AEW star Jake Hager recently spoke with the Independent about all things pro-wrestling, including his decision to leave WWE back in 2017 without any guarantee of a job elsewhere, his transition into MMA, and finally how much being apart of AEW has changed his life. Highlights from the interview can be found below.
Recalls leaving WWE back in 2017:
“As soon as I left the WWE. The whole point was to get signed with AEW and that was in March 2017. They weren’t even an official company then, but it was kind of on the horizon and you could see it was coming.”
Says it was risky to leave WWE without a guaranteed job lined up:
“[Leaving] was ballsy, but I had to supplement a big income to try and maintain the lifestyle that I’d had for ten years. I had kids, school, cars, houses and just like anyone else, I’ve got to pay for it. So, the fear of leaving is very big, and it was very hard. It was my wife who said that I could do it and I believed her. There was this time when I lost a bunch of independent bookings and I was putting my daughter down to sleep and I am like ‘what am I going to do?’ I am tearing up right now because I remember that moment, I’ll always remember that. Luckily, we were able to get a second mortgage on our home to pay for the rest of the year and pay for the fight camp that was coming up at the end of 2018. It was an incredible two years with a lot of ups and downs, but I have got to say that when you’re down, you have to remember the finish line, because you might be right in front of it.”
Says AEW changed his life:
“I had a great career before I got here and I could’ve just stayed doing MMA, but the opportunity to work with Tony Khan, Cody Rhodes, The Young Bucks and Chris Jericho – who is one of the greatest of all time – it was really something you could never pass up. All I want AEW to do is grow and grow because I see the leadership with guys like Tony and Chris, they see us like assets and like athletes. I’m so blessed and so honoured, and I’ll always say that being at AEW has changed my life.”