Josh Alexander Talks His Beginning To Becoming X-Division Champion

Coming off his incredible Ironman match on Thursday, Josh Alexander talks to us about his beginnings all the way up to being crowned the Impact X-Division Champion. Josh Alexander prides himself on putting on a show for the world and wants to be remembered as one of the best in the world.

The Beginning of The Walking Weapon

Alexander was a wrestling fan his whole life. “I remember watching Mania 14 where Stone Cold faced Shawn Michaels…I really discovered what wrestling was then,” Alexander said. “When I got into it in 1998, I was a huge fan of Bret Hart, Shawn Michaels, and the entire Hart Foundation. It was really Stone Cold though who got me into wrestling.”

“I was always curious and in 2005 when I went to university, I really discovered wrestling schools exist and independent wrestling exists,” Alexander said. “I wanted to know what it felt like inside the ring. Everything after that was just a new goal, it was a journey.”

Around 2002, Alexander took an interest in Impact Wrestling, at the time TNA Wrestling. “I discovered all these guys from TNA and Ring of Honor and guys like Low-Ki, AJ Styles, Samoa Joe. When you see someone like Low-Ki who is larger than life, it changed my perspective on what a wrestler should be.”

Josh Alexander: Training To Become The Best

Alexander trained a lot under the tutelage of Johnny Devine. “It was tough,” Alexander said. “He was trained at the Hart Dungeon and it was the time when they tried to weed everyone out. You weren’t allowed to get into that ring without paying your dues and doing squats every day. I wasn’t an athlete. He definitely molded me into the wrestler I am today.”

Josh Alexander has a very mat-based wrestling style. “I discovered the style through trial and error over the years,” Alexander said. “I’m a huge fan of Kurt Angle and Eddie Guerrero so I tried to implement stuff that they did. I want to be respected as a technician and one of the best in the world when all is said and done. That’s why I go out and try to steal the show every time.”

Alexander credits AIW for being the first major independent wrestling company to give him a look. Alexander also recalls wrestling in Philadelphia where he got booed out of the ring the first time. However, the second time he was there he really got to “showcase” himself and he “definitely was not booed out of the building this time around.”

Josh Alexander Signs With Impact Wrestling

“I was shocked. I had all but given up on my dream of being signed to a major wrestling company,” Alexander stated. “When I started at Impact I was nervous, but all those doubts were proven wrong really quickly. I became tag team champion after three months and went on to have the longest reign in company history. Now I’m doing even more as a singles star. I’m comfortable where I’m at.”

Alexander got to wrestle with some of the originals of Impact and guys he looked up to. “It was awesome for the fan in me,” Alexander said. “I came up watching their stuff. Alex Shelley and Chris Sabin were the #1 tag team on The North’s bucket list. When they came back we knew we had to showcase ourselves against them. It was a dream match of sorts.”

“I’ve been given a lot of opportunities in Impact, and that’s really all I can ask for.” Shortly after The North disbanded, Alexander got the chance to break out as a singles star with a major opportunity set to happen, an X-Division Championship match.

The Walking Weapon Breaks Out As A Singles Star

“I was nervous switching to a single’s star because I didn’t know what the people in charge would think,” Alexander stated. “I was lucky my first match was against Brian Myers in a pre-show match at Hard To Kill. I got to showcase myself right there.”

“Within three months, they kept giving me these different opportunities,” states Alexander. “I think Impact found they can trust me and that’s why I’m the X-Division Champion and in all these marquee match-ups,” Alexander said.

“I had some awesome singles matches against Karl Anderson, TJP, Eddie Edwards, and Marufuji. TJP is arguably the best opponent I’ve ever been in the ring with.” Last night’s episode featured another one of those matches when Alexander defeated TJP in a 60-minute long Ironman match to retain his X-Division championship.

What’s Next for Josh Alexander?

“I really want a singles match with Eric Young,” Alexander says. “When I was coming up and started training, he was just leaving Canada and I’ve wanted this for 16 years now.” Alexander also wants to help keep elevating the X-Division. “I want to bring back the X-Division to what it was and inspire young men and women who want to be wrestlers,” Alexander says. “I want to cap this all off with that Impact World Championship one day.”

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