By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
The Two Man Power Trip of Wrestling Podcast with Shane “Slapjack” Haste
Host: JP John Poz
Twitter: @TwoManPowerTrip
Website: www.tmptempire.com
Interview available at Tmptow.podomatic.com
On his WWE release: “I expected it for four years. The run I was having I was like yeah everyday is good. They have that PC (Performance Center) full of fresh young talent who haven’t been seen, so why not use those people; fresh stuff. People love new things. So I don’t take any of it personally. I saved my money and took care of my body, made a lot of good friends, some great memories. So yeah, I’ve got nothing to be too upset about. I would have loved one last run without the mask as myself, right? Definitely is what it is.”
On Slapjack: “It (Slapjack) could have been the first time we got the masks. So we had to run backstage. And as we run backstage, we just get pulled aside and they’re like, hey, guys, here’s your new names: Slapjack, T-Bar, Mace, Reckoning. I’m not sure if the girls were off doing makeup or hair. I think at the time we’re getting ready, they will decide to do something else. So it’s just the three guys and they were just, like, bewildered. I know what a Slapjack is. It’s a little weapon, like they’re meant to be weapons, and I just wanted to hear from them, so what’s the Slapjack? They’re like, oh, it’s this badass weapon. Like, that’s not what people are going to know. I knew it was going to be bad.”
On Retribution: “When they first started doing Retribution, these segments were awesome. They were flipping cars, throwing Molotov cocktails, trashing the place. I don’t know who did that, but that wasn’t us. But then when they’re like, yeah, we’re going to have guys, some people join Retribution. I’m like, f— yeah, I’m going to do some, I’m going to smash some people and do all this shit and we’re just going to be like, hooligans, doing all these pre-taped things. Mace was the first one, actually. He did stuff in the backstage. They did like, backstage stuff with Retribution, beating people up, and he was one of the people there launching people over boxes and stuff like that.
“And he was like, yeah, this is cool. And I’m like, f—, yes, we’re going to get in there and we’re going to do that. And then it did not become that at all. My theory is, I’ve never been told anything solid, but my theory was we were running out of the PC at the time with a skeleton crew. None of the big stars were coming every week. We moved to the ThunderDome and all the big stars started coming back. So Vince had his stars to play with now. So that was my thing. And you can’t be like, we deserve it more than Drew McIntyre and Brock Lesnar. I’m like, no.. They’re stars. When your TV show gets your main characters back, you’re going to use the main characters.”
On a Slapjack mask idea: “Another idea I had for Slapjack was, it was like Halloween time, and someone had made that comment that it [the mask] looks like a paper plate with the eyes cut out. And I’m like, why don’t we make that. Why don’t you make an image that people can print out? And it’s just Slapjack with the dotted cut, and you just cut that out and you put this piece of paper on your face. Like, that would have been great. It would have been free. Just a little silly Halloween fun. That would have been hilarious. It’s just a black and white picture, and you print it out, and then you got a Slapjack mask.”
On Johnny Ace: “I didn’t meet Johnny Ace until much, much later. Like, in the last few years. He’s a good guy to me. I really like Johnny Ace. When Smackdown went to Fox, they flew me to Vancouver to help out with the commercials. If you have a quick little look in a glance in the bottom right corner of one of the snippets, I’m actually in the commercial stomping someone. But yeah, me and Johnny Ace were sent there to kind of oversee the movements and making sure that everything was more authentic. And there was one point where they’re doing the RKO and they’re asking me like, hey, is this right? Is this right? And I’m like, well, if you want to know, the man who invented the move is right over there. And so that kind of snowballed to talking of the people we’ve worked in Japan and Japan experience and stuff like that. So we’ve bonded. Big fan of Johnny Ace.”
Other topics include Vince McMahon, the WWE, The Dusty Rhodes classic, Triple H, NXT, getting his release, Retribution, Slapjack, Mustafa Ali, NOAH, NJPW, and more.
You can listen to other shows apart of the TMPT Empire including Shane Douglas’ Triple Threat Podcast, Taking You to School with Dr. Tom Prichard, Talking Tough with Rick Bassman, Taskmaster Talks with Kevin Sullivan, Pro Wrestling 101 with Justin Credible and the University of Dutch with Dutch Mantell.
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