TNA's Mike Santana Credits WWE Hall Of Famer With Inspiring His Career

If you ask any professional wrestler who their favorite wrestler was as a child, they are all bound to have a different answer. TNA Wrestling star Mike Santana revealed which WWE Hall Of Famer his was while discussing how he brings authenticity to his character on the "Battleground Podcast."

"So, growing up, I was never really into the comic book characters like [Hulk] Hogan and [The Ultimate] Warrior and all these over the top characters," Santana said. "My [guy was] Bret Hart and one of the main reasons is [because] Bret was who he was, right."

While reflecting on why he felt so drawn to Hart, Santana explained that the incorporation of topics such as his upbringing, family, and personal values into his character and promos drew him in.

"That was the start of that, but also, I've always said that if I didn't get into wrestling, I wanted to have a job where I was able to help people with my story and help I guess shed light on things and help try to give inspiration to a lot of kids that come from where I come from, and I realized later on that wrestling was my way of doing that," Santana said.

Having begun his professional wrestling career back in 2007, Santana made his return to TNA Wrestling in April during the Rebellion pay-per-view event when it was announced he had signed with the company and was revealed as Steve Maclin's surprise opponent. Prior to then, he joined AEW back in 2019 and remained there until his exit back in March, and had previously competed in TNA from 2017 until he signed with AEW.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "Battleground Podcast" with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.