Nick Aldis Believes Alex Shelley Is The Underdog Going Into Their Match At Slammiversary

Following their Slammiversary match, Nick Aldis believes Alex Shelley might become a transitional champion.

When asked about having to establish himself as Magnus in IMPACT this year, Aldis responded he doesn’t think he has to because he already has, and that’s the character IMPACT wanted, not Magnus.

“I don’t think there’s a chip on my shoulder … Let me make this clear. I’m not trying to establish Nick Aldis. Nick Aldis is established. IMPACT Wrestling wanted Nick Aldis. They didn’t want Magnus,” Nick Aldis said. “They wanted Nick Aldis, and that’s a testament to my body of work. Also, hats off to them because there was absolutely no discussion of referring to any of the past other than, other than just as an interesting footnote, as an interesting sidebar.

“You guys might remember this guy because this is who he was before, but let’s face it,” Aldis explained, “when I showed up, it wasn’t like anyone went, ‘Oh, it’s Magnus.’ No, this is Nick Aldis. We know who this guy is.”

Aldis went on to say that he believes IMPACT World Champion Alex Shelley is the underdog in their Slammiversary fight.

“I’ve worked very hard to achieve that sort of credibility and that cachet,” Nick Aldis said. “Now it’s just time to see it through because I don’t know, maybe this is just me, maybe I’m speaking out of school, but I think the interesting thing about the main event at Slammiversary, the worlds title match is that champion, I feel like is the underdog. I think if Alex Shelley beats me at Slammiversary, it’s a bit of an upset.”

“And boy, does he have a tall order for his first title defense? I hate to use the phrase transitional champion, but oops. Here we go. This will be the ultimate test to see whether Maclin was off his game and whether Alex Shelley did just happen to be in the right place at the right time. Because if he beats me, then his world title reign is solidified as legitimate.”

When Pritchard quipped that Aldis didn’t have to pull teeth to label Shelley an underdog, Aldis said that he was only expressing the truth, which some people find offensive.

“I don’t mince words; I’m telling the truth,” Nick Aldis stated. “Some people find that — in a business full of liars, people who tell the truth are often ostracized and demonized. I think we’ve seen that in other places recently. But there you go. It’s another story for another day. I’m well aware of what I bring to the table.

“And like I said, what I bring to Slammiversary is the toughest test that [Alex has] ever faced because. Whereas he has had a very good career and a very storied career, and he certainly has his fingerprints on a lot of people in the industry, he doesn’t have the big match experience that I have. He certainly doesn’t have the experience of the pressure of carrying the entire brand and the entire company on his back like I have.”