Jeff Jarrett discusses his relationship with Kurt Angle, the thing about his 35-year career that makes him proudest, three things he wish he knew if he started TNA, Vince McMahon trusting that he would lose to Chyna at No Mercy

By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)

Insight With Chris Van Vliet with guest Jeff Jarrett
Host: Chris Van Vliet
Podcast available via Podcasts.Apple.com
Video available at Chris Van Vliet’s YouTube Page

On what he is most proud of in his career: “The perseverance. Because this is not an easy industry at all. I’m one of five kids and I was the only one that got into the business. Many folks have said that my father being the promoter for you is either the best or the worst. I agree, it is both a blessing and a curse. But I’ve always loved it, got a passion for it. I was always fascinated by it as a young kid. Not just the product, but everything that goes around it. But I’ve just celebrated 35 years in the business. Whether it was USWA, WCCW, WWF, WCW, TNA Global Force, Hall of Fame, all of that. When I look back, the perseverance and the drive, it’s up to me to get up and put on my work boots.”

Three things he wish he knew if he started TNA: “I started when I was 35 years old, that’s a young businessman for a startup company. It’s one show a week, but it is consuming. In 2002, we didn’t have the tools or capabilities. I used to say phone calls wouldn’t accomplish what a face to face would do. Video calls have somewhat advanced it though. Time management is something in the early days of TNA. It wasn’t like it was back then. Delegation would be number two and not to get hung up on single decisions would be number three.”

On his current relationship with Kurt Angle: “In my world, that’s family. It’s personal. It goes without saying, in 2010, I spent more time in the ring with him, he has spent Halloweens here at my house. He has five kids, that’s hard to imagine. I’ve got three biological, he’s got five biological. It’s family. Obviously, we all have our ups and downs, our ins and outs. But heck, I have that with my buddy at the gym who is always late and it aggravates the hell out of me. So, it is what it is.”

On Vince McMahon trusting that Jeff would lose to Chyna at No Mercy 1999: “It’s like any promoter, Vince had to have faith in me. At the end of the day, he’s been around longer than I have. If I didn’t do it, so what? There’s tomorrow’s Raw to fix that. I’m banking on the odds that he has faith in me. The following day he took his company public. You can talk about WrestleMania and you can talk about SummerSlam, but it doesn’t hold a candle to the day he went public. He built a third generation business. He spent 16 weeks in 1999 saying he was going to take a professional wrestling company public.”