Matt Taven Talks About Alex Shelley Influencing Him And His Career

A few weeks ago, Ring Of Honor wrestler Matt Taven successfully defended his ROH World Championship against a returning Alex Shelley.

In an interview with Wrestling Inc. prior to their matchup at ROH Summer Supercard, Taven spoke about Shelley and what it means to him to be wrestling the former Motor City Machine Gun.

“Alex Shelley is one of those guys that, when I was getting into wrestling, I was watching Alex Shelley all the time. He’s one of those guys that I modeled my career after because I thought that was the way to do things—going to Mexico and Japan and learning all of these different styles. To me, I don’t think he gets enough credit. People kind of sleep on his legacy,” Taven said.

He praised Shelley’s contributions to pro wrestling, adding that their match was a huge opportunity to prove himself against a competitor he has “nothing but respect for.”

However, since winning the ROH World Championship back in April during the G1 Supercard, Taven has claimed he has been so busy defending the belt, he hasn’t been able to enjoy the fact he is champion.

He admitted that “[…] this is what I’ve wanted, and this is the position I’ve wanted. As much as I jokingly say this is stressful, this is where I’ve always pictured myself. Now I’m about to defend it in Toronto against a guy I used to watch. It doesn’t get much better than that.”