In a recent interview, Sami Callihan said the following about Madman Fulton, “He’s supremely under-appreciated. He really got down in the dumps being somewhere else that pushed and pushed and never got to become what he could be. Then coming to Ohio and Impact, I feel like the sky’s the limit for Madman Fulton. I think in the next year or two, he’s going to be one of the top guys in pro wrestling.”

The nearly 7-feet-tall Monster of oVe is the faction’s weapon of mass destruction. Whatever comes next for oVe, you can be sure that Madman Fulton will be there dropping bodies for his boys. His potential is unlimited, and he found his place on Impact Wrestling very easily, through destruction and chaos.

SteelChair Magazine had the chance to have a one-on-one conversation with Madman Fulton earlier this week. We talked to him about his path with Impact Wrestling, being the new Impact Wrestling resident monster, the oVe family, and what the future holds for him on Impact Wrestling.

You wrestled this weekend at Impact Sacrifice, but how was your shoulder after your match against Ken Shamrock at Hard To Kill?

In the match with Shamrock, he ended up popping my tendon, and the shoulder went out the collarbone. This injury is way more common with NFL linebackers and actually something they really don’t do anything for. In the long run, it’s not going to affect the strength or the flexibility of my shoulder. So it’s just going to look gross forever thanks to him.

Do you have any kind of resentment against Ken Shamrock?

This is something that I’m going to have to live with for the rest of my life. Every day, when I look into a mirror, and I look at myself, I will see that shoulder and the damages done. It will be a constant reminder of a match that I fell short in and lost. I think there’s a lot of resentment because I’ve not had the chance to make amends, so to speak.

Tell me about the road from the moment you left NXT in 2017 and the moment you signed with Impact last year

It’s a weird situation. When you’re let go, you’re not really sure what the next steps would be. I’m very happy with the time that I spent in NXT, I definitely learned a ton. In the following months, it took me a little while to kind of figure everything out. I was trying to work and live in Florida, and in the end, I don’t think it was a good thing for my wrestling career. I wasn’t getting out as much, I wasn’t flying out of Florida as often as I’d have liked, and I realized that if I didn’t change something I was just going to be hitting the same speed bumps again and again. Then I had an offer from my already friends Sami Callihan and Jake Crist. They talked to me and reached out and said, if I moved back up to Ohio where I’m originally from, they could help me out, they could help me back onto this path that I so desperately needed back on. The road was bumpy, and I was a hundred percent living in credit card debt pretty hard, but with every step I’ve taken, and with every sacrifice I’ve made towards my career, I think it’s really worked out for me in the long run. I’m super happy with Impact Wrestling, I love where we’re going, I love this momentum that we’re building. I think it’s one of the best wrestling programs out there today. We don’t have quite the budget that everyone else has, but I think that the in-ring talent and our unique storylines make Impact an awesome place to be right now.

Ohio is a very special place for wrestling and wrestlers.

Not only do we have tremendous talents to learn from, but one of the biggest things about Ohio, when it comes to the States, is that it’s very centralized. Everything is only a few hours to Chicago, a few hours to New York City. When you’re first breaking out and first trying to become a superstar, you’re constantly needing to get rise to carpool. A great thing about how Ohio is there’s always someone here doing something, there’s always a car to jump in, to get your face out, to go somewhere. For guys like the Rascalz, Ace Austin, even myself, it’s absolutely necessary when you’re trying to get out and make your name in this business that you can get out places and travel to all these different spots. The abundance of good wrestlers in Ohio makes that really easy not only to learn but to ride along.

How would you describe your relationship with the oVe family, Sami, Dave, and Jake?

I honestly consider them as brothers. Sami and I have been friends for seven or eight years. We met each other down in NXT, but I’ve actually known the Crist brothers for a while too. My first year in pro wrestling, their car broke down about an hour from where I lived, and I got a call from a mutual friend of ours, and I ended up going to pick them up and driving them to a show that was a few hours away. Just to have an opportunity on that show, but that time that I spent with them in the car, I learnt so much from those two between Dave and Jake, their minds for pro wrestling is absolutely insane, and I personally believe that Jake Crist is the single most underrated wrestler in the world today. I think people overlook him because of the shadow that Sami casts or my size, but when it comes to in-ring abilities, I don’t think there’s a wrestler today that holds a candle to Jake Crist, he is absolutely one of the best.

You’ve been on Impact for nearly a year, what can you say about it?

I think during this first year of Impact, I’ve definitely established myself as a member of the roster to be feared. I think that I’ve shown with both my size, my speed, and my strength that I have a lot to offer, and I have a lot to bring to the table. Every single time I set foot in a ring in 2019, I felt confident, I felt better and better and heading into 2020, I’m ready for it. I’m ready for what Impact has to bring. I’m ready for what the other members of the roster have to throw at me, and I’m ready to prove to the world that I’m not just your next big guy. I am a true monster in that ring, and I think by the end of 2020, everyone will be agreeing with me.

You made your debut when Impact monsters, Abyss and Kongo Kong, were leaving. There was a spot for a big guy, a monster, and so for you to explore and to show that you can be the new Monster of the company.

You’re right. I am currently the largest member of the roster. I’m almost the biggest guy on any roster on TV. You’re right, there was a gap, in between Abyss and Kongo Kong leaving. They say a lot of pro wrestling has to do with being in the right place at the right time. I really think I started to get out of my shell, to get out of a comfort zone that NXT has built, and really by showing what I can truly do in the ring, at the right time, when Impact was looking for that next big guy. I think if you keep your eyes peeled over the next few years, you’re going to see that this isn’t just a passing thing, this isn’t just something that’s happening. I’m here for a reason. There’s no big guy better than me out there right now. I’m set out to prove that. In 2020, 2021, 2022, so on and so forth. I’m still under 30 years old, so I still have a lot of time to prove what I’ve got.

What are your goals on Impact Wrestling? Are you looking at a Championship?

Of course, I’d be looking for a Championship. I think everybody does. My goal in the last year that I designed with Impact was to build my name, to build my recognition, to make sure that people knew that when I set foot in the ring, chaos was following, destruction was following. I think 2020 is a year to focus in on moving up that ladder. I haven’t even heard from Sami in weeks, he’s been off-TV and I honestly think that the World Championship is within my reach at Impact.

You have already had a few matches against Tessa Blanchard.

She’s never achieved a pinfall cover on me. She’s not even covered me for a one-count, there’s something to remind the head officials when they’re looking for your next challenger.

Before Impact Wrestling, have you ever done intergender matches?

That’s mostly because of where I was because NXT really doesn’t do a whole lot of that. There were a few matches out on the independent circuit. Naturally, there’s a lot of women out there in today’s wrestling world. They have a lot that they can teach to a larger male opponent. I still have some moves today that I used in-ring that I first developed in-ring with female competitors. With the way things are going there, with much stronger and more successful all these female superstars are, it’s not quite as much intergender wrestling, it’s just professional wrestling. These women bring it every time. No matter how much I outsize them, I respect any woman that’s not afraid to back down from a much larger opponent.

Who in the current roster are you interested in wrestling but you have never had the chance to since you made your debut?

I’ve never had a one-on-one match with Michael Elgin. I’ve faced him in a few multi-men matches. I’ve trained with him a bit, I look at him, and I see someone who not only uses the moniker of big but someone who presents himself as a large threat on the Impact roster. We’ve never had a chance to cross paths yet, and if anybody is going to be around to knock Elgin down a few pegs, it’s going to be the monster of oVe.

How do you want to explore the character of Madman? Do you want to add more to this character? Madman is the bad guy, the big man?

I think as time goes on, and every time I’ve had the ability to appear on Impact Wrestling, I’ve added a few more layers and a few more layers. It’s only recently that I’ve been able to just speak out and promos. I think the longer you see me there, the more layers you’re going to get to everything. I’m out here, and I’m part of Impact Wrestling because what I’m able to do in that ring I would be arrested for in any other circumstance. That’s why I’m here. That doesn’t mean that I go off attacking small children or random people. I’m a competitor and I’m here to do things the way that I want to do, that’s what this character brings. I think the more opportunities I have to appear on Impact wrestling, the more I can begin to unravel.

When you did a media call less than a year ago, you said you were interested in being in a Monsters Ball match. Who would be your opponent, or opponents, of choice in your perfect Monsters Ball match?

My answer will sound weird, but it would be Jake Crist because while we are brothers, while he is one of the people I lean on the most, he’s one of my greatest friends. I’ve seen what that man can do in the ring. I’ve seen what he can do in hardcore matches, and there’s just something good about just beating the hell out of each other, with one of your best friends. I want to test him. I want to see how far Jake Crist is willing to go. I know what he can bring in the ring. I know what he can do, but now I want to see, if I was going to have a Monsters Ball match with anybody, I’d want to see just exactly how far he’s willing to push himself because I know he’s not going to push himself further than me.

Follow Madman Fulton on Twitter @FultonWorld.

IMPACT Wrestling is airing on Tuesday at 8/7c on AXS TV in the USA. The show is available to view in the UK from 2 am Wednesdays on the IMPACT Plus app and airs at 9 pm Wednesdays on Fight Network UK (Sky 192/Freesat 161), (circa) 11 pm Fridays on 5Star and repeated on Fight Network UK at 9 pm on Sundays.

All pics, screenshots, and videos courtesy of Impact Wrestling, AXS TV and Basil Mahmud.