How has the transition to the WWF been for you?
Easy. Only for the fact that I've been to so many different companies throughout the years and the one thing that Dean Malenko has always done in 20 years is wrestle. So it's been pretty easy. It seems like the work schedule is about the same as it was before, only I'm a little happier in what I'm doing now. I'll just keep having fun with it as long as I can.

Before your arrival the WWF was more focused on entertainment over wrestling. Do you think you have adapted to the WWF or have they adapted more to you?
It's funny, I spent 12 years working in Japan and one of the main reasons I didn't want to work in the states was for the fact that I didn't think the promotions or the wrestling fans wanted to see the style of a Dean Malenko, or a Chris Benoit, or an Eddy Guerrero for that matter and I always shyed away, not for lack of opportunities. But I think a lot has changed in the industry in the last ten to fifteen years. Size is one of them. The bottom line is that fans want to be entertained. There is a faction of fans out there who still want to see a good match. Take away all the glitz and the glamour and I think what we've added to the WWF roster is four guys that can wrestle. I think I've shown in the last couple of PPVs. I'm not saying that the WWF really needed us, because they've been selling out buildings everywhere. But I think we've added a different dimension to the entertainment part of their show. One thing Vince McMahon told me right off the bat was the game is to be yourself. That's why they brought us in, because they believed in our talent.

Your arrival brought the WWF Light-Heavyweight division back from the grave. How far does it have to go before it can reach the heights of WCW's Cruiserweight division in its heyday?
To be honest I don't think it could ever happen. Collectively you had probably ten of the greatest guys in that weight class for one company. That was a real enjoyable time. I got to work with Rey Mysterio, Kidman, and of course Eddy who I've gotten to have many great matches with over the last 8 years. Not that there aren't guys out there who couldn't fill that spot. In order for that to happen the WWF would have to bring more guys in there. Taka is really talented and Essa is really talented, but he needs a little more experience. The WWF just doesn't have the roster right now for the light-heavyweight division. Hopefully they'll want to turn that around and add some guys to the mix.

Is there one match that you'd like to have before it's all done?
A flaming, barbed-wire�.nah, definitely not Dean Malenko's style. I've been real fortunate in that I've been able to work with all the guys I've wanted to work with through the years. The only two things I'd like to do is work one more program with Eddy Guerrero and one with Chris Benoit because they're my two closest friends in the business. I respect them the most and I don't think there are two better guys in the business than those two.

If there was any advice you could have given yourself before you began your career, what would it be?
Why the hell did you choose wrestling? No, to be honest nothing really. I've done everything I've wanted to do. My goal from the getgo was�I think I'm a little different from just about 99.9% of the guys in this business because I wasn't the wrestling fan, I wasn;t the guy with the posters on the wall, or grew up watching Sammartino or Hogan wrestle. I wasn't a wrestling fan. I wrestled amateur from the time I was 8 years old to the time I was 14. I enjoyed the technical part of wrestling and the competitiveness. When I injured my neck back in '77 I still wanted to be involved in wrestling, and still loved the moves and the thought process and the only way I could still do it was turning pro. Unlike guys like a Mick Foley or Brian Hilderbrandt for that matter, who ate, slept and drank it and their whole ambition was to be a pro wrestler, mine wasn't. I'm going to have a real easy transition when I walk away from the business. I'll miss the comradery that I have with the guys, and some of the great matches. But it's not a dream that I've had since I was a kid. I enjoy doing it and I'll keep doing it until it becomes just a job.

What was it like emotionally in Dallas during that 8-man tag at RAW in Dallas?
That was a great feeling. We as individuals stay in this business because of nights like that. There are a lot of nights when you go out there and hear the infamous chant of 'boring' and people aren't into the match. But you have one of those nights and it makes you sit back and put a smile on your face, which Dean Malenko seldom does at times. It makes you feel good and proud of what you do. That was probably one of the hottest crowds that I've ever seen in a very long long time. The WWF doesn't spend a lot of time in the Dallas area and because of the timing of all of us coming in to wrestle. We all just walked out there and looked at each other. Just a great feeling. Same as the first night when we walked out there too. You've got those first night jitters. I think it was Ray Stevens who said the day that you're not nervous you're not a wrestler.