AEW star Swerve Strickland has a lot of respect for an old friend turned rival.
Although Strickland is still looking for that first singles championship win in AEW, he has previously held gold in the company. Teaming with Keith Lee, Swerve in Our Glory became Tag Team Champions in July 2022. Despite the duo being champions, Strickland and Lee would see cracks form in their partnership and would eventually implode later that year, resulting in them losing the titles to The Acclaimed.
Many fans became captivated by Lee due to his charisma and ability to pull off super athletic moves despite being over 300 pounds. Unlike many who are victims of a common critique in modern wrestling, Lee has a great understanding of letting his matches breathe, something that Strickland is very respectful of.
Speaking with the State of Florida Sports podcast, Strickland stated how Lee has been integral in improving the quality of his matches by also putting space in between big moments:
“He taught me about timing in the ring, he really did. He taught me a lot of ways to really feel the moment. He truly takes his time. Bask in his Glory is a real thing. He’s taking a lot of time and letting people feel him. If there’s one thing I take from Keith Lee, it’s about taking that time to bask in the audience and the audience bask in my glory,”
Lee and Strickland are still yet to conclude their rivalry despite the split taking place more than a year ago. The former partners were set to collide at Worlds End but were unable to due to Lee announcing that he was dealing with an injury. Lee was replaced by Dustin Rhodes, who lost to Strickland.
Swerve Strickland Looks Back On Controversial AEW Match
The match that many will remember Strickland the most for in 2023 was his Texas Death Match against “Hangman” Adam Page at Full Gear. The match itself was extremely divisive with one side appreciating the drama and emotion and the other side believing that it was unnecessarily violent for the sake of violence. When asked about the match, Swerve Strickland described it as “theater.”
H/t to Fightful.