Flip Gordon interview: Ring of Honor star talks Supercard of Honor XII

We talked to Ring of Honor star Flip Gordon about teaming up with The Young Bucks against SoCal Uncensored at Supercard of Honor XII.

At one of the most highly anticipated Ring of Honor cards to date, Flip Gordon and The Young Bucks face SoCal Uncensored (“Almighty” Christopher Daniels, Frankie Kazarian, Scorpio Sky) in a six-way tag team ladder match for the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship. We had an opportunity to chat with Gordon about the potential match of the night, Cody and The Young Bucks’ upcoming ALL IN September event and what it takes today to make it as a professional wrestler.

If you’re an aspiring indy talent or even considering the path, you owe it to yourself to read what Gordon has to say. From the power of social media and wrestling streaming services, to giving it your all when it matters, Flip Gordon gave us a genuine and humble outlook.

FanSided.com – Nir Regev: You’re going to be facing Christopher Daniels, who is one of the guys who gave you the “Yes” originally to be part of Ring of Honor. How does it feel to be a few years into the business, and already be facing Daniels in a six-way match that’s really high up the card? What does that mean to you career wise and on a personal level?

Flip Gordon: It’s really cool because it almost comes full-circle. He said “Yes” to me when I did the try-out camp and now I’m in the biggest show of the year since signing. It’s my first year with Ring of Honor, and now I’m part of Supercard of Honor in a match with him! It’s really cool to see how far I’ve come in the last year and a half.

FS: On Twitter, Cody (Rhodes) had you going up against this dog Pharaoh to be part of the ALL IN event in September. You just got edged out … Is that all trolling, and are you really going to be part of the ALL IN event?

Gordon: I hope it’s just trolling because I’m getting sick of it! I wanna be part of ALL IN, it’s the biggest show of the year. Self financed by Cody himself and The Young Bucks, ten-thousand plus fans packed into the Sears Center in Chicago. There’s no other place I want to be than on this show. I’ve tried to prove that time and time again, by going out there and showing what I’ve got and what I can give to the show. For some reason, Cody doesn’t like me, so … As of right now, I’m not ALL IN.

FS: You’ve actually once defeated Cody in an Indy match in Northeast Wrestling. WWE’s Road Dogg once replied to a fan on Twitter that “Wins and losses don’t count, it’s about character and he’s a winner!” The reply spread like wildfire as fans took his line to mean that “wins and losses don’t matter anymore.” As someone who’s managed a win over one of Ring of Honor’s top headliners, where do you stand on that discussion?

Gordon: Yeah, that’s a tough question to answer. I don’t want to disrespect him. I think in a way, wins and losses do matter, but at the same time they don’t matter. Because we live in a sport where wins and losses don’t really matter. But then in a way, when somebody like Cody comes to the indies and puts a guy over, it means something. And the fans realize that, it’s almost like a passing of the torch type of thing. So therefore, it does mean something when you win and when you lose.

FS: You’ve commented in an interview with ESPN about being amazed at the massive exposure that came from being featured on Being The Elite on Youtube. WWE’s Xavier Woods has UpUpDownDown as well. Do you feel that kind of Youtube fan interaction is the wave of the future? The evolution of Twitter?

Gordon: Oh, 100 percent! Social media is the future. That’s how guys are getting over, that’s how guys are getting their names out there. That’s how I got my name out there. By being able to put together a highlight video, putting it on Facebook sharing it in different groups. Getting thousands and thousands of views, just because people shared it. That’s how last year I got over to England. Because all these promoters saw me, and even though they never heard of me, they were like, “Let’s give this kid a shot!”

FS: Speaking of social media, you and The Young Bucks had that mini Twitter feud with UFC’s Daniel Cormier and legendary wrestling manager Jim Cornette as well. The argument being over classical wrestling moves and more acrobatic, gymnastics influenced move-sets. Do you feel any publicity is good publicity?

Gordon: I look at it as any publicity is good publicity. If people are talking about you, you’re doing something right. People are always going to hate on you, so it doesn’t matter. The only bad publicity is if you’re getting arrested or doing something illegal or stupid. But if people are just talking about what you did in the ring, then who cares? They’re just talking about you.

FS: Recently, after you mentioned Rusev Day at an Indy show, Rusev commented “Sign Him WWE” on Twitter. How do you feel about that?

Gordon: Man, I was just trying to celebrate Rusev day. That’s all.

FS: You’ve trolled before about “NeXT Year” on Twitter hinting at WWE’s NXT. You’ve also mentioned prior in the ESPN interview that you either go to the WWE as an AJ Styles or start at the bottom. Do you still feel that way today?

Gordon: I don’t know, everything changes … I don’t see myself going there anytime soon though.

https://twitter.com/theflipgordon/status/946194211900219398

FS: When you reflect and look back on your decision to choose Ring of Honor over Impact Wrestling (TNA), how do you feel about it a few years removed?

Gordon: I feel pretty good because I’ve come a long way. I’ve grown as a performer over the last year, and Ring of Honor has given me many, many opportunities. I’m very grateful for these opportunities, so I’m very happy with the choice I’ve made.

FS: Do you see yourself in Ring of Honor a year from now? Is your contract renewal coming up?

Gordon: I haven’t renewed any contracts yet … But I would like to stay with Ring of Honor. My current contract is almost up.

FS: Do you feel the wrestling streaming services like Ring of Honor’s HonorClub and New Japan Pro Wrestling’s NJPWWorld are the future for you as a wrestler? Broadcast wise there isn’t a WCW to go to any more, things seem more split up to gain an audience. Yet, there’s the opportunity to go viral as you mentioned earlier.

Gordon: Yeah, I think a lot of companies are going to start streaming because it’s so much easier to get your content out. It’s so much easier to get exposure that way. All these brands and companies are getting thousands and thousands of fans, so now they can stream and grow even bigger. That puts so much eyes on talent that’s out there. There’s so many great professional wrestlers out there that haven’t even been discovered yet.

FS: I know your gymnastics background really impacted your accomplished move set. Do you feel that’s what it takes to impress the fans of today? Also, there was that Impact Wrestling incident with Eddie Edwards getting hit with a baseball bat recently, is there a line that should be drawn?

Gordon: I think you just need to do things that are safe. Do things that you know you can hit 10 out of 10 times. Don’t do things that you think, “Well, it’s possible … ” Don’t go out there and get hurt for no reason. Save big hard things for bigger shows. I see a lot of people getting hurt on small shows, or doing dumb little things that could have been prevented.

FS: Do you think it’s possible to get over today without going all out since there’s just so much competition today and so many people want to be in professional wrestling? Do you feel you have to go to all out in order to get that attention and viral video out for yourself?

Gordon: I think early yes, to get your name out there. As soon as you start traveling and wrestling everywhere, and getting your name out there, no. After you get established, you don’t have to do it as much. Save it for bigger shows. Save it for when it’s going to mean more.

FS: How established do you feel now? I mean you’re in a major match with The Young Bucks, just a few years into career its start in 2015. Do you see yourself as a complete rising star?

Gordon: I don’t, not yet. I think I have a long way to go still. I’m still learning, every weekend I’m learning something new and getting better. Do I think I have what it takes? Yes, 100 percent. Do I think I’m there yet? No.

FS: Is it surreal to work with guys you grew up watching on TV?

Gordon: Oh 100 percent surreal! I’ve gotten to share locker rooms with Rob Van Dam, John Morrison, Mick Foley, all these guys I great up watching on TV. And they’re watching my matches and giving me feedback, it’s one of the coolest things in the world. Wrestling is unlikely any other thing I’ve ever done in my life.

FS: When you gave left your last job before your wrestling career, were you confident then that you’d wind up in this spot? Or was it the dream that you wanted to be a pro-wrestler no matter what?

Gordon: That was the hope. I was confident that I could do it, I actually put in my two-week notice before Ring of Honor even offered me a contract. They offered me a contract the day before my last day at that job. I had already committed to being a full-time professional wrestler. I’m just gonna work my butt off and hope I can make a living wrestling. Even if I wouldn’t have signed with Ring of Honor, I still would have been able to make a living off of wrestling.

FS: Is there a favorite or a list of favorite wrestlers that you modeled your move set off of?

Gordon: There’s multiple favorites, there’s so many I modeled my in-ring style after. John Cena, Paul London, Eddie Guerrero, Super Crazy.

FS: One of you first matches in Ring of Honor ended in a loss to Frankie Kazarian, are you looking to get that win back at Supercard of Honor XII?

Gordon: Of course, I am. Payback!

FS: What do you think about the six-way tag match model? Does it offer protection if someone has an injury?

Gordon: I think it offers protection, it helps guys like myself to learn. There’s five other talents in there that can help teach me something. I’m in there with two other guys that can help me get over as a talent. It’s just an amazing learning experience. It’s going to be match of the night. Or at least that’s my goal.

FS: How do you prepare for a ladder match compared to a typical match?

Gordon: You just start thinking about something that nobody’s ever seen before. You know you have a spot on the card, that you’re suppose to make people say “Holy ****, that was awesome! What was that?” You have to leave them with their jaw on the floor.

FS: Does it mean more to you to get a “Flip Gordon” chant than a “This is awesome” chant?

Gordon: As long as that crowd is making a reaction, that’s all that matters. It doesn’t matter if it’s for me individually, The Young Bucks, or “This is awesome!” We just want to go out there and put everything we have to show, “Hey, this is what Ring of Honor is all about.” We don’t care about WrestleMania the day after, we’re putting our hearts, our passion, everything on the line to show this is what we believe and what we’re doing.

FS: Do you want a Hot Topic shirt?

Gordon: Of course! Why wouldn’t I? That’s just more money in my pocket.

FS: What would your Hot Topic shirt say?

Gordon: Flip Club, Flip Army?

FS: Those are pretty good! Thanks Flip!

Gordon: Thank you!

Supercard of Honor will stream live and for free to ALL HonorClub members at 8:30 p.m. ET / 7:30 p.m. Central! Fans can sign up at ROHHonorClub.com. The Supercard Pre-Show will stream on ROH’s Facebook Live at 7:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. Central, featuring the semi-finals of the Women of Honor Championship Tournament and a special press conference featuring Cody and Kenny Omega! Read more about Flip Gordon’s team-up with The Young Bucks against SoCal Uncensored at this link.

Follow Flip Gordon on social media on Twitter (@TheFlipGordon), Instagram (theflipgordon), and Facebook (@TheFlipGordon).