Sami Callihan: ‘In My Eyes, Steve Maclin Is Stone Cold Steve Austin’

Sami Callihan is a big fan of Steve Maclin.

The former IMPACT star recently spoke with Fightful (full interview above), and commented on a number of topics, including the recent Superstar releases in WWE, and his advice to those invovled. The Death Machine also took the opportunity to praise Steve Maclin, who made the move to IMPACT after being cut from WWE in February 2021.

“All that anger? Use it for motivation. Live with the chip on your shoulder. Don’t be afraid to go out there and risk it all for a big reward. Steve Maclin, not gonna lie, probably my favorite wrestler on the planet right now. Everything he does makes you want to watch it. He kills it in any situation he’s put in. I don’t think he’s been used to his ability in any company that he’s ever wrestled for, even being World Champion. In my eyes, I think he’s Stone Cold Steve Austin. He is a badass, ass kicking veteran who can wrestle anyone, anywhere, do heel stuff, do babyface stuff. Doesn’t matter. I think he is such an authentic human being and that comes across on in his in-ring and everything he does, now people are really starting to open their eyes. I remember when he first came to IMPACT,” Callihan said.

Sami continued on, reminding everyone that you shouldn’t judge a book by it’s cover, noting that you never know who is going to be awesome. 

“I love Steve Maclin. I think he’s friggin’ great. I think he should be making millions of dollars and be one of the top people in professional wrestling. I truly believe it. There’s a reason why he was wrestling with all the world champions. When he left WWE and came to IMPACT, so many fans online bitched and hollered, ‘They’re gonna sign this guy. He’s not great.’ Now they’ve seen what he’s truly capable of and ‘Oh, my God, he’s awesome.’ So don’t judge a book by its cover. You never know who’s going to be awesome. You never know who wants it,” he said.

Adding detail to why he is such a big fan of Maclin, Sami highlighted his meticulousness and urged anyone unfamiliar with Maclin’s work to seek it out. 

“He’s very meticulous. He’s very, very meticulous. He paints all of his ring jackets because there’s a certain way he want to look and he’s not an artist at all. But he does it. He makes stencils and everything else because it’s part of that thing of him getting into the mode. Steve Maclin’s awesome. If you don’t know who he is, you should. You’re an idiot,” Sami concluded.

On Sunday, October 1, 2023, Sami Callihan became a free agent, thus ending his long standing tenure with IMPACT Wrestling. Click here to learn more.

Fightful recently spoke with Steve Maclin. That interview can be seen here.