Veteran wrestler Paul Wight isn't a fan of wrestlers demanding that newcomers to the pro wrestling business earn their stripes.The recent controversy surrounding Avery Styles, WWE Hall of Famer AJ Styles' son, and him being criticized for not "paying his dues" by helping out backstage, has opened up a can of worms about how young wrestlers should earn their place in the business. Wight believes that concept is something he doesn't subscribe to, explaining how it was imposed by veterans on younger stars as a way to bully them."F**k that bullsh*t. Okay? Paying your dues to me is an old-timer's way of intimidating and bullying and fu**ing with a younger talent for no goddamn reason. If a talent comes in respectful with a good attitude, don't come in like you own the place. Don't have an attitude. But why should you take heat because your athleticism, your look, or what opportunities you've been given, you've been successful on? Why should someone hold that against you? Because you didn't drive for $35 a night and you didn't set up some broken, torn-ass-down ring and you didn't struggle for all this stuff. Why punish somebody for that?" asked Wight on "TMZSports' Inside The Ring."Wight described his own situation when he debuted in WCW as a 22-year-old against Hulk Hogan, wondering whether he should be faulted for not going through the indies when an incredible opportunity presented itself."My thing is when I came in, everybody was so mad at me 'cause my first match was against Hulk Hogan. I was 22 years old. Is that my fault? Should I have gone to independents? Should I have learned how people lie, manipulate, and bullsh*t in smaller leagues, and promoters don't pay you and all these other stories that all these other old-timers went through that made them seasoned? To me, that's bitter sauce," added the AEW star.He believes that experienced wrestlers should help and inspire newcomers to the business to become better, but stated that young wrestlers should listen to the advice given to them.
