk my life to prove to myself that I can do this. You know, and then, yeah, it just one thing led to another. And now I feel so at peace. Do you feel like you have overview effect? This is the thing that happens when astronauts go to space and come back. they've seen the world like from above and they come back here and it changes their view on like life. You've now reached the highest peak on earth. You were able to see what the world look like from up there. I can see your house.

Yeah, really? Wow. All the way. It's crazy. I saw you, dude. Do you look at the world a little bit differently now that you've been to Mount Everest and back? Yeah, I do.

I feel when you've done something so big like that that we were talking earlier. 7,000 somewhat, you know what I mean? Yeah, like 7,000 people. Yeah. Climb Mount Everest, that's it. Yeah. I don't know. It just puts things in the perspective, kind of how small your problems are and what you

seem, what you think is so big really doesn't mean a thing. I don't know. It's a, it's very humbling when you're up there because it's hard to have an ego when you're fighting for your life on a daily basis because you don't care about how you look. You don't care about, you know, how you smell. you just want to survive. Right. So it's pretty cool to be in that type of energy.

And like there is a real possibility you could die up there. Oh yeah. And a lot of people do. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Like I think we were just looking up the stat. I think 335 people have died climbing Mount Everest.

Most of their bodies still on the mountain. Yes, absolutely. So like you go into this knowing you may not come back. Yeah. Did you say goodbyes before you went up there? Did that hit you? Yeah, absolutely. I climbed with my mom and my brother to base camp.

And the base camp hike to a lot of people is no joke. It takes like 10, 12 days. What's the elevation of base camp? It's like 17,000 something. Yeah. But the reality hit me when my mom and my brother were leaving base camp. And now I had to stay behind to actually go for the summit. And I was going to be there for another month after they left.

when I saw them walking away, the reality hit you. Oh, shit, this might be the last time you've seen them. And then it just thought about, this might be the last time you've seen anybody, you know? And I was like, oh, crazy. So I went in my tent and I cried and I filmed a little vlog about it and stuff. Be like, there's no way I'm going to die on this mountain. I'm going to sum it. Then I'm going to come back down.

I'm going to see a lot of people, you know. So it was like a commitment I made to myself when I was up there. I think a lot of people don't realize, number one, the training that goes into this. I think that people think if you have enough money, you can just show up to the mountain and you'll just climb to the top that's the biggest thing is people do not understand how hard this is they think like you were saying oh you can pay and just go up there yeah you get a guide and they'll just take it to the summit doesn't work like that yeah anybody that is saying that I dare you I dare you to climb any mountain doesn't have to be

Everest but it has to be like something's over you know 18,000 feet I dare you to try it and then you have more respect for anybody who's tried it. Granted, we cannot do it without our Sherpas. The Sherpas are everything up there. Some of the greatest human beings I've ever met are the Sherpas. But they can't drag you up there. You know, you have to keep putting one foot and from the other. What was the reason you wanted to do it?

What I said earlier, I wanted to tell myself I was capable of anything because you find yourself on this hamster wheel and wrestling. You know, there's no off-season. It's all year long, you know, and sometimes you feel like you're living your life for somebody else. And I wanted to really find out who I was going to be on the other side of Everest. And I didn't want to live my life for somebody else. I wanted to really prove to myself what I was capable of

because it goes back to the politicking and everything like that. And the egos, I can't stand it. I really, I can't, I cannot stand it. You feel like you have to deal with that a lot? Yeah, absolutely. And all types of walks of life. You know what I mean? Like, it's just like this, this feeling of desperation, this feeling of, oh, man, I hope to be

famous. And at the end of the day, it doesn't mean a thing. It's so empty and hollow. It does not mean a thing. And it doesn't change your day-to-day life at all. And that's where I felt like, um, we had our first interview in 2019. Yeah.

In 2020, like, I'm on top of TV. I'm on top of doing this thing, but I felt so empty. Because, like, I just, the moment I started caring more about my family and, you know, helping everybody out, I was like, it wasn't no longer about me. It was about everybody else, my loved ones and everything. And that made me feel so more fulfilled than anything. And I just remember being like material things don't mean a thing. in my life. And just like take like this week I brought my dad to the Super Bowl and made him walk all these red carpets. But it was a joke because we got all his like outfits from the Goodwill and

stuff. And we made a big joke out of it. It was super funny because everyone's like, what does that guy do? Because he's got the fake gold chains and stuff. You know, but just being around some of those things, it's just like it's so fake. It's so fake. And I'm just like laughing out of how desperate people feel. like, oh man, look at me. I'm like, I don't care. I'm just here to laugh at everything. So now in the day-to-day, the week-to-week, what fills you up? Oh, just seeing my family and loved ones get the most out of their lives.

I push my dad and I push my, I was able, with what I've been able to make from AEW if I could have my parents retire. And I got to my house down the street from me now. So it's just a matter of pushing them because I didn't want their glory days to be in their 20s. I want to be like right now. Like right now your glory is. And I brought my dad to the Wim Hof retreat. And I brought my mom to base camp.

So I'm constantly pushing them to their limits and to see people kind of like how I overcame a lot with just the craziness I did and broke down those mental barriers. When I see that and other people and I see that light switch go off like, oh, I can do anything. I am confident. There's nothing better than that. I love this idea of not waiting for a special occasion, right? you've got that great suit or that great dress in your closet and you're waiting for a special occasion to wear it. You're talking about the same thing of like, why not do that thing today?

That thing you've always dreamed of doing, why not take the first step towards doing that today? And that's what you're saying right now of like, just do the thing. Get out of your comfort zone. That's, that's all it is. And you, when you're told that your life is going to amount to nothing at such an early age and you believe those voices, I see a lot of friends. back then. Like growing up, they listened to those voices. And now they're either in jail, out of rehab, all this crazy, crazy, crazy stuff. But I was like, I'm not going to let this define me.

And then the moment I just started listening to myself and going insane and doing stunts and going ballistic, I felt so alive. Where does wrestling come into your entire story here? So you're doing crazy things. you're jumping off the Taco Bell. This is crazy. How does wrestling get into this? I've always, as far as I can remember,

I always remember wrestling being there. I always remember it being in the background. And I remember, because we're going to talk about Jeff Hardy. But I remember when I was in Kidigar, and I'd watch Jeff Hardy, and then I would climb on top of my piano, and there'd be a concrete floor,

and I'd go, ah, and I'd front flip off and just knock the shit. shit out of myself. I was like, just like, like rolling around. Like, but, uh,

it's always there. It was always a form, like an outlet to entertain. Plus just to have an excuse to go crazy in front of a life crowd. Was Jeff Hardy your guy growing up? Ham McFully. A lot of those guys really spoke to me as a kid, especially coming from skateboarding and stunts and wildness.

They weren't your traditional wrestlers. So they were very appealing. in that sense. Were you watching any ECW growing up? Honestly, I can barely remember ECW because at this time I was in kindergarten. You know what I mean? You would see it like flipping through the channels,

but it didn't. It didn't resonate. Do you like look at New Jack stuff now? Yeah. Man, he was insane. Yeah. No, it's fun watching all this type of stuff because everybody always says like,

Darby, hear the most crazy televised wrestler. And I'm like, I don't know. Like maybe I don't. Yeah, do you think you are? I don't know. I really don't. But yeah, I kind of answer that.

I don't know. But I hear it a lot. People are like, you need to slow down. And I was like, dude, you guys don't understand how great I feel. Physically, mentally, you don't understand a thing. And it's like, why would I want to slow down? Because I feel so amazing right now. And I know people that have a way less crazy.

your style than me are in such pain. But I feel so good. I cannot explain it. Are you in any pain? Does you sit here right now? No. That's wild. Yeah.

I'm not lying. I'm completely straight edge. I don't take pain pills. I don't take anything. And I really, I don't know. I asked for this and I want to deal with it mentally. And with the human brain and all the meditating and everything that I do,

I feel like I can deal with anything. Pretty crazy that you looked up to Jeff Hardy growing up, and then fast forward all these years, you get to work with him on more than one occasion. You had a few matches with him, matches with Matt as well, matches with the Hardee's together. That's a pretty cool, full circle thing.

Yeah, no, it's super fun. And you also think about the impact you have on Stings career and all the, you know what I mean? It's the whole thing is a wild ride. but it's also there's this fine line you have to walk in wrestling I feel like

you cannot be a fanboy to a detriment but you're like oh like because right now we're equals we're wrestling each other

you can be like oh gee I'm just happy to be here because that was the kiss of death on the independence like it was the kiss of death

just being like I'm grateful for any little thing no man you've got to want the most out of this so I'm very grateful for the experience

but I don't let it define me So when you started talking about this match with Jeff Hardy, are both of you guys going, all right, well, like, how are we going to want up each other? How are we going to outdo each other here? For the first time my career did feel like I was calling a match with myself. And that was a fun feeling because originally it was supposed to be just a straight-up wrestling match. And ain't nobody want to watch Darby Allen and Jeff Hardy trade wrist locks. Like we've got to bend the rules a little bit. And then one thing led to another and it was for the Owen Hart tournament.

So, all right, this is relaxed rules, whatever that means. And the next thing you know, we're out here talking about, all right, I'm going to do this. And then he's like, I'm going to do this. And it's just super fun because that's, to me, like, I love traditional wrestling. I love world sport. I love all of that. And not a lot of people would think I do, but I'm obsessed with all that technical wrestling. But you got to think of the big puzzle of what AEW is and where you can fit on that,

what makes it different. And I don't, I'm not going to go in there and be like, oh, I want to be a technical wrestler because you take a guy like Danielson. He's the best at that. So I'll be the guy who will be willing to go places. No one's willing to go physically. That's where I fit in and everything like that. And so, yeah, it was just super fun because you get that energy match with somebody like, Jeff.

And now you're like, oh, no, this is a car crash. This is everything I would love. If I was watching a TV, you know, flipping through the channels, I'd be like, oh, my God. It's just super, it was a really great experience. Yeah, you jumped off a ladder onto Jeff Hardy, and then there were chairs there too. Yeah. Like crazy. Talk me through that spot.

Well, I don't know. I just felt like it wasn't so much of what the, to live up to the hype of what people expected. It was to live up to the hype that I expected. So it's like, man, because I expect a lot out of myself, any night of the week, any night. I don't save any big things for a pay-per-view. I'll be going ballistic on dynamite. collision it don't matter like i'll be going ballistic every night but um with this jeff harry match i was like dude we got to go we got to and all i kept thinking is all right this is ladder and then there's

a stack of chairs and i don't know where it came from but it just seemed like the most logical step but also i've never seen it done before because everyone's like how are you supposed to even land that safe i'm like i honestly don't know like you just got to you don't think that through No, I don't think. Well, and also I'm very like chill with like going to the hospital and breaking things. I don't care. It doesn't bother me, which I think in the long run actually that helps me because when you're afraid of stuff, that's when you get hurt. But if you just go with the flow like it's nice and loose, dude, you'd be surprised what your body can handle. How many broken bones have you had? Surprisingly only three. Which ones? My foot twice and then my... Soccer podcast. My name is David Goss, and I'm joined by my co-host, Megan Clemenberg.

And now we're giving people an inside look at the World Cup. Times ticking. I think you can feel the intensity. All the guys are wanting to really stick their claimant, and they want to be on that World Cup roster. There's no doubt about it. Hosting the World Cup on the home soil comes with its pressures, but we're just really excited just as the people are.

The U.S. Soccer Podcast, presented by Henco. Follow and listen on your favorite platform. Elbow. That's it? Mm-hmm. Wow. Yeah. Are those all wrestling injuries?

Yeah. Oh, no, one's from skateboarding, the other two are from wrestling. Do you have a line that you are not willing to cross? Like, is there ever a point where too much is too much? I haven't found it yet. Yeah, I haven't found it. I've been constantly pushing out and just finding, like, to me, and it's not so much, me wanting, it's the company to be like, hey, all right, pull it back here.

Like, we need you around. and but I I myself hasn't found it yet. Man, have they ever told you that's too much? We don't want to do that? Yeah. What was the spot? The sting spot.

Easily the sting spot. So this is off the ladder through the glass. Yeah. I remember the moment I hit it, my adrenaline was just going through the roof. And the referee comes up. How are you feeling? I feel, I feel good.

Like, yeah. Like, and he's like, oh, shit. You're, my insides were hanging out here. like got slicing through the glass and then you can see and then he's like we got to bring you the back and i was like there's no way you can bring me to the back so if you see me come back into the match at the very end i'm wrapped in like duct tape and i was like just wrap it up until i only have one more spot so just let's finish strong i can't go to the back and you know so uh but that was i remember tony saying that was uh that could have been

really bad. What was also the idea that the glass was shattering into the audience too? Yeah. Right? Like you can see people in the audience like, oh my gosh, like flinching it. Maybe it's hitting them. I don't know. It probably is. What was your mindset

going into that spot? I don't know. It was like doing a bunch of interviews leading up to that week and everybody's is like, what start are we going to do? And I was saying to make sure he has, goes out on the respect that he deserves, I'm willing to die for this. You know, like, let's go.

Just, let's just make it as memorable as possible. And also at that point, you got to remember, I've withstood a million things and came back. So I really wanted him, something reasonable to take me out. That's like, okay, clearly he's going to have to chill for a little bit. So Stink could have that iconic, you know, come back two on one. Just like, no, Sally. like, you know, and I was like, I got to be taken out in a way where people actually, all right,

that shit, there's no fake in that. And that's where I naturally wound up. You splatted when you hit. Look like the glass barely breaks your fall. Yeah. That didn't hurt? No, surprisingly not. Yeah, surprisingly not. But, you know, a couple weeks later, I'm still pulling glass out of myself. And yeah, it surprisingly didn't, no. I don't know. It wasn't like, oh, my God, that was miserable. I was like, oh, that was chill. Like, if you look back at the,

when I did the front flip off of the ladder onto Jeff, I whisper in his ear when we're laying down. I'm like, that was fun. Yeah, just to let him know that, you know. Because a lot of these spots, man, when you do some crazy stuff, you don't know how the person you're, wrestling is going to be after it.

So it's kind of good to give them the whole, like, dude, this is cool. When you do a wild spot, how much of it is for you and how much of it is for the audience? It's all for me. It's all for me. Because I know that people don't want to see it no more.

Do you think so? There is a good amount that I feel like, like the thrill of it. But there's also a lot that say, Darby, you don't have to impress it anymore. You don't have to impress this anymore. You know, blah, blah. and I'm like, I'm not doing this for you.

I'm doing this for me. With or without a camera, I'd be doing this. I go crazy in my backyard at my little compound. And then talk to guys like Travis Pistrana about this. Because whenever we go to his house, he's always doing something every day. It's because he actually enjoys doing it. Hasn't that guy broken like every bone in your body? I'm pretty sure you saw that Instagram.

Yes. But it's funny. The X-ray. Yeah. Like every time I have a match now, he texts me. I mean, he's like, just checking in seeing you if you're okay. And I'm like, I'm fine. Are you okay?

I'm like, he says I'm more crazy than he is. And I'm like, I don't know if that's even, you know, he's, but he, but yeah, point being I feel he does all this crazy stuff just for himself, just for the rush. And that's how I feel. Especially when you're out there in front of all these people and these fans, it's just, it's like such a fun thing. Like, I, yeah. What do you say to those people you're talking about that don't like the way that you wrestle?

I don't know. There's so much different things to like or not like. You don't have to pay no attention to me. If you don't like it, just go complain about something else. I was like, there's just nothing to say. You know what I mean? Like, I'm not going to, I'm just going to keep doing what I do. You think you'll be able to keep up this style, like, until you're retired? Yeah, who knows, dude. Like I had the Hardee's on recently. And Matt Hardy talked about like the leg dropped he did off the cage to edge. He's like, I wish I would have done less leg drops. Change his career. Yeah.

And then I started going up on the middle rope going, uh, then an elbow, right? Like a standing elbow. Do you think about that of like, well, you have to shift your style at some point? I think everybody has to shift their style to a degree. Absolutely. But that's the beauty of wrestling. to me is you can't have a pro athlete playing NBA or NFL at 64 or a skateboarder, you know, but you can have Sting going out there having a memorable retirement match at 64.

So there's ways around it, obviously, but also you got to look at Sting. He was jumping off balconies, which is something he never did in his early years. He was doing that at the very end. So there's ways to keep the craziness, but also. you know mirror it so it's not like you know like I'm not going to be able to run as fast or you know do my dives as hard as maybe I want to but that doesn't mean I can't jump off 30 foot balconies you know what I mean there's just ways around it talk to me about the first time you met stick because you guys have become good friends right yeah what was like the first time you guys met

it was really nerve-wracking at first because you know you that was like man that was second year into AEW. And all you're, at that point, all you're doing is you're searching for validation if what you're doing works. You know, because there's so many different routes to take in the world of pro wrestling. You're like, oh, maybe I got to change this to fit more mainstream or whatever it is. But first time I met him, I went into his trailer. And he just looked at me, he said, don't change a single thing.

And I was like, that's the validation. It's like, whoa, it's cool. You know, it's like the video, everything you're doing, all the craziness. Like, just do what you're doing. But you got to remember, too, he only came in for cinematic matches. Right. Didn't you talk him into doing... Yeah, went to his house.

Yeah, I went to his house to train for the cinematic match. And we're in the ring in Texas at his place. And we're just rolling around. And I look at him, dude, why are we going to do this for a cinematic match? You still have what it takes. Let's do it live. I'm not lying to you. It's not like me trying to get the rub from sting, like, oh, I need this.

I generally wanted that man's career to end on his own terms. Because when I first started wrestling, the very first year is when he had the neck injury. And I remember watching that match. I remember saying to myself, what if my career, my life's work all ended, something that was completely out of my hands. How would I feel? So he felt great when we were rolling around. And he, you know, and he's like, you think so? I'm like, I know so.

End this on your own terms, your way. Fast forward, we do the cinematic match, and then we do double or nothing against Ethan Page and Scorpio Sky. And that was the true test if this Darby Allen guy is just blown it smoke up, sting his ass. Okay, I talked him into this. We really got to live up to this, you know? And then after the match, he's like, dude, could not have done it without you.

And I was just like, I knew it. You had it. You know what I mean? Like, I felt so rewarded that night. And God, we ended up having so many matches. And it was just such an incredible experience because it goes back to, I was talking about the ego. He walks in. He could have been walking around like, oh, I'm staying.

You don't know what I've done. You know, all it was like just. But he was so. humble. He like forgets he sting. And I looked at that's what I want to be when this is all said and done. I just want to be able to write off in the sunset not looking desperate for attention. And he's like it's done. I can focus on my normal life. I felt like we were put together not just because aesthetically we had face pain and we were dark colors. Like there was something spiritually that we had like camaraderie that I needed to learn from him from a real

life standpoint, not just what you see on TV. I need to learn from him from a real life standpoint. And he also can learn from me about, hey, this guy's psycho. And maybe he might just be onto something with me retiring on my own terms. What was that? What was that thing you learned from him? Just to be humble and to be kind, like, as when this is all said and done, don't walk around like you have this ego, man, because it's just a 15 minute ride. And there's nothing more to me just like, like cringy when you see somebody that is clinging on to that spot. Please don't forget about me. Please don't forget about me.

That's a lot of pro wrestling. Yeah. I don't want to be that. I do not want to be that. And I feel just learning from him and seeing how he does it, it's just like, okay, this is amazing. So it went from one cinematic match to let's do another one in front of people. How did that then turn into he did. I don't know how many more matches after that, but.

Quite a few. Yeah. It just, I don't know. I feel like after that first live match, we were off to the races. And then I really would wonder what Tony Kahn was thinking. Because originally you got someone in as a, as like a cinematic, you know, like, okay, this guy. And all of a sense, like, wait, we got him now as actually a live act. That's game change.

Yeah, sure. You know what I mean? And not only that, he still could go. Like, it wasn't like he was playing the greatest hits. He was reinventing himself. You know, with the balcony jumps, all this craziness, and even the last match going through glass and just the, just, it's like he put in way more than anybody could have expected.

And that was, like, amazing. And he got to retire as a champion. Like, both you guys win that match, which is such a rare thing in wrestling, right? Yeah. for a legend to win their last match. And he retires as AEW tag champion. Yeah.

No. I hope I have a beautiful career farewell like that. But yeah, no, that was probably definitely my most stressful match. Because he was a guy that was going, he ain't going to come out of retirement. When he says he's done, he's done. And I knew we had one shot at this. We had one shot at this to make it memorable. and I definitely felt like we knocked it out of the park.

Do you have like an overall approach to the way you put together a match with somebody? No, my whole thing is trying to make someone look as good as possible. I don't think about, you know, how is this going to benefit Darby? Sometimes I feel like I'm almost too, I don't know what the word is too kind, too giving to the point where it's up. Maybe it can be a little detriment to myself. Maybe I've got to look out for myself more. know and but that's that's my thing like what can we i want my goal is just give people their best matches you know people look back like damn darry made so-and-so look like a million dollars oh and

he made so-and-so look like a million dollars because that's the beauty of this is it takes two to tango and it's super fun when you can just rot like raise up everybody's stock and then the company is so much better in that aspect so have you seen the comparisons to spike dudley yeah i don't really see it to be honest i because i'm like way more of a wrestler wrestling You know, I don't feel like Spike was ever, you know, a technical wrestler, you know what I mean? So I feel, Spike did some nasty bumps. Yeah. I think that's where the comparison is.

Definitely. But I definitely feel like I'm way more of a wrestler's wrestler than that. Like, I can, I shit you not. I feel like I could out wrestle a lot of people from a technical standpoint. But ain't nobody want to see Darby Allen do a lot of technical wrestling. But when I do, it's like super fun because I feel. Like people always forget that I know how to do this. But I got a ring at my house and I train all the time.

So, yeah, I don't personally see it. But that's just the nature of the business. I feel like a lot of wrestling stuff is very small, small-minded. I feel like you think about, oh, he's what's stained because they have face pain. It's like, dude, it goes way beyond that. I feel like, yeah, a lot of people are very small-minded in wrestling. Here's a fun fact. Darby Allen has a win over Gunther.

Yeah. Yeah. Do you remember that match? Dude, it was my favorite on the independence. It was so fun. It was incredible. I remember that. Yeah, I just remember I was supposed to originally wrestle him a month prior.

But I had this crazy, crazy injury where I was bleeding from the brain. And it was like a double shot where I wrestled. I wrestled in the morning and I was supposed to wrestle Gunther at night. Walter at the time, wrestle him at night. And it was, you know, like two shows in one day.

Yeah, sure. And then the morning show, I hit the concrete on my head so hard that I just started feeling everything started to get quiet and I feel like something was like swelling and I could barely hear people. I was like,

oh, this ain't normal. Went to the hospital and like, you're bleeding from the brain. We had to put you under and stuff like that. So it's pretty crazy. Sounds scary. Yeah, but imagine if I didn't go to the hospital,

I probably would have died that night against, Walter. But yeah, fast forward, I end up having the singles match with them. And it was incredible. It was so fun. It was so fun because like when I'm in there, I love being in the ring with guys where you can actually be lost in the moment. Guys like Gunther, Brody King. You know, like all these like people where you're, it was like a real fight. It's not really. So yeah, I, uh, that was incredible. Yeah, you picked up a sneaky win against him. All I need is three. I want to go through some of your crazy moments here. We've already talked about a few of them, but Claudio launching you from the ring through the announce table.

Crazy. Yeah. I don't know. Like I said earlier, a lot of it's like, okay, what's something that, because there's a lot of craziness in AW. A lot. And I actually, I love watching people push the boundaries, you know. But I'm also trying to be like, what's something like a bump that no one would want to take? And so I'm like looking around, it's like that, just, dude, this guy's strong as shit.

Just throw me, just chuck me, you know, and I, I don't know, there's nothing to it. Like, it's just got a rag doll it. Did you guys both know that he was going to be able to, like, hit the announce table? Not 100%, but he's so, he's so strong. But I'm like, whatever happens happens. Let's just go wing it. Because if I come short and I actually hit the corner of the table, it might look cooler. You know, you don't know.

But yeah, it was super fun. I don't know. He threw it, like he threw you perfectly. Yeah. You landed in the middle of the announced table. Yeah, and just bounced off. Like, because sometimes I'm like, do you want the table to break or you wanted to stay strong? Like, just stay strong because it'd be funnier if I just bounced off it, which I did.

It just looked like that thing was unforgiving. Crazy. This belly to back suplex onto the stairs. You have quite a relationship with the stairs. You've been thrown in the stairs a lot, but there was something different about that one. Yeah. I didn't even,

I remember earlier in the day, I'm saying like, this is so chill. Let's just do it. And we did it. And then I feel like it got a lot more, I don't know, reactions than I was expecting.

Because I'm, that level I feel like everything I knew is just, not like people are in complete. lately numb to the craziness, but I do feel like they're like, oh, he can bounce back from anything. But for some reason, everybody was like, that really looked like it sucked. I'm like, yeah. And I remember- Did it really suck?

Yeah, it did. It did. The next day, I woke up and I hiked like a six-mile mountain just to keep moving, you know, because, like, I don't know. And then I skated for four hours right after that, after I hiked the mountain. And I was like, the very next day. And I was like, I just got to keep my body moving. and I remember for a while my lower back from that was like pretty, pretty rough.

I was like, oh, damn, that one did suck. But yeah. Yeah, you've been thrown into the stairs a lot. Yeah. We've thrown onto the stairs. I don't know. The worst one is definitely the one with Christian Cage at Russell DREAM. If you watch that back, that one's the worst.

Way worse than the pack one. Like my head is like that far away from actually like, breaking my neck on those stairs. If you remember that one. I remember it. Yeah, that one. Did it feel like that in the time? Did it feel scary?

It was all so fast. You know, the adrenaline was so high. It just happened so fast. But I think my eight, like I might have sprained my AC joint on that one. Because I remember the next day, I was, I had to wake up early at like six in the morning

to start buying all my Mount Everest gear. And I remember I had to like, I couldn't even lift up my shirt. shoulder past this. And I had to try on all this Mount Everest gear. And I was like, oh. And then later that night, we went to an Avenge seven-fold concert and I like crowd surfed. I'm like, why my crowds everything right now? And I was like, damn. But yeah, no, it was super, it was super fun. There's something about the way that you work with John Moxley. You guys bring out the best of each other, maybe the worst out of each other. I don't know. But like, there's something so unsettling about him filling up that

tank and then just like trying to drown you in the middle of the ring yeah dude i don't know man i think everything's been done a lot in wrestling so my whole goal is oh my god there's still so much to do that we can actually do it on national tv level like on tv we can be doing this with the creative freedom we get so i'm like dude this is incredible because a lot of the stuff we've done you would imagine would only be seen in some trailer park in Oklahoma. You know what I mean? Like someone's backyard. Yeah, or like tape trading back in the day.

Yeah, but the fact that we're doing this on national TV to me is so fun. Yeah, I don't know what to say about that one. I just like pushing the boundaries. You have the ability to hold your breath for a long time, right? Like when you talked earlier about training with Wim Hof, I do a lot of Wimhoff, which is this crazy, method that allows you to hold your breath for two, three minutes, like, easily. So you holding your breath underwater there was not a big deal. No.

Not at all. Dude, if I had it my way, I would have done it for over three minutes. But that would have been super awkward to the live crowd because he's dead. He is dead. But, yeah, no, people don't know. People do know. What is considered insane for a lot of people is a walk in the, park for me. So people do not know when they're like, you gotta be careful. I'm like, dude,

this was so chill. How about the spot where you get thrown through a flaming table? And then you catch on fire. Yeah. Dude, the bar is set so high at these blood and guts. And I fell into that point, every single AEW table spot, flaming table spot, was a dead. Into that point, I felt like it was like, could have been better. Like the Cody and Andrade one was crazy because it just, I felt it was crazy for like the wrong reasons because Cody's trying to put Andrade through it. But then Cody ends up getting scorched.

So it was more like, ah, he got, you know, he got screwed for that one. You know, but then the other ones I felt like the flames were like tiny. And it just didn't do justice to like what I felt like a flaming table spot could be. And I was like, if we're going to do it, we're going to do it big. so that's what we did and i don't want there to be any you know like oh you had a fire protected suit on you know blah i was like i'm just going to do this and did you have any sort of no that's the thing is like just bear not only just bare skin but also getting press slammed from like 10 feet up onto it

you know it's like two spots and one yeah you could have just got knocked out and be laying in the fire but yeah dude it's just like i want to want to, I want to do this. So, you know, I don't know. Yeah, I just wanted to actually have a proper flaming table spot. Because I'm like, all right, just like with the glass thing, I did it. Would I ever do glass again? There's no reason to where I do fire. Would you ever do glass again? There's no reason to. Like, you set the bar so high with the latter one. It's like, if you can't top it, then don't even, you know what I mean? And that's how it fell with the fire from blowing gas. Like, there's no reason to. So you wouldn't do it? So you wouldn't do it?

fire again? It's not like I'm, I wouldn't. I just don't feel like I already said the bar so high that it's like, all right. Well, this is the thing. The bar is set so high. How can you possibly continue to raise it? Do you have ideas? Yeah, yeah, I do. Do you have like a note section on your phone? I don't. Naturally, a lot of these things just come to me like week off. So there's not a lot of prepping game plan. But what I would like to get into is, you know, like evil can evil back in the day. Yeah. So I'd like to just like at the top of the hour, Darby Allen is going to jump a hundred buses in this car, tune in. I want to do live stunts and then do the stunt and then if I make it out, wrestle that same night. Like that's, that's the next evolution. To me, that's the next evolution.

You know, because like I said earlier, I feel like sometimes wrestling is in a small, small bubble. Even though it's such a massive thing, it's still in the small, small bubble. And I would just like to push the limits of think about that for like live TV like tonight Darby Allen is going to be drumming a hundred buses and if he makes it out alive he is going to wrestle in the main event or whatever the hell you know that would be incredible I'd be such a fan to watch that so that's kind of naturally my is evil can evil and inspiration for you yeah all those guys are yeah like pastrana evil caneval bam everybody like they're just a lot of jackass guys yeah like you know and uh it's just just just cool. It's just cool to see

what the human body is capable of. What do you think when people say you're crazy? I don't know. I really don't know. Because I feel so chill. It doesn't feel crazy to you? No, no. Not really.

No. But I think it's just you know, and I also do a lot of meditating and a lot of stuff like that. So I feel like it balances me out. So I don't feel all like I just feel like very, like, okay, cool. Not only did you get set on fire, you also set people on fire.

You set Jack Perry on fire. You set John Moxlam fire. You had a flame thrower. It's a wild spot. Yeah. No, I don't know what to tell you, man. Sometimes Darby has to get his revenge. You can't just clearly get his ass kicked every single night.

What do you think is the craziest coffin drop you ever done? You think here. Because there's the one at blood and guts where you're hanging off the top of the cage and you drop down through the table. Yeah, man, I don't even know. That might be it. Visually, that's pretty crazy. Yeah, but the thing is, I always thought that was like super tamed. But I'm like thinking if there's been a crazier coffin, and I'm like, nothing comes to mind.

Is there a more painful coffin drop? Yeah, when you're diving on a concrete and everyone from, gets to catch you. That's pretty painful. But yeah, no, not at the top of my head. What about the coffin drops onto the coffins? Oh, those are fun. Yeah, those are fun. Actually, yeah, no, the one with Ethan Page where I actually broke through the coffin was super fun. But the one at Wembley were like, swerve, yeah, swerve moved and I just like bounced off it. Yeah. That kind of sucked. The one with Ethan Page is like, someone could have got impaled there. You see when the table, when the coffin, the lid breaks.

Yeah. There's like the sharp things like sticking out. And I was like, whoa. I didn't even know those were there. Yeah, it's super fun. You're wild, man. This is wild. What am I forgetting?

How about the fork? The fork in your ear. Yeah. I fully thought. I was like totally okay with him just ripping the ear off. Your whole ear off? No. Your earlobe?

Yeah, the earlobe off. I thought that's where it was going. I couldn't tell. I just felt like when the fork was in there, I was like, ooh, that's a, he's got a good part of it. And I thought for sure I was going to come up and then the whole thing was going to be gone. But it was still there. Man. How about when you were thrown down the stairs?

Three times. Three times. Yeah, dude. Honestly, I don't know, man. Like, these things are so chill for me that I, I can. It wasn't like I was like, oh, that was horrible, blah, blah, blah. I was like, just, it was so, it was so chill. The only bad part about it.

Getting thrown downstairs was so chill. Yeah. Yeah, I don't know, man. You just got, Jesus, take the wheel on that one. You, like, front rolled down like a stunt man. Yeah. Yeah, you just got to go loose and enjoy the ride. But it kind of gets, kind of gets the one last year.

I remember it was, that was going to be the, last you seen of me before I went to go climb Mount Everest. So I was like, all right, there's just one more thing I need to get through. And then I'm in the, I'm in the clear to do Everest. Because you got to remember the year before, I broke my foot when I was two weeks from going away to Everest in the match with Jay White. In the first minute of the match, I broke my foot, continued wrestling on it for another 12 minutes. And I was like, man, that sucks. I was so close to going. But then when I got thrown downstairs, like, I just need to make it out. just finish this strong.

But, like, that was kind of sketchy because there's all these metal holes in the steps. So I kept thinking, and when I was falling through, my fingers, going to fall in one of them and just rip my finger off. And plus, at the time, it was like 14 degrees outside in New York. And it was outside, like, in an outside spot where we did the stairs. I was like, man, this is the final test before I get to go to Everest. It's funny that, or ironic maybe, that you've done all of these wild spots. and then you break your foot in a fairly normal thing. Yeah.

And that match with Jay White. Yeah. People always told me like that. There's a sign from God not to climb Mount Everest. And I was like, no, that's a sign to like actually. Because at that time, I was so fixated on making it to the summit. I was like, got to make it to summit. I couldn't actually like stop and smell the roses and take in the journey.

But I said, no, it's a sign that I need to like stop and take in the journey and not just think about the destination, but the whole thing. Was there a point where when that first trip to Everest got put on hold, were you worried that it wasn't going to happen? No, absolutely not. The very first thing I did when I was in the hospital, I called Tony. And I said, promise me that I can do this next year. Because I, you know, Everest was such a spiritual journey for me that I felt like I needed to do it. And then he's like, yeah, absolutely.

So once I got that promise, I was like, okay, cool. I'm just going to hit it harder and train my ass off even more. But yeah, it was just, yeah, it was incredible. I wouldn't change a single thing. It was, yeah. What does training for Everest look like? Dude, there's a lot that goes into it. Yeah, like, what are we talking?

So I went through adventure consultants, which is one of the premier climbing companies for Mount Everest. My Sherpa and Dorgy has climbed Everest 24 times. He's just a freak when it comes to that. Wow. So they told me, hey, we're. don't just accept anybody because there's a lot of places that will bring whoever to Everest and a lot of those people end up dying on the mountain uh so they're like you have to finish all of our trainings you know requirements we i do i trained in like sweden i trained in nepal i trained in mendoza

i climbed all these mountains and just did all this like you know all this like crazy crazy stuff So is training like summoning smaller mountains? Yeah, like Ocicongua and stuff, which is like, I believe, like 22,000 feet. But there's a lot of that goes into it because they're like, yeah, we do not want anybody to risk our Sherpa's lives or risk their own lives, you know. So, yeah, there was a lot of work that went into it. And then a lot of stuff that I just did on my own. That wasn't part of their thing, like going to the Wimhoff training with him and Poland and stuff. I just freezing myself to like the point of like hypothermia because growing up I hated the cold.

I hated it more than anything and I would avoid it at all costs. But now I like learn to just love it. And it's like there's just so much that you can learn from the cold that I, I just, I didn't want anything the whole time I was on Everest to be like, oh man, I'm freezing. I can't enjoy this. So I just like would push my body to the point of hypothermia so much where I'd be like, like in an ice bath at 39 degrees for 30 minutes. And then to the point where your body starts to feel like it's shutting down.

And then also in Poland with Wimhoff climbing all these mountains and just pretty much your underwear and shoes. And then like the wind's blasting you and everything like that. His whole thing is like mine over matter. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. And that's where like climbs mountains wearing just like shorts. Yeah.

And that's to me. Wimhoff is unbelievable. Like I want to do all that before I do this. and yeah it was incredible it just that whole everest experience was amazing the fact that i could do so much while i was there you know doing the kickflip at camp too that's a world record right yeah you're the only wrestler to summit mount everest yeah jbl i think went but wasn't able to he didn't go to everest he hasn't he didn't ever went to base camp i talked about it he was training climbing a lot of mountains and he ended up breaking his back and then so he kind of got put on a

Oh, so Everest was on his list, but just didn't end up happening. Yeah. Okay. And then he was like, hey, we should go to base camp together. And I was like, that would be fun. That would be. That would be cool. So if that was a bucket list thing you wanted to do, you've done it.

You've crossed it off. Now what? I don't know. I just want to focus, right now I want to focus, like, I want to direct my full-length film that I finished the screenplay for. That's like the big thing. And then, you know, outer space would be cool. I don't know. I don't know.

I feel like space to be like really it'd be fun. But it's also right now I just want to focus on making AEW as important as it deserves to be you know,

because I just feel like this place has changed my life and my family's life so much. I just want to put as much work into it as much as possible. Do you have the goal of being AEW world champion one day? I don't know.

It's a weird, question because I don't it's like something I talked to sting about he's like I never really cared about championships care more about just good storylines to me that's like that's where I feel like my head is on that thing would it be cool to carry you know be the face of a company yes absolutely you know considering I I do feel like I best represent what AEW can give one because you take a guy like Darby Allen, where would have Darby a fit in the grand scheme of pro wrestling if it wasn't for AEW? You know what I mean?

But you just see, hey, here's a guy who be you. And I feel like I've been able to. You would have been a great fit in ECW if you were old enough back then. Yeah, yeah. You weren't in like kindergarten, you know? Yeah. But I see what you mean. You're one of the four pillars.

Right? If you use that term. You don't like that term? No, it's so, no. He doesn't like the term. no, I don't like the term. Can I call you an AEW original? Yeah.

Okay. Yeah. You like that term. The guy that was never meant to make it. And then through the beauty of creative freedom and what AEW allowed me to be, which is myself, I can show a lot of people what I'm capable of. And that's all that I've ever wanted in wrestling. Because I remember the first day of wrestling school when I signed up, I said, I'm either going to make it as derby. I'm going to fail this derby.

But I don't want to change the thing. And that was so hard to constantly look at yourself in the mirror and be like, is this going to be possible? Is this going to be possible to make it to the top as yourself? Yeah, and was there a spot for you at that point in time? You know, when you broke in to wrestling? No. It was so hard to stay true to yourself.

So hard. Because it's so intimidating. Like, man, maybe I should just actually get wrestling gear. Maybe I shouldn't wear booty shorts and leggings. You know, but it's just, it all, you know what I mean? It's intimidating. But when you bring the real thing, it shows. So I feel like that's where like, you know, a lot of like the fans see, okay, this is just him.

This is just him in real life. Yeah. Authentic. Yeah. And I never wanted to be, um, industry plant. I never, you know what I mean? You can see an industry plant. There's a lot.

You work with some? I don't know. It's so hard to tell. And, like, with like, it's so hard to tell because I feel like A. it's so DIY it's hard you know what I mean you can't like really be like oh that that's an industry fine because it's you're you're on your own like you know you're doing your own thing so much that it's like hard to I don't know it's hard to explain yeah it'd be hard to you know because people like oh the machine gets behind you but at the same time it's you have such an opportunity to create

your own future with AEW so it's hard it's hard to describe what did winning the tNT I'll mean to you the first time and then the second time. The first time, I felt like it was a lot of validation. Because that was one of the only fucking, freaking titles at the time. So I was like, oh, whoa, like, I felt like it was a crazy validation for me to have that. There's another water for you. Grasius. I don't know, man.

I just feel like whenever, it's so weird. to be honest, because I don't, I don't know. It's like, it's like if you win an Emmy, does it really matter? Like, are you doing it for, to be it, you know what I mean? Like, are you doing it for people, are you doing it for yourself? So, I don't know, honestly, because I wrestle in front of, you know, at Wembley, in front of like 80,000 people. I didn't feel a thing.

You didn't feel anything. No. It didn't feel any different. Did it feel any different from when you wrestle in front of 100 people on the Indies? In what way? Just, I don't know. I just felt like it just, it made me realize that all of this stuff, like, truly didn't mean a whole lot. Trust me, I'm very grateful for the experience.

But it goes back to the material stuff. You know, like, you just got to focus on, like, making your close ones happy and everything like that. because it's not you're going to go around like, yo, I thought, you know, maybe you would have felt a million times different the next day after Wembley. You know, you would have thought, oh, like, this is incredible.

Like, I didn't feel a single thing. So, and at that point, I was like, you know, starting to get the wheel spinning about the journey of like Everest. Because I was like, I, you know, I don't want to just go through all this and constantly feel nothing. You know what I mean? You have so many passions.

This is one of the things I love about you, and I've always loved about you. You love passion. You love, wrestling, you're passionate about that. You're passionate about like Everest and I can just feel it when you talk about it. But you're the same way about skateboarding, the nitro circus stuff you do. Like when you're into something, you dive all the way into it. Yeah. I never, you know, because especially with wrestling, you get to a lot, you go to a lot of events and everyone thinks you're just

going to be like, this is AEW wrestler and they're just going to wave and introduce like, no, man, when I went to Nigel Circus, like, I'm not just going to wave. to people like put me on the tricycle like i'm gonna back foot that some bitch uh yeah i i i felt you know and i don't know man i just got to be very hands on because i felt like it's just i don't know obviously you got to watch out not get hurt doing the crazy stuff outside the ring but at the same time you i don't know i can't i can't be the guy who's just sitting there waving to people i'm like dude like because the first time i went to pastrana's house he wasn't expecting me to actually go crazy and do stuff.

Say, wait, wrestlers can actually do this? I'm like, I don't know if everyone can, but like, I, you know, I have to, you know. And it's funny because, like, with the NFL, I believe that they can't even, they, there's, like, rules that they can't even go, like, snowboarding or skiing or. Yeah, I think that's right. So it's, like, it's fun to just, like, well, why is Darby allowed to just jump his house in a Jeep? And I, I don't see, I don't know.

I think I made a promise to Tony, like, hey, I know. I know what I'm doing here. Until the day I get totally screwed out, you know, doing a crazy stunt. I'm just going to live it as hard as possible. Did you go to Nitro Circus knowing you were going to do something with them? Yeah. Originally I wanted to go down the roll in just in a body bag on top of a skateboard. And they're like, there's no way you're going to fall off the side of the ramp and just totally die.

But yeah, so the next thing I felt like I could do was just the back foot on the little tricycle did they had. You nailed it. Yeah. Yeah, that was, it was lots of fun. Man. But isn't it crazy that like you do all these wild things and then one day you randomly get hit by a bus. Yeah. Right? Like that puts you in the hospital, right? Just broken nose. Yeah. Still got to see family opera that night. And that's not because it was like around the time I broke my foot, too. You know, it was all in the same time. And what happened with that? Just randomly? Yeah. I think you, have you heard the story with Raymond? Oh.

Yeah, Raymond Pettibone. He's this artist, buddy of mine. We're on the way to a Broadway show, and then we're crossing the street, and then the bus is taken a right, and then it just clipped me, the mirror, clip me, because I had the broken foot, so I couldn't move as fast as I wanted to. And then, yeah, so that was a rough, rough time period. I feel when I broke my foot, and then the bus, and everybody's like, dude, he's going to die outside of the ring. We thought he was like, you know, we thought he's going to be safe outside

the ring and he's a lot more crazy shit's happening outside the ring. Yeah, does that make you like, like, I feel like you approach matches like you're invincible. Did that make you second guess things? No, no, not at all. There's not, there's, dude, there hasn't, you keep thinking I'm going to like learn my lesson or whatever it is that people want me to learn. I can't, like, I don't, every time I like do something, I'm like, let's do it again next week. Like, I haven't, I haven't hit that wall yet, you know. So who knows when I'm going to or what's going to cause me to hit it. What's been the most painful thing you've done in a wrestling ring? Man. You know, I would say probably the brain bleed from 2018. That was pretty rough. Like, that's rough because you think,

man, the mind goes, you're done. That's why I'm so into the meditating and everything, because if you're mind strong, then your body follows. So to me, that was a hard one. What's been the scariest thing in AEW? The most painful. Probably when I wrestled Kevin Knight recently. I, and it was on nothing in the grand scheme of things, you know. It was a backflip off the guardrail.

And as soon as I coffin dropped the guardrail and he jumped up, the guardrail kind of shifted. So I couldn't be in place right where I needed to be for the backflip. It just kind of moved when I coughed and dropped into it. And then the knees barely caught me. And I remember I felt my legs were giving out in the match and I couldn't stand. And that happened also in the first like three minutes of the match. So the rest of the match, I'm like wrestling with these spaghetti legs.

And I feel like I couldn't walk. And it was such a crazy feeling. And then I collapsed in the back. and just puked everywhere. And then I climbed in the shower at the building with all my gear on and like everything. And I just put the shower on like this. And then I was just like, oh. And then like, yeah, we need to call the ambulance.

This guy's like done. And then that was like the first time I felt like in an actual match that I was like, dude, this is scary. Because it's, you know, live TV. You can't even walk. Can you? There's a spot where I'm hitting the ropes. in that match to do a double close line as a double down.

And I can't even hit the road. I can barely stand. And I'm just thinking, oh, my God, how'd this happen? Like, this ain't nothing that I, compared to what I've been through. You were just naming down all those crazy moments. Not one time in those crazy moments. I was scared. And then this moment, I was like, oh, my God.

It just hit me. and I just it was terrifying to a point where I was just like dude because you hear all these stories about you know the head and then you think it's just like a snowball effect and I you know what I mean and I don't want to constantly be like I don't know what you call it concussion prone you know where it's like once you have one it's easier get the other so like I really after that one I was like I need to just screw off like the moment it happened and I was taken out of the Connell Classic I just flew to Iceland and and just hung out.

And at the time, Iceland, it's like daylight for only four hours. So being in the dark really helped a lot. So I just was in Iceland for like a couple weeks. So it just felt great to take that time to just kind of, I don't know. But it was, yeah, it was crazy. They called the ambulance. You went to the hospital? For sure.

For sure. Well, you were saying earlier, you've got a relationship with the hospital where you're like, I don't know if I need to go all the time. Yeah. But with the mind, with the brain, I'll go anytime. I try to, you know, you got to take care of this so much, man. So, yeah, that's, that one is probably this, like, worst. That sounds scary.

Yeah, it sucked. What's the thing you've been most proud of from your seven years in AEW? Dude, just being myself. Being at this level and being myself, that was my original mission statement in AEW when I first got there. It was like, I don't, I just want to be accepted for me. me. That's all I want to be. I don't care if I'm world champion. I don't care if I'm, you know, here. I just want to be me, man. And I felt like I've done it. I felt like I've done it. This has definitely been such a trip. This has been so wild these last, since AEW started.

But like, I look at everything now. I'm like, whoa, I did it. I actually did. I never had a compromise or change anything. That's all I've ever wanted. How do you feel when you look out into the crowd and you see kids with your face pain? I hope that, you know, they are inspired to just do something with themselves. Like growing up, you know, they'd be like,

yo, like anything's possible. That's what I hope when they have the face pains they can hear, you know, me talk about conquering all these things that you feel like hold you back in life, you know, all the mental barriers that you have to overcome. and, you know, just know that literally anything is possible. Even if you have to go to death's door to realize that, anything's possible.

So, yeah, that's what I hope people take away from it. Because, you know, I just felt like I became the person I was searching for growing up. You know what I mean? That's powerful. Yeah. So, like, that's, you know, so if I'm a voice to people to actually, you know, time will tell because we're still so early in the game, you know, 20 years from now, people come up to you like yo it was because of you i did this you know that is what i'm kind of hoping at the end of the day what do you think that version of you growing up lacked that you have now

confidence it's like confidence man that's all it is because i graduate when i graduate high school was like 118 pounds and i remember i was telling my dad i want to be a pro wrestler and he looked at me there's no fucking way you're going to be a pro wrestler no way like it's just it's not possible and i like you know listen to him and everybody else and i just felt like so empty inside i was like dude really this is this is how i'm going to go out like this is this is me just throwing the towel at the tender age of 18 you know what i mean but fast for all these years later you do things your way and now i'm having my dad retire and he's my personal assistant and i'm making him jump out a helicopter's your dad's your personal assistant yeah and making him jump out of helicopters and

shit. So it's just like, I don't know, it's a fun, full circle story. Do you think about if Jackass had been around, call it 10 years ago, like just starting out, how different your life might have looked? Like, you might have been the star of Jackass instead of a pro wrestler. Yeah, you never know. I, I dude, honestly, because back then I was just going crazy on my skateboard doing all these stunts and stuff like that. I was trying to go the evil-kneval route of like just life because I had no confidence to being a wrestler. But then with all the craziness, I felt, oh, I think I can do way more for wrestling because people aren't willing to go the lengths I'm willing to go. I'm not just saying that.

It's not a catchphrase. I do believe there's no one in the world of wrestling that is willing to go, the places I'm willing to go. Physically, mentally, like, just, yeah, I love a challenge. And you think there's more? There's more you can do. There's a lot more. Dude, I'm, I'm 33 right now, and I feel amazing. I feel like, I feel like laser focused.

But a lot of times it's just like wherever the wind takes you. You know what I mean? I do five years ago, I would not have thought of climbing ever. It just wasn't, you know, but it hit me. Like, it just hit you, you know, and you just, sometimes I just listen to like the signs of like, what's next? And, yeah, I, yeah, see what's going on. So like next time there's a cage match, ladder match,

blood and guts match with you involved? the bar is going to be pretty high. Yeah, yeah. Dude, honestly, I don't. Yeah, it's getting, it's getting pretty crazy now because, yeah, I don't know if it's, it's like a double-edged sword. I feel like you put yourself in this and then it's like, are you going to live up to, you know, topping yourself?

But is that what you're doing? I, you know, I don't even know what the hell is going on. Just, dude, I'm just like, couldn't tell you. Your mindset about it's. It's fascinating. I love being able to, like, sit here and talk to you about it. And great to catch up with you, by the way. Yeah.

You haven't been on the show seven years. Yeah. 2019, it was like AEW just started. We did an interview then. So much has changed for both of us, but especially for you. You have a lot more tattoos. It's the last time I saw you. Yeah.

Yeah, a lot more. But congratulations on everything personally and professionally. Again, thank you for coming in here, making this happen. I know gratitude is a big thing for you. It's a huge thing for me as well. So I end every interview asking this question. What are three things that you're grateful for right now? My health, my family, and AEW.

Final answer. Those three, like, it just, I wouldn't be here without it. I would not be here without it. AEW, like, changed the world of wrestling, but it also, if you, if you, respect it, it will change everything for you. Mentally, everything. Like, we are so privileged to be in a company that, like, lets us do what we do.

So, like, put your ego away and just enjoy. That's, that's all I got to say. Like, I just, yeah. Because it's true, man. Like, when I, when I told you earlier, I didn't feel a thing with the 81,000 people. I just, I don't. I just really want to focus on where I'm going with it. It's scary.

It's scary. You know, when you think about these material things that you feel like you're going to let you make you so happy and you realize they don't mean a thing, it's scary. So you have to dive deep down inside and check your ego and really, you know, find what's important in life. It's scary. It's scary when you go out there in front of 81,000 people and it doesn't mean a fucking thing, you know, and you win a championship and it doesn't mean a fucking thing. It's scary because, you know, people are so conditioned to be like, it's the greatest feeling, blah, blah, blah. But when you do it and it does, you're like, you have to like dive deep down yourself and find out what's important in life. And I'm so grateful that AEW let me do that in the midst of my career.

I'm 33 years old right now. There's so many wrestlers that want to do Mount Everest, you know, like not so many, but Copeland was one who wanted to do it. JBL was one. And the fact that, like, I was able to do this and, like, live my life to the absolute fullest in the ring and outside of the ring, that is priceless. So I hope a lot of people take advantage of what the fuck AEW gives them. You know what I mean? Physically and everything and mentally, like, it will change your life if you don't have an ego and you're grateful for it and the gratitude. Because they let me just go off and find myself spiritually, mentally.

everything, they let me do that in the middle of my career and not treat me like a fucking animal where it's like you're just a cog on the wheel, you know, and it's just like, they're like, do you, do whatever you want to do to find these answers that you're searching for. And we're not just going to chew you up and spit you out because that was the scariest thing in wrestling

is you're going to chewed up and spit out by the machine and left with nothing. And I don't want to do that. And through the beauty of AEW, they let me be me and find myself. So, grossies. That's where I'm going with this. Darby. Thank you so much, man.

Thank you, Sarah. The Hammer Alley podcast, an 80s flashback mockumentary. Back in the 80s, there were a thousand bands trying to make it in the world of rock. But there was one band that had it all. Hammer Alley. Whatever happened to Hammer Alley? How did they go from top of the rock? I'm looking for a music video.

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