MJF believes young wrestlers need to stop relying on locker room veterans for guidance. The former AEW World Champion said that putting too much trust in others was one of the biggest mistakes of his career.
Speaking with Bleacher Report, MJF said he eventually learned to rely solely on his own instincts. He pointed to his past relationship with Adam Cole as the turning point that cemented that mindset.
“In all sincerity, I think one of the biggest issues that young people in the industry make is that a lot of guys are busy walking around trying to find veterans in the locker room. Here’s the deal and the god’s honest truth.
Not all of them, but 99 percent of the veterans in the locker room, they don’t have your best interest, they don’t want you to beat them, they don’t want you to be better at talking than them or better at wrestling than them. Because if you’re better than they are, that’s taking food off their plate. The only person you can trust in this industry is yourself.”
That said, MJF didn’t completely dismiss the value of studying previous generations. In the same interview, he encouraged young wrestlers to go back and watch names like Gino Hernandez, Gary Hart, Jimmy Garvin, and “Playboy” Buddy Rose, arguing that studying different eras helps talent develop something uniquely their own.
MJF also noted that he regularly watches WWE, TNA, MLW, NJPW, STARDOM, and several independent promotions to scout potential opponents and keep up with what’s happening across the business.
This weekend, MJF enters the Casino Gauntlet at AEW All In as the second entrant, coming in right behind Andrade El Idolo.