During a recent interview with Andrew Thompson for Post Wrestling, Baron Black commented on the debut event for TERMINUS, when the promotion was originally going to launch, and more. You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
Baron says TERMINUS ‘debut show was originally planned for November 2021: “Quite a few reasons [why we moved TERMINUS’ debut from November to January]. In November, everything wasn’t really lining up, the talent that we wanted to use, to contact, [Jonathan Gresham had] an appearance for New Japan STRONG which was running the same weekend and I also had to do work with AEW which was Full Gear week so, it wouldn’t have worked very well with both of us trying to do our own respective things that we do and then try to come back and do a show and then go right back on the road again. It was like it was not going to work so we decided to push it out of November, push it to January and it seems to have worked out very well that we did that.”
Baron on his ROH World Title match against Bandido at the TERMINUS debut show: “I think the correct answer to that is I treat it [ROH World Title match against Bandido] just like any other professional wrestling match. But I understand what it is at stake. I think we all understand what is at stake. This could very [well] be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Not everybody gets to challenge for a world championship. This will be my first time challenging, in my career, for a world championship. So you best believe, you best believe with all your being that this is going to be one of the most hellacious, aggressive, pinpoint accurate performances of Baron Black you will ever see, because becoming world champion is something people cannot take away from you. You keep that forever and to have it be the Ring of Honor World Championship, that makes it even more sweeter. So yes, to answer your question, it’s yes and yes. Yes, I treat it like every other match and yes, it’s more than every other match, because I have a chance to really walk out as a world champion. So, it’s pressure there and I know I have to be on point because Bandido is no joke, he is one of the best wrestlers in the world. He’s probably the top luchador in the world right now. But, I do know I have scouted a lot of lucha libre wrestlers, a lot of luchadors and I went to war with a luchador before named Rey Fenix so I think I got enough data that will help me in this match against Bandido.”
Update on AEW’s Satnam Singh and his training, Baron thinks he’ll surprise people when he debuts: “I’m at [the] Nightmare Factory regularly, on a very regular consistent basis so, I’ve interacted with him [Satnam Singh] a lot. I have been training partners with him a lot. He’s training there closely with the coaches so, he’s coming along very nicely. I think he’s gonna surprise a lot of people. He definitely has the ability and all the characteristics and all the tools needed to succeed as a professional wrestler and most importantly, he seems to have a passion and drive for wrestling which is a recipe for success with any athlete coming from any other sport because they already have that condition in them, they already have that passion for what they do so they already try to be the best at what they do and he has that and him being damn near 7’4, he’s gonna be a problem when it’s all said and done and it all comes together at the end so, I’m really looking forward to when he finally gets to debut because I think people will be pleasantly surprised at what he can do.”
Baron explains what comes with being a part of Cody Rhodes’ Nightmare Family: “The most important thing that comes along with being part of the Nightmare Family is being a family. That’s the first and foremost [important] part of becoming Nightmare Family. You basically become part of an extended family related to the Nightmare Family and obviously Cody Rhodes. It’s a very, very humbling and appreciative type of feeling for somebody of that character and that caliber and that level in professional wrestling to really put their stamp of approval and name on you. Especially if it’s somebody that just got to know you over the last two years, you know what I’m saying? Especially with this case between me, Fuego [Del Sol], KiLynn [King] and [Red] Velvet. Obviously, we’re not direct products of being trained under Cody Rhodes but we obviously connected with him in a certain way to the point he’s like, ‘Yes, these four individuals is somebody I will vouch for, somebody I will put my name on, somebody that I feel very strongly about to the point that I’m going to put them a part of my extended family which is the Nightmare Family brand.’ So, I was just taken back by that. He has no… what’s the word?… Damn, I’m getting tongue tied just thinking about it.
No [it’s not ‘reasons’]. He has his reasons. That’s why we’re there, that’s why we’re under it but, it’s not mandatory for him to do anything like that. That’s all about his personal feelings towards the individuals at hand so, I really take that very highly. For somebody of his level to like, ‘Hey, this is a guy that I put my name on, this is one of my guys.’ You know what I’m saying? So, that really hits right here [the heart] a lot, you know what I’m saying? Because it speaks volumes about how somebody views your work and your work ethic because you know, everybody on Twitter knows, before he changed his Twitter, everybody on Twitter knows his thing was all about ‘do the work.’ That’s his moniker, that’s his hashtag, that’s his thing and if he’s gonna put [his] name on you, he feels like you have done the work and you continue to do the work and you have passion for this business and you are so driven that you can’t be denied, you become undeniable and I think that definitely defines me, Fuego, KiLynn and Red Velvet so, it’s a good thing. It’s a very, very humbling and good thing, and we owe everything to that guy. We really do.”
Moment at ROH Final Battle when the locker room came to the ring was not planned, Baron said one wrestler made the first move and everyone followed: “That was really just an organic moment, you know? Like someone wanted to go out, I know I was thinking about it [going to the ring for Gresham vs. Lethal at Final Battle] and then hey, somebody made the first move and then everybody else just followed. So, that was this really organic moment that happened at Final Battle. It was pretty cool so, I was like, ‘Yeah man, let’s just go out there and let’s see.’ Yeah, I was the first one that jumped in the ring [after Gresham won the title]. This man has really — he really fought, like literally for his life to get to that pinnacle and the amount of obstacles he had to overcome to become Ring of Honor World Champion, maybe one day in the book, he’ll put it out there. You know, that’s for his story to tell but he overcame a lot of obstacles, a lot of roadblocks to get to that point of becoming Ring of Honor World Champion so, I was over ecstatic for my friend. A little bit too over ecstatic to the point [that] I came in and rushed him and he fell to the ground, you know what I mean? He was breathing all heavy from having that crazy match with Jay Lethal so, yeah, he was definitely happy and I know that was a goal he always wanted to achieve even early on in our training careers when we was coming up training in Atlanta so, to see that actually happen and to see it unfold over the few years and somebody finally hit something of that significance, that big time goal they’ve been trying to get, it was just heartwarming. It was a very heartwarming situation, it really was. I don’t think y’all [have] ever seen him smile that much ever. I don’t think y’all [have] ever seen him smile that much.”
