Tito Ortiz On Interests In Pro Wrestling, His TNA Run & Balance Of His Persona
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Tito Ortiz is back in the octagon but he says he’d also entertain entering the squared circle as well.
Ortiz spoke with Wrestlezone’s Kevin Kellam ahead of his recent fight against Alberto El Patron for Combate Americas. The MMA legend says he would entertain going to WWE, noting that it would be “tough as hell” but would be a great experience.
“I know it would really test my balls and see how big they truly were. Those guys the size of Brock Lesnar. I mean Braun Strowman and those guys are stuck. They’re huge, but my technique, my wrestling skills my submission skills, my striking skills. Add on a little bit of pressure inside of it because I’ve done a lot of it myself. I don’t know. I’m not sure if these guys can hang with me,” Ortiz said, “let alone me hang with them. You never know though is just one of those things is up in the air and I’ll make them let them make those decisions but it’s it is open in my mind that’s for sure.”
Ortiz also spoke about his brief run in TNA Wrestling, which included his debut as the man behind the “August 1 Warning” vignettes. Ortiz called his appearance a fun one and says he got to pick Hulk Hogan’s brain and found they had a lot in common, and explained how he found a “happy medium” in his persona based on his childhood role models.
“I did TNA wrestling as strictly as a referee. And it was fun. I went back and I did again and I got an opportunity to talk with Hulk Hogan for about two and a half hours and he was all ‘Brother, this would be a great sport for you.’ It was an interesting conversation with the whole car. We have so much in common I look up to the man so much as a kid growing out. I mean, this is someone I looked up to as a kid. I watched Hogan, Muhammad Ali, Mike Tyson,” Ortiz said, “and I found a happy medium in my sport of mixed martial arts, that’s what I did.
I was the Huntington Beach Bad Boy, coming out with American and Mexican flag flames on my shorts and I spoke the way but I would like to think I would say something and I would speak my mind and it was something I found a happy medium in. In professional wrestling, yeah they work their butts off and to a certain extent it is entertainment and I understand it, right?” Ortiz said. “Respect it and I know the hard work they do but how can I separate our differences? The difference between makes martial arts and professional wrestling like not hitting these guys without punching out trying to knock them out or trying to choke them out.”