Never one to shy away from a conversation, the Mexican superstar spoke his mind in a teleconference where he addressed international media. He was appreciative of us for our time and conversed with us at length.
Having just watched Wrestle Kingdom 12, where others who’d made their name in WWE much like him, like Cody Rhodes and Chris Jericho were featured attractions, I asked El Patron if more professional wrestlers were now looking beyond WWE to earn a living:
El Patron did not express any ill will towards his former place of employment and even wishes them all the best. However, he mentioned that performers like him, Cody, Jericho and Drew McIntyre did not need to be in a company like that if they weren’t enjoying their run.
Alberto El Patron then adds a disclaimer.
El Patron plugged in the Impact Wrestling tapings scheduled to take place in Orlando next week and mentioned standout superstars such as Johnny Impact, Lashley and Eli Drake. The Mexican superstar is also excited to be working under the new Impact Wrestling regime under Scott D’Amore and Don Callis, for the forthcoming set of tapings.
At the same time, he’s also full of praise for Jeff Jarrett, especially for booking him in a program with his dad and his brother, and LAX. El Patron mentioned he’ll always be grateful to Jarrett, for the same. He adds that the storyline was ‘good television’. He is hopeful about the future of Impact Wrestling:
Addressing the storyline mentioned above, I asked him about working with Konnan, the leader of LAX. El Patron prefaces this by saying he’s known Konnan his entire life:
El Patron thinks that destiny brought the two men together again and he hopes that the two men can also work together sometime in the future. Why did El Patron go from playing a babyface in this popular storyline to coming back as a heel at Bound for Glory?
El Patron believes that the audience should have the freedom of deciding whom they like and whom they don’t.
El Patron is an emotional man, who is very attached to his fans. He has been very open about the fact that his days in wrestling are numbered and that he has at best, two years left to go. What does he hope to accomplish by then? El Patron says he may not retire yet!
So what makes Impact Wrestling so different? Why is he so attached to the company? How is the locker room in Impact Wrestling different? El Patron said that Impact Wrestling is so nice, they gave him his own area, because of how old-school he is…
He added that he’s always talking to his co-workers. And the vibe among them is fantastic. Finally, to wrap up our conversation, I ask about his recent restaurant that seemingly shut down. What was the reason behind it?
El Patron explains that his restaurant, La Cantinita in San Antonio, is a franchise from Mexico that he brought to the United States. The owners of the franchise were doing nothing to help El Patron out. He suffered big monetary losses because nobody knew the brand in the United States. Neither did it make sense to rent a huge area, for the same purpose.
The restaurant returns under a new name at the end of February. El Patron is just as excited about it, as the Impact Wrestling tapings in Orlando and his plans for Combates America. 2018 may just be his year. We wish him all the best!
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