Exclusive: RVD Says Money Was The Motivating Factor For Impact Return

Age is just a number, and Rob Van Dam is out to prove that.

Gone are a lot of the negative connotations with age in pro wrestling. We see Chris Jericho as a marquee player, PCO on the best run of his career, and a 48-year old Rob Van Dam is making his way back to Impact Wrestling. After having three years away from the national scene, RVD was talked back into the company by Scott D’Amore. 

“When I first talked to Scott, we were just talking about (United We Stand). Over the last three years, I’ve had about 10-12 matches a year. I haven’t really been interested in doing more than that. But good business is good business. I’m always interested in business when it’s good. Scott said he wanted to run by some future dates with me and as you could imagine, the biggest factors were on the business end. That’s what most of us look for is compensation and the schedule. It looks like a schedule that’s not too heavy. It’s not going to change a whole lot of my life,” Van Dam told Fightful.

With Van Dam averaging just a match per month over recent years, he’s going to step that up a little bit by starting back with Impact. He didn’t mince words about that, saying that the money he’d be making was what led to him coming back. 

“I’ll be stepping it up and wrestling more. That’s a good thing because I’ll be staying ready more. Before, I could go into off-season mode. I was still training, but I’d crank up the intensity for a show. Now at least a couple of times a month, I’ll have to stay at my best. It’s good to have a reason. I’d like to say I’m there because I miss wrestling or because I see guys like Willie Mack and think I could have a great match, but I’m there for the business. I’m there because the deal I have. I’m motivated to go to work, and when I’m at work I’m all professional. You don’t see an unmotivated RVD. I only do it when it’s worth it. When it’s worth it, I like to deliver,” Van Dam told me. 

You can see Impact Wrestling weekly every Friday, which streams live here on Fightful.com