Powerhouse Hobbs almost didn’t reply to AEW’s offer in 2020.
Fans of All Elite Wrestling have seen Powerhouse Hobbs grow as a performer on Dynamite and Collision since his debut five years ago. The 34-year-old is a former TNT Champion and is currently one-third of the AEW World Trios Champions, gaining momentum as part of ‘The Opps’. Now, he’s looked back on initially thinking the company’s interest in him was a joke.
Speaking with The Drive, Hobbs discussed coming into AEW during the pandemic, talking through the scary situation he found himself in back in 2020.
“Frightening, because I just got laid off from my job. My daughter was a couple months old. I couldn’t get hired anywhere. I applied at fast food spots, they were like, nah, because I was overqualified from what I was told.”
-Powerhouse Hobbs
Then, Hobbs recalled thinking AEW’s initial interest in him was a rib.
“But man, I got a call, QT Marshall actually texted me and I didn’t respond back for like, three, four hours because I thought somebody was ribbing me. Then I got a text from Cody Rhodes. Then I was just like, I’ve got to bet on myself at this point. The story is already out there, it took off. I had a debut match against Orange Cassidy, then my second match was a six-man against the Dark Order. Then week after week I started showing up on Dark, and then Tony gave me that okay, gave me that head nod, that opportunity which we all want in wrestling.nYou want that opportunity to prove yourself, and he saw something in me, and the rest is history.”
-Powerhouse Hobbs
As mentioned, Hobbs made his first AEW appearance on an episode of Dark in July 2020, and it wasn’t long before he was a full-time member of the roster. Saving Jon Moxley from an attack at the hands of Brian Cage and Ricky Starks, he made his Dynamite debut on October 7, just three months after first coming into the company.
On tonight’s edition of AEW Dynamite, Powerhouse Hobbs will team with Samoa Joe and Katsuyori Shibata as ‘The Opps’ loom to retain their trios titles against LFI.
As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on Powerhouse Hobbs as soon as we hear more.
