Zach Gowen Grateful For Return To National Wrestling Spotlight With AEW [Exclusive]

For the first time in decades, Zach Gowen will return to the national pro wrestling spotlight when he competes against Ricochet on the special Beach Break episode of AEW Dynamite.

In an exclusive interview with The Takedown on SI, Gowen says that the only thing he feels about this return is gratitude.

“Listen, I’m 40. I’m a 42 year old, tax paying father of four,” Gowen says. “That’s what I’m saying. I’m a suburban dad, brother. And the fact that over the past three or four days this has happened, this is just wild to me, but I’m so grateful.

“I haven’t been on a national platform like this since I was 20 years old in WWE,” Gowen said. “So, the fact that this is happening now at 42-years-old, this age, this maturity level, I have such a greater appreciation for the gift that’s being presented to me than I than I could have ever done when I was 20 years old. So at the foundation of everything that I do, it’s gratitude.”

Gowen was plucked from obscurity and dropped into the main event picture of WWE in the early 2000’s. At that time, Gowen was thrust into a feud with not only top stars like Brock Lesnar, Big Show, and Hulk Hogan, but with the owner of WWE himself, Vince McMahon.

Gowen looks back fondly on that period of his life for the wild ride it was, but says it was scary at the same time.

“I didn’t appreciate the gift that was being handed because I was so afraid that I was going to lose it. My whole identity was wrapped up in being a professional wrestling superstar. That’s who Zack Gowen was. It took that whole career being ripped away from me — I also gave it away — let’s not get it confused in terms of my maturity, my behavior and all of that. I also gave it away, but I was under prepared.”

Adding to the craziness of Gowen’s run in WWE, he says, was that the creative team didn’t really know how to utilize his story.

Week in and week out, everyone involved was trying to figure things out on the fly.

“I think the 17th match I ever had in my career was against the Big Show in the main event of Smackdown and and then a month later, I’m wrestling Vince McMahon live on Pay Per View. It was just mind blowing and insane, and not something that I could really totally grasp or appreciate until I was removed from it, but by the time I was removed from it I was lost as a human being.”

Gowen comfortably detailed his troubles with substance abuse and addiction, but confidently declared that he has been sober for 15 years. Without sobriety and being the type of person he is, Gowen says that the opportunity with AEW would have never come to fruition.

“I saw that a gentleman by the name of Kevin Matthews, who’s a producer and agent for AEW, an old friend of mine and a lifelong supporter of mine as well,” Gowen said on how he connected with AEW. “He’s done good by me throughout the years. I saw that he was in town in Detroit, my hometown for AEW, so I hit him up and I said, Hey, man, do you want to go to lunch?”

That invitation to grab a bite to eat quickly escalated into a series of pitches being made Gowen’s way, from attending the show to wrestling a dark match on Collision. And then Ricochet’s name came up.

“He just started pitching these ideas, which fired up my imagination, and it got me thinking. It got me hyped up and so really, it’s from that relationship that I have with with Kevin and a lot of those guys that work backstage and that was able to bring it to fruition.”

Zach’s opponent at AEW Beach Break in Chicago is in fact Ricochet. An incredibly talented and accomplished performer who has spent the past year molding himself into one of the best heels, not just in AEW, but all of professional wrestling.

Gowen believes that Ricochet is the best wrestler in the world, and he’s confident the two of them can produce something special.

“I’m absolutely looking forward to get getting in the ring with him, because Ricochet is the best wrestler in the world,” Gowen said. “I’ve said that for a long, long time. I saw him put on an absolute clinic — must have been 2016 or 2015 somewhere in New York. He wrestled the Amazing Red and was one of the best matches I’ve ever seen live.”

While he’s been off of television for years, Gowen has continued to take independent bookings. He wrestled in eight matches last year, but this will be his first in months. His own expectations for his in-ring performance later this evening, are certainly tempered.

“Like I said, I’m a 42 year old, one legged father of four. I live in the suburbs. I mow my grass and I pay taxes. Like, there’s there’s no way I’m going to be able to keep up with him, but I’ve learned some things over my years in terms of being able to form a genuine connection with the audience, to the ability to tell a story, the ability to convey emotion, to take an audience on the ride. And I think with my experience and his skill level coming together. I think we’re going to create magic.”

You can check out our full interview with Zack Gowen in the video above. Also, don’t forget to subscribe to The Takedown on SI YouTube Channel for more exclusive interviews, talk shows and more.

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