"The King of Old School" Steve Corino has been in the business thirteen years. He first made his name as an annoying, loud mouthed manager in Extreme Championship Wrestling, before ultimately becoming the company's Heavyweight champion. Bigger things laid ahead for Corino, who became the NWA World Heavyweight Champion in 2001. Being the NWA World Heavyweight Champion lent Corino a new level of respect. Respect that earned him entry into Japan, where he has competed for years in Pro-Wrestling ZERO-ONE, and later ZERO1-MAX. And of course, Corino has been involved with Hustle, competing on the company's first show with Tom Howard and "The American Dream" Dusty Rhodes against the legendary Mil Mascaras, Dos Caras and Sicodelico Jr. Corino disappeared from Hustle after Hustle House Vol. 3, around the same time the mysterious Monster C arrived... Hmm... Be sure to check out Steve's official site, and maybe even bug him on MySpace.

Don MacLeod: "I'd like to thank you for giving us the time for this interview, How are you doing?"

Steve Corino: "Doing well, thank you."

Don MacLeod: "So were you a fan of wrestling growing up?"

Steve Corino: "Huge fan. From the time I was 8 years old all the way till today. In 1981 my parents got cable TV and I saw Georgia Championship Wrestling and fell in love with it right away."

Don MacLeod: "Who were some of your favourite wrestlers?"

Steve Corino: "Tommy Rich, Michael Hayes, Barry Windham, Dusty Rhodes, Tully Blanchard, Eddie Gilbert, and a ton more."

Don MacLeod: "How did you get into the business?"

Steve Corino: "In 1994 I saw an ad at a nightclub for a pro-wrestling school. I was so small then, around 165 pounds, but I thought I would go for a tryout and let them tell me no. I got lucky and worked hard and had a lot of doors opened for me."

Don MacLeod: "You spent some time working in Matt & Jeff Hardy's promotion OMEGA, What are your memories from that?"

Steve Corino: "Lots of fun! Matt was the mind and Jeff was the high flying. OMEGA was a collection of hungry young wrestlers that went out and busted their rear ends with no glass ceiling. You got pushed based on how hard you worked and EVERYONE worked hard. That is why if you watch the DVD's now they stand the test of time."

Don MacLeod: "When you were starting out what were your goals in the business?"

Steve Corino: "Honestly my first goals were to win a title, any title, and wrestle at my old high school. I did them in the first 6 weeks and just made goals that were realistic. Near the end of my career a lot of my goals was to wrestle my heroes."

Don MacLeod: "Were you a fan of ECW before you went there?"

Steve Corino: "Not really."

Don MacLeod: "How did you end up in ECW?"

Steve Corino: "I got a call one night from Mike Bucci, Nova, called me and told me that Paul Heyman was looking for a few guys to bring in and recommended me. I went to the ECW Arena for a tryout and was lucky enough to be offered a job."

Don MacLeod: "What are your memories of the first time you worked the ECW Arena?"

Steve Corino: "It was very cool. The ECW fans were always great to me and actually didn't crap on me and it made me relax. Plus I was in there with Nova and Dreamer thought enough of him to let him have 15 minutes when he could have gave us 5 minutes."

Don MacLeod: "You had some of the most bloodiest matches in ECW, What made you agree to these?"

Steve Corino: "Paul was my boss and I did what he asked me to do. Did I like bleeding that much? No, but Paul wanted it and I did it thankfully. Paul was a great boss and motivator and I would have went through anything for him."

Don MacLeod: "Was Tajiri as stiff as he has been said to be?"

Steve Corino: "I thought so until I got kicked by Shinya Hashimoto and then I called Tajiri and thanked him for taking care of me!"

Don MacLeod: "What are your memories about the match you had with Jerry Lynn at Heatwave 2000?"

Steve Corino: "It was crazy. I remember looking up at Jerry when he was writing the word "DIE" with my blood on his chest and I thought "Maybe we went a little too far". But its something that Jerry and I laugh about still today."

Don MacLeod: "You ended up with the Heavyweight Belt towards the end of 2000, How did this come about and what were your feelings on it?"

Steve Corino: "I was the only one in the World title match that didn't have a breach of contract in. Is it true? Most likely but I love Paul's story that it was my time! I was just honored to be named ECW heavyweight champion."

Don MacLeod: "Did you know that Guilty As Charged 2001 would be the last ECW PPV?"

Steve Corino: "Pretty much as much as I didn't want to but the writing was on the wall. Paul did everything he could to get a new TV deal but we were in too much debt."

Don MacLeod: "How close were you to jumping to WCW?"

Steve Corino: "I actually did sign with them after ECW. It is my book (If the damn thing ever gets finished!!!)"

Don MacLeod: "You started to work for Zero One in Japan, How did this come about?"

Steve Corino: "I became NWA champion in April of 2001 and it was Hashimoto-san's dream to win the NWA title so that all 3 Musketeers (Hashimoto, Chono, and Muto) would be NWA champions at one point in their career. They brought me over and I struck up a friendship with Hashimoto and Yoshiyuki Nakamura and was offered a full time spot."

Don MacLeod: "How can you compare the fans from Japan and North America?"

Steve Corino: "Its really apples and oranges. Japanese pro wrestling is based on Samurai spirit where as American wrestling is based on entertainment first. Its a different of cultures."

Don MacLeod: "How long were you in Zero One before you began to get more involved with the company from a behind the scenes perspective?"

Steve Corino: "I was there about 7 months before being offered a job booking the gaijin and helping with the booking."

Don MacLeod: "You had a good run in ROH, What happened?"

Steve Corino: "Exactly what you said, my good run was over. I was there to feud with Homicide and once the feud was over it was time for me to go."

Don MacLeod: "How did you end up in Hustle?"

Steve Corino: "Hashimoto and Nakamura booked me for it. Hustle 1 is a lot different then Hustle whatever they are on now!"

Don MacLeod: "What were your initial reaction to the Hustle product? Did you think it would work?"

Steve Corino: "I hated it just because there had to be 2 staff members per wrestler and they treated you like you didn't know what the heck you were doing.
I didn't think it would work right away because Wrestle-1 had done almost the same show and it was a lukewarm reaction. But the weirder it got the more fun it became for the fans."

Don MacLeod: "How well did HG make the transition from comedian to pro wrestler?"

Steve Corino: "HG actually went to school with IWGP champion Tanahashi and trained with him so he had a great work ethic right away. HG respects pro-wrestling and was ready to do anything he could to help the product."

Don MacLeod: "Did Zero One have any issue's with their workers performing for Hustle?"

Steve Corino: "No, because they booked me for Hustle and then in 2005 I was an agent for Hustle."

Don MacLeod: "What was a typical day in Japan like for you?"

Steve Corino: "Wake up, breakfast, walk to the dojo for a workout, get lunch. Try to catch a nap before the bus takes off because sleeping on the bus is always uncomfortable. Get to the arena, set up the ring and chairs (it is a ZERO1-MAX tradition that the whole team sets up). Then I would do push ups, sit ups, and squats and get ready for the show."

Don MacLeod: "It has been rumoured that 2007 will be your last year as a wrestler, What made you decide to hang up the boots?"

Steve Corino: "I have done more then I could ever imagine in my career and want to settle down and be with my family more."

Don MacLeod: "Will you still be involved in wrestling in a non wrestling role?"

Steve Corino: "As of now, no, but I haven't ruled it out."

Don MacLeod: "Do you have any regrets?"

Steve Corino: "Not a one! I loved my 13 years in pro-wrestling."

Don MacLeod: "Thank you for taking the time to do this interview, We sincerely wish you all the best in the future!"

Steve Corino: "Thank you very much."