[ECW] Big Show, Heyman Comment on Extension

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ECW.com has posted interviews with Paul Heyman and ECW Champion Big Show about the just-announced news that ECW on Sci Fi has been expanded to at least December 2007. Some excerpts…

The Big Show:
“This is a real payoff … It’s a combination of a lot of hard work from everyone. It’s been a very stressful production throughout the summer, but we’ve got the best crew in the business and they bust their ass every night. We have self-sacrificing talent that works hard every night. We are building a product, a brand, a new fan base every week. I am very, very proud.”

“The ECW talent is among the best I’ve ever worked with … I can tell you this: we have major stars on the horizon. Guys like Balls Mahoney, Sandman, Tommy Dreamer and a guy I think is going to be huge, C.M. Punk.”

“…The ECW fans are the real winners here because they deserve this. To those fans, I want to say thank you. You have put ECW back on the map.”

Paul Heyman:
“This extension means that we now have the ability to think long term. What do we envision for Big Show at WrestleMania? The twists for RVD, Sandman and Sabu. When will C.M. Punk be put to the test? Who are the next breakout stars that have yet to debut on ECW? In the original ECW, Sabu vs. Tazz was the number one storyline for 18 months, and they never touched each other until our first pay-per-view. We had the luxury of long term planning. Now, we finally have that luxury again, to take the time to tell these kinds of epic stories.”

“I love the one-hour format because it’s different … It’s so fast paced. You’re just slurping down your first beverage when the main event is headed to the ring. I would also love to see a 75 or 90 minute offering of ECW as well, but if they told me tomorrow, ‘we are going to two hours’, we’d be ready. It would give us more time for longer matches, more characters like C.M. Punk to introduce, more time to explain the background of legends like Sabu, Sandman and Tommy Dreamer. But right now, one-hour is a god-send. It sure beats marketing only the memories. Now, we’re creating new moments, new characters and new memories. This is a fantasy come true.”

“For those audience members who were with us since the beginning, this is the holy grail. Thank you for your continued support. ECW has successfully been resurrected and we couldn’t have done it without you. For the new audience, welcome to ECW. This is the ground floor of the premiere brand under the WWE umbrella.”

For more from Big Show, click here and from Heyman, click here.

Matthew Michaels is editor emeritus of Pulse Wrestling, and has been since the site launched.