AEW's Daniel Garcia Details What He's Learned From Chris Jericho
AEW star Daniel Garcia has discussed his former Jericho Appreciation Society leader Chris Jericho's influence on him as a wrestler, and revealed how he has helped him creatively.
Garcia was a recent guest on "Busted Open," where he was asked by WWE Hall of Famer Bully Ray about what he's learned from Jericho and the advice given by the veteran star that sticks out to him. The AEW star revealed that Jericho has given him the freedom to learn things on his own.
"Everybody remembers Jericho for the great things that he has gotten to stick, like catchphrases, poses, innovating new moves, and I feel like — he never told me, 'you should do this, you should do that.' He's someone who lets you figure it out on your own, and I'm very grateful for that," said Garcia. "I feel like, at first, I kind of wanted him to take me by the hand, tell me to do this or that, but the more I was with him, the more I figured out things by myself. He gave me the confidence to want to try new things. For all the things that Jericho has done and has stuck on, there's just as many if not more that he's tried and maybe it was a little bit of a flop, but he still keeps trying and trying."
He added that if a star like Jericho can step out of his comfort zone to try new things, it gives him the confidence to experiment, even if there's the potential of it flopping. Garcia has risen up the ranks in the promotion since joining in 2021, just years after a car crash that caused him to question his pro wrestling future.
Over the last year, Garcia has received opportunities to face top stars in AEW in singles matches, including against the likes of MJF, Bryan Danielson, and more recently, Adam Copeland.