Interview with Justin, conducted by Tim Larson and the Upper Midwest Newsletter
Editor's note: The following interview with Justin Roberts was conducted by
Tim Larson via e-mail on August 7, 2000.
Justin Roberts
20 Questions
August 7, 2000
1. How and when did you get in the wrestling business?
In 1996 I was helping out on a wrestling hotline which lead to a "guest ring
announcer" spot on a local Sonny Rogers show. From then on I became their
regular announcer. I had been exposed to the business for quite a few years
before this, when my cousin worked security for the Rosemont Horizon and
would let me hang out backstage as a little kid.
2. Describe Justin Roberts, the announcer, to us.
I try to do more than just introduce the contestants and winners. In between
matches I like to work up the crowd, and during the shows I try to narrate
the events so there's never any confusion and the angles at live events are
easier to follow. I do impersonations so sometimes my "other voices" will
come out during the show. I have been told that I'm like a mixture of
Michael Buffer, Howard Finkel, Vince Mcmahon, and Adam Sandler, combined with
my voice and personality to become Justin Roberts.
3. What are your strengths in the wrestling business?
I have a love for the business. As a kid I wanted to get in, I started from
scratch and I have achieved this. I put a lot of time, thought, and hard
work into my job. Daily events keep this business constantly changing, and
by keeping up with what's going on, you stay on top.
4. What have been your top athletic accomplishments other than professional
wrestling?
Um, when I announced for the Special Olympics this year. I attempted the
running long jump and beat the participants' scores (I did this after they
left the field).
5. Who is your favorite all-time wrestler?
I've always admired Lord Steven Regal, he has a lot of character and is an
excellent worker.
6. What is the best card you've ever worked on?
The AWA event in Pine Bluff, Arkansas. 5,000 screaming people along with
great matches and a few strong angles really made the show entertaining and
fun to work.
7. What is the first card you ever saw live?
Slaughter and Hogan on top at Rosemont Horizon, around WM7.
8. What is the best match you ever saw live?
Too many, but one of my recent favorites is Lee Pasko and Chris Candido.
Great match and very entertaining.
9. Quick comments ...
a) Dale Gagner ... Gave me a huge opportunity by hiring me in the first
place. He has taught me a lot on the road and at the shows. He used to be
an announcer, so he knows that announcers should not be local dj's, but
rather pro-wrestling announcers. Very creative.
b) Golden Lion ... Lion is probably the nicest guy you can ever work with,
and has great theme music.
c) King Kong Bundy ... Haven't seen him for a while, but he's always been
there for me if I have questions or concerns. He was the first "name" I ever
worked with. It's always fun to count how many times he says "brother" on a
roadtrip.
d) Road Warrior Hawk ... A guy I used to look up to when I was younger, and
not a disappointment when I worked with him in June. He warms up to new
people real quickly.
e) Danny Dominion ... Great worker, and trainer. I've seen a lot of good
Dominion matches.
f) Adrian Lynch ... Don't know where he went after I worked with him in
Nevada. Now there's this built, skinny guy calling himself Lynch. Man can
he get heat and hold some really good matches-Lynch/Navajo
Warrior--Lynch/Pearce.
g) Doink the Clown ... Depends where I'm at. I have seen some really bad
clowns in my day, but it seems as if the farther west I go, the better they
get.
h) Golga ... Name sounds familiar.
i) Sheik Adnon Al-Kassie ... My roomate. Mistaken for Anthony Quinn by
myself early on as well as a lot of people in public, he's the pimp. He can
still get the heat. Gives a lot of good pointers to the workers on how to
get over and what moves work and what moves don't.
j) Larry Briscoe ... Didn't have much of a character to him back in
September, so Dale "repackaged" him, and he has completely changed since
then. As a "corporate stooge" for the AWA. He is hilarious.
k) Luminious Warrior ... Big guy, good worker, kind of like Hellwig without
the hassels.
l) Jonnie Stewart ... Cracks me up. Very good on the mic, gets heat like I
have never seen before, and puts on some very entertaining matches. He gets
a lot of really weird ideas, some don't work, but the majority do.
m) George Steele ... Still gets carded at the bars. George is a great guy
who has overcome a lot of odds. I'm happy that he is still working, and even
happier to be working with him. Another great guy to ride with-very
interesting, entertaining, and wise.
n) Sgt. Slaughter ... Sarge is great. He's very quiet out of the ring, but
in the ring he becomes a different person. He's one of the tough guys you
want to stay away from during his match. If you stand too close to the
apron, you never know what may happen. Some people learn this the hard way :)
o) Nitro Girl Fyre ... Nice girl, I don't think the wrestling aspect is what
she wants, just became part of it for the dancing. Dancing on Nitro and
touring with indies in small towns all over the U.S. are two totally
different things.
p) Heaven ... Happy to see him with the AWA belt. Good worker, and one of
the nicest guys you could ever work with. He has fun with what he does and
makes the most out of it. Always has his 8x10 handy.
q) Hell ... Twin brother of Heaven, and just as nice of a guy. Great worker,
singles or tag. My tour guide for New York, and he too has an 8x10 by his
side at all times.
r) Honky Tonk Man ... Working with HTM is great, especially when he's
heeling. I've seen him get some HEAT. Kind of reminds me of Andy Kaufman
reading a book to the live crowd because they wanted Latka--he will sing his
song 10 times straight if he has to.
s) Ace Steel ... Another great Chicago worker. I have never seen a bad match
out of him, and like Dominion he shares his knowldge of the biz with his
students and you get more guys like...
t) Colt Cabana ... Colt is a young guy with a definite future ahead of him.
Colt had a phenomenal match in October and has come a long way since then, if
that says anything. Recently started Captain Colton Cabana III, the arrogant
all-star who has been knocked in the head too many times. He has done very
well in a short period of time, and it's Just the beginning.
u) Iron Sheik ... Probably the reason why I like road trips so much. I don't
think there are more stories out there about anyone else. I love when he
walked out on Springer and completely ignored the script, just going into his
anti-Hogan routine. Everybody loves Sheiky.
v) Navajo Warrior ... So he hasn't been that active in the midwest, but he
should. Great worker out of the west. I've never seen a more over guy who
hasn't worked for the 3. You would think when he comes out to the ring that
he's one of New York's top guys. Very much over, and is one of the few guys
who is given advice and takes it.
w) Lee Pasko ... Probably not known for his name, but whatever gimmick he
uses he is one of the best workers out there. Another guy who is slowly
working in the midwest from the west, a great guy and very
creative-especially when he works with.
x) Ballard Brothers ... Shane and Shannon. These are 2 guys I would love to
see working shows in the midwest. Twin brothers doing the "Slapshot"gimmick,
they come up with the most creative routines I have ever seen. Besides their
great work ability they are very cool down to earth, sarcastic :) people.
y) Sonny Rogers ... Walking encyclopedia, gave me my first opportunity, has a
great tan.
z) "Diceman" Ronnie Vegas ... He and Bobo Jr is a main event all over the
country oooh yeeaaah.
10. What has been the highlight of your wrestling career so far?
Taking a Leukemia patient out of the crowd and making him guest time keeper.
After which, I brought him in the back and introduced him to everyone-he told
me that was the coolest thing ever, and by doing something simple like to
make someone happy, I was happy. Wrestling-wise, I would say working with a
lot of the guys I used to watch growing up, and working with some of the
current guys like The Rock and Vampiro.
11. What has been the low point of your career?
The Fargo, ND sound system.
12. Who would you really want to work with locally and nationally that you
haven't?
Locally, the Minnesota and Wisconsin guys that I hear so much about and have
never seen, and nationally Rey Mysterio Jr because I like introducing the
names in Spanish.
13. Who has been the biggest influence on you in the business?
Dale has taught me a lot, and I have also learned a lot from working for him.
Navajo Warrior "The Father of Wrestling on the West Coast" looks out for me
when I'm at school in the west. He took me under his wing when I first went
out there and is a very big influence on me. I have been fortunate to work
with some really great people and I respect all of them for this--to name a
few, it's the guys like Heaven and Hell, Adrian Lynch, Adnan, Dominion, and
Pasko.
14. Who do you think is the most underrated wrestler on the indy circuit
today?
I really don't know of anyone that is under-rated. The way I see it is that
there are so many indies out there, with so many indy guys-it's hard for
everyone to make it to the top. I guess if you are really good, you will
make it to the top of your respective group-and then hopefully move up from
there. It's a challenge, you have to really want it. Even if you are the
best indy worker out there you may still go unnoticed by the big 3.
15. How much time do you spend on wrestling each week?
Too much, but I enjoy it so I don't even notice. It's always in the back of
my mind. I see a weirdo on the street and think-new gimmick!
16. What is the one thing that surprised you most about the wrestling
business?
How many people are out there running training schools, and haven't been
trained themselves. Nothing is held back anymore, there are a lot of tv
specials these days that don't hold anything back. Fortunately, it's so
popular right now, I guess it doesn't matter.
17. Give us a brief summary of your career.
1989-I meet Warrior and Kerry Von Erich at my hotel in Wisconsin---start
watching WWF to see these guys on tv. I become a fan and at some point
decided this is what I want to do. Jump to 1996, I'm on a wrestling hotline
that lands me a guest announcing spot for PWI. End up working their 1 show
every 5/6 months. Leave PWI for college. Read about Dale Gagne reforming
the AWA and holding an event near my school. Send in my stuff from high
school, boxing, and t.v., get hired for their 1st show--meet Navajo Warrior
at this show--begin working shows w/ him near school, and become AWA's full
time ring announcer.
18. What is the one thing you would most like to improve on?
Anything that I'm told needs improvement. I watch my tapes, and try to catch
any mistakes and improve from them. I always look for feedback so I can
learn from my mistakes and get better.
19. If you could book one match, what would it be?
Well, if this meant that they would be riding to the show together-Tony
Dennuci and Yokozuna managed by Adnan and Iron Sheik vs. anyone, that car
ride would be enough. In reality I would like to see Heaven and Hell vs
Ballard Brothers, a rematch between Adrian Lynch and Navajo Warrior, and
Vampiro vs. Lee Pasko vs. Colt Cabana.
20. What is your goal in wrestling in the next year?
I would love to work in front of a WWF scout just so I could be told what to
improve on, and use the couple of years that I have left in college to
improve my skills so when I graduate I will be ready. I would like to
continue working the indies as much as possible and work with all of the
people I already work with in addition to working with new people. This is a
very interesting business, and every show is a new experience. I have a lot
of fun and hope that it will continue. Check out www.JustinRoberts.net