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Billy Gunn wears multiple hats in AEW. The WWE Hall of Famer holds a behind-the-scenes position as a coach/producer, helping put together matches and mentoring younger, up-and-coming wrestlers on the roster.
In addition to his duties backstage, Billy Gunn still competes inside of the squared circle. The former D-Generation X member is part of the Gunn Club faction, competing in tag team matches with his sons Austin and Colten Gunn.
Sportskeeda Wrestling's Riju Dasgupta recently caught up with Billy Gunn for an in-depth interview:
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A variety of topics were discussed, including Gunn's tenure in WWE, his overall wrestling career in a variety of different companies, his role in All Elite Wrestling and much more.
Let's take a closer look at five things we learned from AEW wrestler Billy Gunn's Sportskeeda interview:
#5 Billy Gunn discusses if AEW can "take down" WWE
AEW has thrived since debuting in 2019, defeating WWE NXT in the 'Wednesday Night Wars' and doing record business so far in 2021.
When asked if All Elite Wrestling can "take down" WWE, Gunn stated that it was always better to have competition, with the Attitude Era being a great example of this:
"That's a good question and I don't think it's a "do we really want to take them down?" I mean, isn't it better that we just have competition? I think that's what made the Attitude Era and the thing with WCW and WWE good, is that there was competition. If you don't have any competition, these are my opinions, I feel we thrive on competition," said Billy Gunn.
Gunn also went on to declare that competition brings out the best in everybody. However, it's important that AEW continues to remain true to their identity:
"It's not a bad thing, it's a good thing because it brings out the best in everybody. Can we have just as good of a product as WWE? Yeah, we can. As long as we just be us. The minute we start to try to poke the bear or try to say we're better than them, I feel we're not concentrating on the best that AEW can do," added Gunn.
Despite WWE Chairman Vince McMahon not referring to AEW as competition, AEW President Tony Khan has consistently referred to World Wrestling Entertainment as their competitor. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
#4 Billy Gunn on what Sting offers to AEW at this stage in his career
WWE Hall of Famer Sting has taken AEW by storm since signing with the promotion in December 2020.
The Icon has also surprised fans by competing inside the ring on a semi-regular basis, despite being 62 years of age.
Billy Gunn stated that despite his age, Sting still has a lot to offer AEW:
"Sting's an icon. He's a great wrestling figure and he still has something that people want to see. I worry about this performing with the boys also. Do people really care about me? Do they care about seeing me? But they do and it's the same thing with Sting. You still want to see him," Gunn opined.
Sting is currently undefeated in All Elite Wrestling, boasting a 4-0 record in tag team competition.
#3 AEW wrestler Billy Gunn shares his thoughts on Owen Hart's legendary ribbing
AEW recently announced a partnership with The Owen Hart Foundation to present exclusive merchandise, licensing and the inaugural The Owen Hart Cup Tournament.
Billy Gunn recalled that he didn't witness any legendary Owen Hart ribs but, like most wrestling fans, has heard the stories of The King of Harts' incredible pranks:
"We were lucky that we only came in on the back-end of when all the ribs started to go away because I heard, through the grapevine, that there was a lot of craziness that they would do and some of them were wild and I was like 'I don't want any part of that.' I'm not much of a ribber but Owen was and it wasn't harmful things, it was funny things that you never really expected from him," Gunn recalled.
There has been no confirmation on when the inaugural The Owen Hart Cup Tournament will take place. However, all AEW fans have already begun to anticipate who could be the first winner of "The Owen."
#2 Billy Gunn reveals who would be in an AEW version of D-Generation X
AEW wrestler Billy Gunn was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2019 as a member of legendary faction D-Generation X.
Gunn was asked which current AEW wrestlers would be involved in a modern day D-Generation X. After much deliberation, the former Intercontinental Champion stated that he wouldn't be in it:
"Woah, thats a good one. Wow, you've put me on the spot. So let's start with the leader. Who would be our leader, other than of course me, I'd be the most likely one. Let's take me out of that," said Gunn.
The former DX member went on to state that MJF would lead the AEW version of the legendary Attitude Era faction:
"I'm a big MJF fan. So, I'll go with MJF as the Triple H guy. X-Pac we'd have to go for Darby Allin. The New Aged Outlaws we'd have to go, let's go Young Bucks. Got to put them in there. They're kind of New Age Outlaw-ish. Our Chyna would have to be, let's go Ruby Soho as our Chyna," declared Gunn.
D-Generation X is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influential factions in professional wrestling history.
#1 Billy Gunn on CM Punk's AEW debut being a major moment for the company
CM Punk shocked the professional wrestling world when he returned to sports entertainment in August. He debuted for AEW at Rampage: The First Dance from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois.
Billy Gunn stated it was a huge moment for AEW and an emotional moment for himself:
"Yeah, I think it was a great moment. I was there in the United Center when he came out and it was like, this is one of the things that I tried, like I literally went out in the arena 'cause I'm from that, I like to experience things like that, like naturally and in person. I don't wanna see it on TV. There was an energy in that building and it took your breath away because it's just like the thing that went viral with the guy that started crying because it's emotional. Like people don't associate emotions with wrestling, but that's when you get your best stuff. Like if you're emotionally invested in wrestling, which is hard to do these days, but if you can do that, that's a whole other level and and a lot of these kids don't understand that because they they only saw it on TV. They never got to experience what it's like to walk out, like to, to wrestle with a Stone Cold Steve Austin and the place go absolutely insane, like insane. I've been with them all so I could. I could literally say I've been in the ring with them, against them, and it's so emotional," Billy Gunn said.
CM Punk is currently undefeated in AEW, defeating the likes of Darby Allin, Powerhouse Hobbs, Matt Sydal and Bobby Fish.
