Getting to know Will Allday before Impact Wrestling Deep Impact on Twitch
Patches Chance: In June of 2018 you got to be an extra on Raw named James Harden. Thanks to Baron Corbin, you defeated Curt Hawkins by disqualification and denied your hometown free tacos. I have a few questions about this. First, how were you selected for that opportunity?
Will Allday: Oh, gosh. So, I was sitting at ringside with some of the extras and me being a smaller person, as an enhancement talent for that specific night, they wanted a smaller person. So they made me and another guy come stand up with Curt Hawkins and Dean Malenko. And we were about the same height, so it was tough to choose between us. So they asked us, ‘how much do you weigh?’ And as soon as they asked us ‘how much do you weigh,’ I knew exactly what they were looking for. So the guy next to me says, I think he said like 175 pounds or something like that. So I immediately was like, ‘oh, cool, 160.’ Even though I didn’t weigh 160, I just said that.
Patches Chance: You knew they were asking who was lighter.
Will Allday: Yeah, exactly. So I was like, ‘oh, I’ll play this game. Yeah, 160.’ And they go ‘you’re our guy.’ And that was essentially the selection process. They wanted the smallest person. Even though I have like a muscular frame, they didn’t see me without my shirt off. So I still looked the part, but when it comes down to something like that they’re always looking for the smallest guy. So going into that, I knew that was gonna be me as soon as he said ‘175 pounds.’
Patches Chance: Who chose the name James Harden?
Will Allday: Vince. So, he actually wanted me to be Steph Curry because I think at that time, obviously, that’s [the Houston Rockets] biggest rival. They’re always fighting for the number one spot in the Western Conference. So he wanted me to be Steph Curry, but then he thought about it and he was like ‘no, then you’ll get booed, and Hawkins is a heel.’ We’re thinking about it, and we’re like ‘well, he’s gonna give them free tacos, so they’re gonna cheer him either way.’
He was like yeah, but he wants them not to boo me straight from the beginning, so they’ll call me James Harden. So maybe 30 minutes before I went on, they’re like ‘you’ll be James Harden instead of Steph Curry.’ And the rest is history. Houston did not get tacos. I still owe everybody tacos, so if you see me in the street make sure that I pay the piper and I get you a taco. I’ve had so many people just come up to me and say ‘you still owe me tacos.’ I mean, people even make signs still at shows for that.