Bully Ray was recently interviewed by TV Insider about his recent surprise debut at Ring of Honor and he revealed that he’s “all in” with ROH for “at least a year.”
Negotiations between the former WWE superstar-turned-free agent and the company went on for four to six weeks. Once he agreed to appear at ROH, he told management he was all in for at least a year. When Ray showed up to the Hammerstein Ballroom for his debut, only three or four people knew. In the age of social media and spoilers, the company managed to pull off the unexpected.
He also said that the reason he chose to come to ROH was that it reminded him of ECW:
“I’ve been a fan of Ring of Honor since they started,” Ray said. “The number one reason I liked the company is because it reminded me of ECW. Wrestlers in the company always had a passion to put on the best possible matches and product they could. The fans are also extremely passionate, as well. Ring of Honor is known for having a great energy and great vibe attached to it. I knew at some point in my career I wanted to be a part of it. This was a perfect opportunity for me. I’ve had a lot of offers come my way in the past couple of months. Nothing was a perfect fit. Then I started speaking with Ring of Honor, and it went really good.”
Bully Ray was in negotiations with Impact Wrestling to return as a “top star” but those talks fell through apparently due to creative differences, and Impact ended up bringing in Alberto El Patron to play the role that was originally planned for Bully Ray.