Another book in the Swerve/Hangman saga will be written on Saturday night.
Over the course of the last four years, Swerve Strickland and ‘Hangman’ Adam Page have created one of the best rivalries in wrestling. It’s been a program full of emotion, incredible promos, standout matches, and on Saturday night, another chapter will be written in Phoenix at Full Gear when Swerve and The New Level will take on the team of Hangman and Brodido for the AEW Trios Championships in a Texas Death Match.
This week I caught up with Swerve to discuss the seemingly-endless feud with Page, the vibes in All Elite Wrestling right now, and find out how the heck he has the time to be a full-time wrestler, father, and musician.
The emotional dichotomy heading into Full Gear between Sweve and his teammates is fascinating. Kofi and Creed have shown their reservations about stepping into the Texas Death Match, but it seems like another day at the office for him. “I’m feeling a little upbeat, feeling like everything’s flowing very well,” he says about his preparation ahead of the match, almost flippantly relaxed for a contest where so much is on the line. However, the laser-focus returns when asked about how he’s prepping his teammates.
“It’s all mental. It’s all mental. It’s getting them into a space that they’ve never had to go before. As much of a physical toll it takes, it’s the mental preparation going into it is what really matters the most. Not having your body go into shock and freak out at seeing your own blood spilling all over your body, just having that control and mental capacity to maintain through it all.”
Obviously, the match is about the team, but everyone knows a huge element to the contest is absorbed with each other Swerve and Hangman get. When I spoke to Page after their Lights Out match in 2024, he acknowledged that perhaps his career had been damaged by focusing so much on the rivalry with Swerve. I asked him if he agreed, and whether focusing too much on Hangman damaged his larger plans in wrestling.
“I wouldn’t. I heard somebody say it’s not a rivalry, it’s a, it’s a saga. It’s just something that’s going to continue through different phases and take different shapes and forms. It’s not like chapters in a book; it’s a book series, you know? I will honestly say that this was about making each other better, and if you go back to like the first time we ever spoke on camera, it was about him being very reserved and complacent in the company, and I lit this spark under him, and it got him back to the main event of All In in the world championship.
Swerve said that people can debate whether or not the methods he used were right, but not the result — because this ‘saga,’ as he puts it, has pushed both of them beyond their limits. Swerve remains resolute that this quest for the Trios Championship doesn’t mean his focus has moved off singles competition as well.
“Joe had the Trios and the World Championship at the same time. There’s no one saying that I can’t, it’s just that this is the main focus, and these are guys that you need 100% focus on, whether it’s Hangman, whether it’s Brodie King, whether it’s Bandido. These are all A-plus elite athletes and talents in the company.”
In terms of the big picture, where Swerve feels he fits into AEW, and how he feels right now, he says that AEW feels like the place he was always meant to be. He adds that during other chapters in his career, he hasn’t had the time or space to really grow or explore his character, but that this current iteration of Swerve is the best yet, because he has become wiser, more mature, and better at understanding his potential as well as his limitations.
This idea of having enough time to grow is fascinating, because that is one area it’s a wonder how Swerve makes his life work. Not only is the Washington native constantly on AEW television, but he’s also a father of three, a musician, and has upcoming acting roles. It’s a lot of plates to spin at a high level, and he acknowledges it can be difficult.
“Maybe the father role has suffered in some ways that I still have to find ways to make up as my girls get older. I’ll always make sure that they understand what this is ultimately being done for.” Swerve adds that his ability to changes lanes is what’s allowed him to pivot between all these different roads in his career and do so seamlessly.
Now we wait and see if the cage match on Saturday night will force another pivot in Swerve’s thinking as he and The New Level compete against Hangman and Brodido on Saturday night. Something is going to change drastically, and hopefully not for the worse, as these six combustible elements meet in the ring.
AEW Full Gear airs live at 8 p.m. ET on PPV. It can be streamed through HBO Max, Prime Video, or YouTube in the United States, with the pre-show beginning at 7 p.m. ET, free on YouTube.