Mike Bailey Talks Kevin Owens, Pain In Wrestling, And Issues With Old-School Psychology

Speedball Mike Bailey reflects on Kevin Owens’ hard chops early in his career. Then, he discusses psychology and professional wrestling, explaining why pins are one of the most fake aspects of the sport.

While promoting the new documentary, Keep It Kayfabe, “Speedball” Mike Bailey was interviewed by Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp. During the discussion, Bailey was asked about some of the hardest hits he’s ever felt in a match. He says he’s never been knocked out in the ring but has been walloped.

For example, he spoke about Kevin Owens chopping him very hard in what was his second match. The match took place at C4 Wrestling in Canada. He also discussed how, over the years of being a wrestler, he has been able to rewire his brain to view pain as a reward mechanism.

“So I don’t know. I’m not able to answer that question. I’ve never been like knocked out in the ring or anything like that. I’ve been hit very hard. I’ve been chopped very hard. I’ve been kicked very hard. Where Kevin Steen’s chops in my second match at C4 Wrestling in Canada, he chopped me a lot and very hard. But I think over the years of pro wrestling, I kind of failed to recognize how hard I’m being hit because my brain has been fully rewired to absorb that pain and kind of turn it into—I don’t want to say pleasure, that sounds too weird—but a positive reward mechanism that I know, ‘Oh, this felt great. The audience got a good reaction,’ and absolutely not care about how much it hurts. I am one of the first people to say, ‘Chops don’t hurt me. I don’t mind. I don’t care. You can kick me, chop me, slap me as hard as you want.’ Please don’t take that out of context.”

Bailey then spoke about how he feels when certain veterans talk about the lack of psychology in today’s wrestling. He even provided examples of how he believes that old-school wrestling lacked psychology as well.

“I get so angry. I get so, so enraged at all the veterans of professional wrestling who will talk about psychology and, for example, why a super kick should only be a finish and stuff like that. But if you watch their matches, 90 % of them started with, ‘I will give you four unprotected right hooks. You will block the fourth one. Give me four of your own unprotected right hooks directly to the jaw. Then you will grab me by the arm, push me to the ropes, attempt to throw me. I will reverse your Irish whip because I am unaffected by I’m equally unaffected by your four unprotected right hooks to the face and then I will give you a back elbow or some bullshit and then you will go down on the back elbow, ignoring the fact that we punched each other directly in the jaw.’

“Again, don’t get me started on cognitive dissonance when it comes to logic in professional wrestling,” he continued. “Pins? Pins are the fakest part of professional wrestling. If you’ve ever done any kind of pin-based wrestling, you do not let go of the person at 2.9, cradle your head, look in the camera, and go, ‘Oh!’ for just about 10 seconds. I think Akatsuki is her name in Marvelous, who has started actually like trying to pin someone, and that’s the game. It’s amazing because it’s how painting actually works, which is unlike anything we’ve ever seen in pro wrestling. But again, that is the beauty of professional wrestling is that we perform in the universe that we create. We make rules, and as long as they’re consistent and are perceived as logical by the audience that is watching, then it’s fine. Then it’s all good.”

Elsewhere in the interview, Mike Bailey spoke about the art behind strikes in professional wrestling. Read his comments here.

The Keep It Kayfabe documentary premiered worldwide at San Diego Comic-Con. For more details on the film, check out an interview with the documentary’s directors, Christian O’Keefe and Michael Priestley, now available on Fightful Select.

Check out the full interview with Bailey embedded above.