During a recent No Holds Barred podcast hosted by Toronto Sun’s Rob Wong and Postmedia wrestling writer Jan Murphy, WWE Hall of Famer Billy Gunn spoke about the current wrestling landscape. Active in a limited coaching role for All Elite Wrestling (AEW), Gunn highlighted concerns about how modern wrestlers emphasize flashy moves over the traditional storytelling that defines wrestling’s core.
Billy Gunn’s Transition from WWE Competitor to Coach and Mentor in AEW
After his full-time run as a competitor in WWE, Gunn shifted his focus to training, working as a coach on the reality show WWE Tough Enough and later at the WWE Performance Center. Since joining AEW in 2019, he has continued to guide rising stars, helping shape the future generation of performers through his mentorship and coaching expertise.
Focus on Fundamentals Over High-Flying Maneuvers
Gunn expressed a strong belief that today’s wrestlers put too much emphasis on executing complex, high-risk moves rather than mastering the basics and telling compelling stories inside the ring.
Just the basics. I just feel like all the basics are thrown out the windows because it’s all about moves,
Gunn stated.
Now it’s not about moves. People are still into the story and telling that we do, and I love to coach. I really do….I guess, if you were to ask my kids, I’m a little bit on the not, I wouldn’t say the harder side, but I want you to learn. I’m not here just to pat you on the back because you know how to do a headlock takeover. That’s not a thing. I honestly want everybody that I coach to have the career that I had, and to do that it takes work. It’s not like this was just handed to me, and go, ‘Hey, you’re a WWE superstar, or you’re an AEW superstar, and here, this is all for you.’ No, you have to go out and get it. You have to want to get it, and it’s going to take a toll on you. That’s why you have to be very, very secure with who you are, and be willing to just put it out there.
Encouraging Talented Performers to Slow the Pace
Gunn identified several young wrestlers who showcase incredible ability but could benefit from pacing themselves to sustain longer careers. He emphasized the importance of understanding the purpose behind each match and not expending maximum effort every single night.
They all like to do a lot of moves. They’re all very talented,
Gunn explained.
My kids, I have to put in there, because I think Colton and Austin are amazing. And not just because they’re my kids, it’s just they get it, and they put in a lot of work. MJF, of course, is one of the top ones. I think Swerve has come a long way. There’s Will Ospreay. He’s just so talented he doesn’t know what to do with himself half the time. And it’s just the way that they structure stuff. I wish would change just a little bit so they’re just not completely whatever to the 100 miles an hour all the time just because I want them to do this for a while. We get into this not to do it for two years, but have a good career, and I think sometimes they just need to dial it back a little bit, understand where they are on the card and what this match is trying to accomplish, where it’s trying to get us to and then just go like that. But these they just want to put it all out there on the line every single night, and it just takes a toll on you. It does, because they do some amazing stuff now that would ruin me these days.
The Physical Challenges of Wrestling on Rigorous Schedules
Reflecting on his experiences during the WWE’s intense live event schedules throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Gunn described how wrestling repeatedly strains the body in ways many fans may not realize. He highlighted the extreme physical demands placed on performers who compete nearly every day of the year.
First of all, our bodies weren’t made to do this, whether whatever you think we land on in that ring, whatever your conception is of that, it’s the total opposite,
Gunn said.
It’s not because people think whatever, it’s a trampoline. It’s super soft, or whatever. Okay, but try hitting that 300 days out of the year….Just sit at your house and fall down on the ground just a bunch of times. And you’ll do it about three times and go, ‘Yeah, that’s good for me.’ We do it night in and night out, we go and we go and train, and we do it night in and night out and day and day and training. It’s the constant. It’s not just the one time or two times that somebody went, ‘Well, this is easy.’ Okay, yeah, all right. Okay, you did it one time. We do it every single day, almost 365 days a year.
Long-Term Career Sustainability as a Crucial Consideration
Billy Gunn’s coaching philosophy centers on instilling discipline and resilience in wrestlers to enable them to build lengthy careers rather than short bursts of flash and excitement. By encouraging performers such as MJF, Swerve, Will Ospreay, and his own sons Colton and Austin to respect pacing and emphasize storytelling, Gunn hopes to preserve their health and enhance their professional longevity.
As AEW continues to develop promising new talent, Gunn’s perspective offers a crucial reminder that beyond the spectacular moves and rapid pace, mastering the fundamentals and crafting meaningful narratives will remain essential to wrestling’s enduring appeal. His insights underscore the need for wrestlers to balance athleticism with ring psychology to maximize their potential and career endurance.
