Ace Austin: Chris Bey Told Me I Have To Win TNA World Title For Him After He Got Hurt

Ace Austin discusses having a singles run in the aftermath of Chris Bey‘s injury.

Chris Bey suffered a neck injury in October, and he underwent surgery. Since then, his tag team partner, Ace Austin, has been on a singles run. Austin has challenged for the TNA X-Division Championship and mixed it up with other top stars.

Speaking with Sam Smith for Wrestlesphere, Ace Austin was asked to comment on how he had been since Chris Bey got injured.

“I haven’t had any point where I was really, really low, because Chris has been so strong through this whole thing,” Austin said. “His determination and his never give up attitude really had a lot to do with it. All of us wanted to be strong for him. I didn’t leave his side for two weeks. We all came together, and all the fans, all the family at TNA, everybody really kept this whole thing lifted. It was beautiful.”

Austin also recalled when Bey got injured. He noted that Bey told him that he had to have a “crazy singles run” and win the world title for him.

“When the accident happened, you don’t think about any of that in the moment, you’re just worried about your loved one. We were just trying to get through the thick of it. And then once we did, I think it would have been harder had he not given me his blessing right away.

“I mean, the night of the accident, before they took him into surgery, he was laying there. We were holding hands, and he looked at me with tears in his eyes, and he said, “You know what this means?” He said, “You have to go on a crazy singles run for me, and you have to win the world title for me. It’s on you now, and you gotta do everything that we wanted to do as single stars. You gotta do it now.”

Austin continued by describing how these words from Bey set him back on the right track.

“That really just gave me such a huge push internally. It set me right back on the right track,” Ace Austin said. “It put my mind right back into all of the things that I need to do to succeed as a single star. I’ve had a little bit of a rocky start, I guess. Jumping back into the singles picture, I’ve had some good wins.

“It’s like Chris said, it’s time to go for the big one. I think the reason I didn’t beat Moose for the X–Division title is because I really am destined for greater things. It’s time now. It’s time for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship.”