MLW World Heavyweight Champion Alex Hammerstone shares his thoughts ahead of his high-profile match with Jacob Fatu on MLW Underground.
Hammerstone beat Jacob Fatu to win the title at MLW Fightland 2021. They haven’t clashed in a singles match since, and the two powerhouses will collide in a title bout on the March 21 episode of MLW Underground.
Speaking with Scott Fishman of SEScoops, Hammerstone highlighted the way fans have had to wait for a rematch between him and Fatu. He noted that this delayed payoff helped build the story, as they would have “killed” the interest in the feud if they ran it back for a ratings bump.
“If you do have characters that people are invested in and fights people are invested in. If you’re able to create these stories that can separate and come back together, those are going to be what pays off the biggest,” Hammerstone said. “They might not pay off right away but that’s the thing.
“We could have gotten a spike in views several times if we just fired off with me and Jacob Fatu. But we would have killed it. I beat him for the world heavyweight championship a year and half ago and we’re just now having our rematch. I think that says something.”
The champion briefly previewed the match on Tuesday by stating that fans will see a “different” and “better” bout between two stars who are in their prime. Hammerstone also addressed the speculation that other companies might be interested in him. He stated that he signed a contract, and he’s going to keep up his end of it as long as MLW does the same.
“I look at things day-to-day. I have a contract to fulfill,” Hammerstone said. “I’m never going to be one of those guys who starts crying and bitching for the Twitter fans to help me get out of my contract. I signed a piece of paper. I knew what I was signing when I signed it. As long as they keep up their end, I’m going to keep up my end.”
For now, Hammerstone remains focused on his work with MLW and building his legacy with the company.
“Then as far as what happens on the other side of that, there are so many factors that go into it. Yeah, I’ve heard whispers of other people being interested,” Hammerstone said. “As for right now, it might as well not even be there because I’m focused on doing the job I’m doing with MLW.
“I have a lot of work ahead of me with that company in particular. As far as I’m concerned, I have quite a legacy to grow. I want to be the longest title holder. I want to be the first multi-time world championship holder. I want to take that belt over to Japan and do stuff there. I still have a lot of chapter left to write in the book of MLW.”
The full interview is available here:
WrestleZone will have coverage of MLW Underground as it airs on Tuesday.
