By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
The Revolt tag team of Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood appeared on Chris Jericho’s “Talk Is Jericho” podcast. The following are the highlights of the interview, which can be heard in full at Omny.fm/shows/talk-is-jericho.
-Wheeler went by Dash Wilder in WWE, but he had the name “Cash” at the top of his initial name list. He said Dusty Rhodes liked the name Dash because of “Dashing” Cody Rhodes. Wheeler said he’s never told that story because he knows he’ll never hear the end of it from Cody.
-Wheeler and Harwood also said they probably wouldn’t have ended up together had it not been for Rhodes. He put them together and showed tremendous faith in them as a team even though some of the other coaches were not sold on them as a duo. They said Dusty used to pull them out of training to hang out in his office to listen to Willie Nelson or to eat homemade ice cream.
-Wheeler and Harwood bonded over their mutual appreciation of Bret Hart. They also had the goal of making their babyface opponents look good. They also felt that Dusty liked them because they are from North Carolina and have Southern accents. Harwood said certain people in the office didn’t like accents, so Dusty wanted to shove it back in Vince’s face that a pair of Southern boys could get the job done. They spoke about their final meeting with Vince McMahon, who couldn’t get over how articulate they were.
-The Revolt duo looked back on asking for to be released from their contracts 15 months before they were finally released. They waited until they were in line for a tag title reign to make a point. Wheeler said the tag titles didn’t mean anything. He noted that he likes Braun Strowman, but he was down on the way he was booked to steamroll the tag division and win the tag titles with a child at WrestleMania. Harwood said word spread quickly and some fans assumed they were complainers, but he challenged people to find a former co-worker that felt that way. Wheeler said they purposely refused to comment about their releases and he even lied about doing so in an interview.
-Harwood spoke of their desire to have the entire tag division used better. He said they would have gladly re-signed if changes were actually made. Wheeler said WWE officials didn’t want them to leave for a new company that was gaining steam. He recalled meeting with Vince and being presented with characters “that were less than flattering.” Harwood said they last thing they did on television was beat down Braun Strowman, so he joked that they got tag team revenge on him.
-Wheeler recalled their meeting with Vince McMahon. They were handed a folder with images of what they looked like and then pages of what they could look like with new gear. They laughed about the photos leaking online. Harwood stressed that the talent is kayfabed and said people in the office had to be the one’s leaking the info. Wheeler said they told Vince and other WWE officials that the new looks were not good, but they would do whatever they want and would give it 110 percent, but they were leaving once their deals expired.
-Wheeler said they were actually offered more than the rumored figure of $750,000 per year. He said they were pulled from the road shortly thereafter. Wheeler, Harwood, and Jericho had a good laugh over the leaked images.
-Harwood said it was hard to turn down the big money WWE deal. He recalled his grandmother asking how much money a person actually needs. Wheeler said he doesn’t have debt and comes from nothing. They both wanted to be happy and listed Jericho as one of the inspirations in terms of people betting on themselves. Harwood said he received a message from Bret Hart, who praised them both for not just taking the money.
-Wheeler and Harwood said they are not in any rush to make an official decision regarding where they land next. They spoke of their desire to work with The North, The Briscoes, the Guerrillas of Destiny, Juice Robinson and David Finlay, and the Young Bucks. Wheeler said they love to work and take pride in working as much as they can and as hard as they can. He said they’ve had offers from multiple promotions and want to weigh all the pros and cons while seeing what’s out there. Harwood said tag team wrestling is featured everywhere but WWE right now, which excites them.
-Jericho asked about the origins of FTR. Harwood said the Young Bucks were widely regarded as the best tag team in the world and they started putting a little pressure on them with the matches they were having in NXT. Wheeler said he didn’t go out of his way to watch Being The Elite. He said they never met the Bucks and had no idea whether there was any real animosity there, but somehow a rivalry developed. Wheeler said to this day they don’t know why the Bucks started saying it.
-Harwood said his favorite team of all-time are The Midnight Express duo of Dennis Condrey and Bobby Eaton. He said he and Wilder studied them, the Hart Foundation, and the British Bulldogs. He said the Midnights and the team of Tully Blanchard and Arn Anderson are the teams they’ve modeled themselves after. Wheeler said they also watched underrated tag teams such as The Fantastics with the goal of making their babyface opponents look as good as possible. Wheeler noted that you can look up his old independent footage to see that he can do flips, moonsaults, and 450 splashes. He said he chooses not to do those things because they want the babyfaces to shine.
-The Shatter Machine finisher was something the duo did while Jericho was on hiatus. When Jericho returned, Harwood and Wheeler said they asked NXT officials whether they needed to come up with something else because it was similar to the Codebreaker. There was a fun story about Jericho tweeting about it and Wheeler responding with a quip about how Naomichi Marufuji was the inventor of the move. He said it came off poorly, but it wasn’t said with any malice.
-Jericho said he was upset by someone else in NXT performing a move similar to his. Jericho, Harwood, and Wheeler eventually spoke in person about it and there was no friction. Jericho said they perform the move better than he does. Wheeler said it’s the only flashy move they have, so it’s a good thing they got to keep it. They joked about changing the name to “The Shitter Machine” now that they were out of WWE.
Powell’s POV: A very good interview. You have to assume that The Revolt will be showing up in AEW given the FTR tease in the clouds on a recent edition of Being The Elite, but I can’t blame the duo for not spilling the beans. Wheeler and Harwood came off well and it’s hard not to root for two guys who care more about the betterment of tag team wrestling than padding their bank accounts. A highly recommended listen.
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