Former WWE wrestler and present indy star John Hennigan had a profitable debut within the boxing world, however the best way his struggle with Harley Morenstein got here collectively was an enormous tough.
At Saturday’s Creator Conflict 2 occasion in Tampa, Fla., Hennigan brutally knocked out the Epic Meal Time star within the second spherical. Hennigan mentioned he attended the primary Creator Conflict occasion and met the oldsters concerned, and after Morenstein’s knockout victory on that card, they requested if Hennigan would have an interest. At first, Hennigan mentioned he wasn’t as a result of he and Morenstein are associates, however Hennigan alleges that the promoters pulled a quick one on them.
“They had been searching for somebody to struggle Harley for Creator Conflict 2 and so they ended up asking me, and I assume I didn’t mess it up,” Hennigan mentioned on The MMA Hour.
“To be trustworthy, I [initially] mentioned no, as a result of Harley and I’m going manner again. I thought-about us associates, and I’d like to struggle somebody, however I needed to struggle somebody that I don’t know, or [wasn’t] my pal. Then, they advised me that Harley mentioned he would struggle me — and at which level, I mentioned, ‘Wonderful, I’ll struggle him then.’
“Harley later advised me that he didn’t say that, so we simply acquired form of pitted towards one another. It was well-played, very promoter-esque.”
Already experiencing the feelings that include a boxing match, Hennigan says he had a dialog the day earlier than the bout with a lady at a restaurant — who turned out to be Morenstein’s mom.
“I’m having breakfast after weigh-ins, and a lady faucets me on the shoulder and says, ‘Hello, I’m Harley’s mom. I simply need you to know that Harley is a really, excellent boy. He’s only a massive teddy bear, and please don’t harm him,’” Hennigan defined. “I mentioned, ‘Your son is an excellent boy, and your son is a really massive boy, and I feel he’s going to try to harm me, too.’
“We’re going to try to harm one another. Punching hurts, and I’m glad we each ended up OK.”
Hennigan dropped Morenstein within the first, knocking him via the ropes of the squared circle earlier than getting the stoppage in Spherical 2. The longtime professional wrestler had Josh Barnett in his nook for the bout, and labored with the veteran heavyweight within the construct to the struggle.
Though he didn’t get to spend a ton of time with Barnett, he used the teachings Barnett shared with him correctly because the struggle went the best way he anticipated it to go.
“I assumed I’d knock him out, that’s what I used to be planning on,” Hennigan mentioned. “I really feel like I used to be swinging manner too quick [early] and began to explode just a little bit. Boxing is difficult, and I feel what Josh had me do a great deal of was sparring, and the people who I sparred with beat the crap out of me — liver pictures, head pictures, knocked me down, knocked me out, a few times.
“Josh advised me that for those who don’t have that form of expertise, you don’t wish to really feel that for the primary time in a struggle.”
