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Chris Jericho Reacts to Criticism About His Fall in AEW 'Blood and Guts' Match
May 12, 2021
Chris Jericho responded to critics this week in reference to the fall he took off the top of the cage following last week's Blood and Guts match on AEW Dynamite.
Appearing on his Talk Is Jericho podcast (h/t WrestlingInc.com's Jason Ounpraseuth), Jericho said the following regarding those who didn't feel the stunt looked as good as it could or should have:
"And for me, I watched it back. I thought it looked amazing, and the thing that was really scary is that if you watch it back, I barely missed hitting my head on the lights at the back of the stage. I went so far back that I almost over shot everything. So once again, everybody in the business knows how dangerous this can be, how terrifying it is and just the margin for error is so slim. There's some hardcore wrestling fans that were bagging on it. That's fine. I mean, you have the right to bag on it and out of the 1.3 million people that watched it, if 3,000 people didn't like it, that's a very small percentage. Most people just thought it was crazy, as did I."
The spot in question came after Sammy Guevara surrendered on behalf of The Inner Circle, giving The Pinnacle the victory. Guevara surrendered out of fear that MJF was going to toss Jericho off the roof of the cage.
Despite the surrender, MJF threw Jericho from the cage anyway, resulting in Jericho landing on a platform that appeared to consist of cardboard and padding. Because of the way Jericho's fall was shot by the cameras, many on social media expressed their belief that it didn't look like he truly could have been injured or in danger.
WWE Superstars Shayna Baszler and Shotzi Blackheart both fired off critical tweets that seemed to reference the Blood and Guts finish:
Jericho divulged this week that he was "really, really nervous" about the fall on the day of Dynamite, and he noted that he didn't practice it until the actual fall occurred.
The 50-year-old veteran said they used black gym mats and cardboard boxes, as he was told professional stuntmen use cardboard boxes for their stunts.
Jericho came to the conclusion that he thought the fall looked "amazing" despite some of the backlash it has faced:
"Once again, I've got very thick skin, and it really doesn't bother me if people didn't like something because we move on to the next week, but once again, everybody has opinions, and I appreciate that and I appreciate feedback. But for me, I always go back to what did I think about it? How do I feel about it? And what I watched it back, man, I was like, 'This is absolutely insane.' It's terrifying. It's a little bit exhilarating, but it's one of those things that I hope you enjoyed it because you'll never see me do it again ever. And I'm glad that it turned out the way it did, but oh my gosh, I was really really, like I said, it was weighing on my conscience all day long. And when it finally happened, it was cool and looked as great as it did. I wouldn't change anything."
While the finish of Blood and Guts will likely continue to be debated for a long time, the match was seemingly a success for AEW otherwise.
Dynamite once again broke the 1 million viewer mark after falling below 900,000 the previous week, and AEW was able to showcase a bloody, brutal match between its two top stables.
The first Blood and Guts match had been slated to occur last year before the COVID-19 pandemic changed plans, but it may have been worth the wait for fans who were excited to see a revival of Dusty Rhodes' WarGames concept away from the WWE umbrella.
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