American Alpha’s Chad Gable recently spoke to Rolling Stone‘s Aaron Oster, talking about getting drafted to WWE Smackdown Live, competing as an amateur wrestler in the Olympics and more. You can read a few highlights below:
Chad Gable comments on what American Alpha’s Smackdown debut was like:
It was pretty rewarding. We were pretty nervous. Back in those moments behind the curtain before you walk out, you get really nervous. You wonder if you’ll hear crickets when you come out. You don’t know if the people who are watching Smackdown or Raw are watching NXT on a regular basis. They may have seen it here and there, but you don’t know if they’ll know you. So it’s a little bit nerve-racking. Once our music hit though, all the nerves went away. Once you get through the curtain, you just feel it. The crowd responded great. We were really happy with it.
Gable on if he and Jason Jordan knew they were getting drafted:
A lot of people want to know, “Did you guys know beforehand?” And to be honest, we didn’t. They didn’t really tell us. They just gathered us to basically have a draft party at the Performance Center. Everyone came and had dinner while they set up the big screen. We sat and watched it unfold. It was a really special night. We’re kind of a big family down here. We train together every day, some of us for years now. You grow together, so when you watch somebody get drafted, you could see how happy everyone was for everybody else. When someone gets called up, all of NXT is winning, because everybody had a part in everyone else’s success.
Does Gable miss amateur wrestling or watch this year’s Olympics and wish he was there?
Not so much. I’ve been fortunate. A lot of people ask if I ever miss it, or if I’d ever want to go back to amateur wrestling. I don’t really. I was very satisfied with my amateur career, and to have it end at the Olympic Games. Unless I had won a medal, I couldn’t think of a better way for it to end. That’s the pinnacle of what I wanted to reach. So I was really satisfied. I don’t really get those feelings of wanting to go back and do it again. At the same time, the Opening Ceremonies was just incredible. For me, that was one of the biggest highlights of the whole experience.
Gable describes his personal Olympics experiences:
I considered it my reward for the 20 years that I had put into amateur wrestling. When I got there, it was everything that I had envisioned and hoped that it would be. The buzz in London the whole time we were there was incredible. You can just feel this energy in the air. It didn’t matter where you went. Whether it was the Olympic Village, or going around sightseeing, there was this energy. I’m sure it’s the same for Rio. I’m sure it’s the same wherever the Olympics are. There was a feeling that I’ve never experienced before. The atmosphere whenever the athletes were all together was just amazing, because there was a shared feeling that we all made it. This was the pinnacle. Everyone was just so happy to be there and happy to compete. It was incredible.
What are American Alpha’s short-term and long-term goals?
In the short-term, we want to create an atmosphere on Smackdown where we raise the game of every tag team there. We want to approach it in a way that we’re so tenacious, and we’re so hungry, that it makes everyone else step up. We want them to say that they don’t want the new guys to come in and take over. We want that competition. That’s what we thrive on. If we can start that as quick as possible, we want everyone to step up and make the tag teams the thing to watch on Smackdown. That’s the short-term goal.
Long-term? I hope they introduce tag titles to Smackdown. We want to win those. If not, we want to win the other tag team titles and bring them to Smackdown. Ultimately, we need to be on Wrestlemania next year. We need to be in a pivotal match and make an impact on a huge stage. We want to show it on the grandest stage possible.
