"I had to knock it out of the park" - Top AEW star opens up on career-changing match against Cody Rhodes

Former AEW TNT Champion Darby Allin signed with Tony Khan's promotion in April 2019. He made his debut at the Fyter Fest event on June 29, 2019, against Cody Rhodes.

The match ended in a time-limit draw, and the 31-year-old star gained immense popularity due to his magnificent performance. Allin recently commented on his encounter with The American Nightmare during an interview with Kenny McIntosh of Inside The Ropes.

The former AEW World Tag Team Champion detailed his mindset heading into the match, revealing that he knew he had to ''knock it out of the park'' to make a good first impression. Allin also opened up about his experience working in the independent circuit.

“Going into that match, I literally knew I had to do everything. I had to knock it out of the park. You only get one chance at a first impression. So on the independents, I was never really the guy; I was never really given the main event spot. I was always kind of either starting the show or the mid-card; I was never in anybody’s cliques. There’s a lot of cliquey stuff on the independents, and I don’t know, I just never really vibed with a lot of people to be one of the boys," he said.

The AEW star revealed he was pleasantly surprised when he learned that it was Cody Rhodes' idea to work with him, given that he ''was never the top guy in the independents!'' Allin added that he was determined to knock it out of the park but also admitted to being nervous ahead of the encounter.

"So I was given this opportunity, and it was Cody’s idea to work me. I was like, 'Woah, this is crazy!' Considering I was never the top guy on the independents, to get that opportunity I was like, 'This is gonna be crazy. I gotta knock it out of the park!' I was obviously super nervous for that. Then afterwards, I really felt like people like that didn’t know who I was and saw me out there were like, 'Woah, who is this Darby guy? Why did we sleep on him for so long?' It’s not my fault. It was just this cliquey, independent cr*p,” he added. [H/T: Inside The Ropes]

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Darby Allin recently fired verbal shots at Jack Perry ahead of AEW All In 2024

Darby Allin is set to challenge reigning champion Jack Perry for the AEW TNT Championship at All In this Sunday. Over the past few weeks, the two stars have become bitter rivals.

Last week on Wednesday Night Dynamite, Darby cut a promo in which he blasted The Scapegoat. Allin highlighted Perry's bad conduct and how the latter had damaged the company's name, adding that he wished the erstwhile Jungle Boy got fired after the infamous altercation with CM Punk at All In 2023.

It will be interesting to see if Darby Allin claims the TNT Title at Wembley Stadium this Sunday.