Samoa Joe tried bettering pro wrestling at WWE, is in AEW & ROH to smack people in the mouth

For his debut at Supercard of Honor on Friday night (April 1), Samoa Joe did his silent assassin thing. He stalked to the ring, got in Jay Lethal’s face, and slapped a choke hold on Sonjay Dutt.

After the PPV cameras stopped rolling, Joe grabbed a mic and dropped some bars about the past and future of Ring of Honor:

Then he went backstage at the Carter Culwell Center in Garland, Texas, sat next to his new boss Tony Khan, and spoke to the media.

Joe spoke on the AEW owner, president & booker buying ROH, while also confirming his previous employers at WWE looked into buying some of the assets from Sinclair Broadcasting:

“It was a major surprise to me, especially coming from my former position and how hard I was pushing to buy the library for the other company. It let me know why it was being such a difficult process.

“... having Tony have it, and know how much he loves wrestling and knowing how much he loved ROH and the product, just from our meetings and the time knowing each other, I knew it would be good hands. I knew it would be treated with respect and it would be kind of made available to the fans in the best way possible. I was very happy with it.”

The 43 year old also addressed his health after his run as talent in WWE featured more than a few injuries:

“You have to understand, coming into WWE, that is me coming off a 15-year-plus career of probably the worst medical care a guy can get and going into a very very arduous schedule.

“I did have a few injuries, one of them being the major concussion that took me out for a while. Honestly, I took extra time. When it comes to brain injuries and stuff like that, I wasn’t willing to risk going back quickly and potentially harming myself permanently. It’s just a dumb thing to do. We have too much science on our side and too much knowledge now that we can pull back and treat things properly and take time to heal. I took the time to do that and that was really my major issue, I was taking the right amount of time to make sure I was ready to come back to the ring.

“As for my last injury [in NXT], obviously, it was more a circumstance of the world we all live in now and it pops up here and there. I’ve been healthy, I’m more than ready to go, and I’m excited.”

And finally, Joe made it absolutely clear what his goals are and what his job in AEW and ROH:

“World Champion. That’s why I’m here. I tried my bid at bettering the world of professional wrestling, but at the end of the day, I’m here in AEW and ROH to be a Unified Champion. I’m here to win the AEW Championship and Ring of Honor Championship. I’m here to win anything they put in front of me. I’m more than willing to go into the Owen Hart [Tournament] and win that.

“This ain’t a game anymore. AEW has a lot of feel-good moments, a lot of great wrestlers who respect each other. I don’t respect nobody. Until you’re in the ring with me. I’m coming out there to smack people in the mouth and take what they have. That’s pretty much my edict when I’m here. Broadcaster, mentor, good guy — I am all those things, but not here. Not here.”

The Samoan Submission machine debuts on Dynamite next week. Right now? He’s enjoying a jet ride out of Big D...