Johnny Gargano (@johnnygargano) is a professional wrestler signed to WWE. He is a former NXT Champion, NXT North American Champion and NXT Tag Team Champion. He sits down with Chris Van Vliet in Tampa, FL to talk about his return to WWE, reforming DIY with Tommaso Ciampa, his favorite matches from NXT, why NXT shouldn't be looked at as developmental but as a third brand, being a Browns fan, why his wife Candice LeRae is his favorite wrestler, being a dad to their son Quill, his love of Marvel, whether or not he was close to signing with AEW after he left WWE in 2021, how Shawn Michaels got him to cry real tears during his goodbye promo, his relationship with Triple H and much more. BABBEL: Get 50% off a lifetime Babbel subscription at http://babbel.com/cvv Quote I'm thinking about: "Clapping for others does not take away from your own success." 00:00 Intro 00:31 Our previous interviews together 03:14 Experiencing the joy of being a father 07:12 Did he know he was going back to WWE? 09:44 Discussion of going to AEW 12:19 The story of his physical transformation 16:49 His thoughts on Joe Flacco & The Cleveland Browns 20:32 Giving Shawn Michaels a special gift 24:31 Memories of his last night at NXT 26:14 Not wrestling outside of WWE while he was gone 27:26 Was it tough to take a break after he left? 28:28 Triple H bringing him back to WWE 31:38 Is there still a place for him in NXT? 32:35 What part of Cleveland is he from? 35:20 Which NXT matches is he most known for? 36:38 His opinion on 5 star matches 37:30 Learning to deal with criticism 41:19 What is he most proud about Candice LeRae 42:35 William Regal changing the culture of WWE 46:10 Keeping his name and the origin of ‘Johnny Wrestling’ 47:45 Being the first NXT Triple Crown champion 48:26 Moves that look like they hurt but don’t 49:36 Will Tommaso Ciampa turn on him again? 50:37 3 Things Johnny Gargano is grateful for Subscribe to http://youtube.com/ChrisVanVliet Listen to "Insight with Chris Van Vliet": https://podcast.chrisvanvliet.com Get awesome CVV t-shirts & merch: https://teespring.com/stores/chris-van-vliet Email me: cvv@chrisvanvliet.com Follow me on Instagram: http://instagram.com/ChrisVanVliet Like me on Facebook: http://facebook.com/ChrisVanVliet Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ChrisVanVliet #BlueWireVideo #wwe #nxt #johnnygargano