IGN Sports: What was it like for you to wrestle Shawn?Chris Masters: It was a dream come true. That's something I'll take with me to my grave. He was my childhood idol, I idolize the guy, and I still trip out that I got to wrestle him on a pay-per-view. How many people get to do that? How many people get to wrestle their idol? IGN Sports: What was it like for you to head over to Iraq and entertain the troops?Chris Masters: It was a really good trip this year. Last year I had to go to Afghanistan and they told me the day of the trip because I had to replace Kurt Angle, Kurt Angle got hurt. So that ended up being crazy. But this year was so much easier because I knew two weeks in advance and the accommodations were so much better. It was a great experience for me personally because I saw my fiancé's brother over there. He's stationed over there and it was such an honor to see him, so awesome for me to be able to call my fiancé back home and tell her he's doing fine. IGN Sports: We don't know who your opponent will be for Wrestlemania yet, but have you looked back at the old tapes of Wrestlemania III and what the event was like back in the day when it hit Detroit?Chris Masters: I idolized wrestling growing up, that's why I ended up getting into the sport…it's all I loved. I still have a little bit of a mark in me, I still have a little bit of a fan in me when I look at some of the guys who are in the locker room, guys I grew up watching. I'm like, this is freakin' cool that I made it this far, but I know I still have a long way to go. IGN Sports: Do you have a favorite Wrestlemania moment?Chris Masters: Watching Shawn Michaels. Basically, nothing was ever handed to him and he had to climb up the ladder and really bust his butt, then finally he went off to Wrestlemania 12 to face Bret Hart. To see that story unfold, and he really broke the mold because small guys were never given that chance, and to see him go out there and win the world title, I thought that was an amazing thing because finally someone was being appreciated, not for his size, but for his talent. There was nobody who can touch him. IGN Sports: I think people forget how long it took some of these guys like Shawn to come up and make their mark on the industry. Everyone expects so much so fast of a lot of the younger guys like yourself.Chris Masters: Yeah, what's different nowadays is we have a lot of younger guys that they push so quick, but if you look back in the day, guys like Shawn and Bret had to climb the ladder. It wasn't like they were pushed right from the get go. To me, this is all I ever wanted to do, so I'm ready to put in the work.
IGN Sports: What was it like for you to wrestle Shawn?Chris Masters: It was a dream come true. That's something I'll take with me to my grave. He was my childhood idol, I idolize the guy, and I still trip out that I got to wrestle him on a pay-per-view. How many people get to do that? How many people get to wrestle their idol? IGN Sports: What was it like for you to head over to Iraq and entertain the troops?Chris Masters: It was a really good trip this year. Last year I had to go to Afghanistan and they told me the day of the trip because I had to replace Kurt Angle, Kurt Angle got hurt. So that ended up being crazy. But this year was so much easier because I knew two weeks in advance and the accommodations were so much better. It was a great experience for me personally because I saw my fiancé's brother over there. He's stationed over there and it was such an honor to see him, so awesome for me to be able to call my fiancé back home and tell her he's doing fine. IGN Sports: We don't know who your opponent will be for Wrestlemania yet, but have you looked back at the old tapes of Wrestlemania III and what the event was like back in the day when it hit Detroit?Chris Masters: I idolized wrestling growing up, that's why I ended up getting into the sport…it's all I loved. I still have a little bit of a mark in me, I still have a little bit of a fan in me when I look at some of the guys who are in the locker room, guys I grew up watching. I'm like, this is freakin' cool that I made it this far, but I know I still have a long way to go. IGN Sports: Do you have a favorite Wrestlemania moment?Chris Masters: Watching Shawn Michaels. Basically, nothing was ever handed to him and he had to climb up the ladder and really bust his butt, then finally he went off to Wrestlemania 12 to face Bret Hart. To see that story unfold, and he really broke the mold because small guys were never given that chance, and to see him go out there and win the world title, I thought that was an amazing thing because finally someone was being appreciated, not for his size, but for his talent. There was nobody who can touch him. IGN Sports: I think people forget how long it took some of these guys like Shawn to come up and make their mark on the industry. Everyone expects so much so fast of a lot of the younger guys like yourself.Chris Masters: Yeah, what's different nowadays is we have a lot of younger guys that they push so quick, but if you look back in the day, guys like Shawn and Bret had to climb the ladder. It wasn't like they were pushed right from the get go. To me, this is all I ever wanted to do, so I'm ready to put in the work.