Samoa Joe Discusses Working Hard To 'Build Opportunities' For Guys Like Nick Wayne

Samoa Joe's 24-year-long career has placed him in numerous promotions over the years, but according to the veteran, one of his biggest goals has always been to create more opportunities for young stars to jump into the industry. During an interview with Adrian Hernandez, Joe dismissed any veterans who might be upset that guys like Nick Wayne are already getting massive opportunities, and in the case of the 18-year-old, signed to a major promotion.

"You know, some people would be a little bit upset or pissed off about it, nah, that's mission accomplished, that's what I wanted." Joe also recalled the difficult time he had breaking into the industry, as at the time both WCW and ECW had fallen, which resulted in far fewer opportunities. "I wanted there to be a pipeline for young guys to get into real work and there wasn't a lot of real work at the time WCW had closed down, ECW was also kind of in its last phases of its existence, so it was a very, very difficult time."

He also pointed out that Wayne was receiving a lot of guidance from major names in the industry, and noted that advice from veterans while he was a rookie changed his career. "All I know is a lot of those producers and people who supposedly are telling him what to do? These are trusted voices of the industry who have a lot of experience," Joe said. "Some of the most fundamentally career-changing things came from good stage advice from people who knew what the hell they were doing."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit Adrian Hernandez and provide Wrestling Inc with a h/t for the transcription.