In PWPonderings’ latest exclusive interview, Hunter Drake (@the_hunterdrake) sits down with Scott Mitchell (@Scott44Mitchell) to talk about his upcoming “Barbed Wire Baptism 2” match with Jamesen Shook, becoming the TWE Undisputed Champion, his recent match with Matt Tremont, teaming up with Nick Iggy to face off with Top Team at ACTION Wrestling on May 1st, Kenzie Paige & Kylie Alexa, GCW, his goals, and so much more. Watch it in its entirety down below.

Let’s jump right into it. This Saturday, you’ll be going one-on-one with Jamesen Shook at TWE. What’s your mindset heading into this one?

“I feel like going into this match, I’ve never been more focused in my entire career. I feel like I’m at the top of my game right now. I feel like, since capturing the TWE Championship that I’ve chased for two years, going week-after-week to TWE trying to grow and take over the card from the ground up, and I finally did that, I feel like this has lit a new fire under me to do whatever I have to do to make sure I take home this championship. But also, I want to send a message to Jamesen Shook. My message to him is very simple. He’s one of those guys that Jaden Newman brought in, took him under his wing, and he’s kind of been coddled into this business. I don’t think Jamesen Shook has seen hard times in professional wrestling. I don’t think Jamesen Shook has had to make the sacrifices that a lot of us had to make to get to where we are. Granted, Jamesen works very hard. He travels. He hits the road. He does it all the right way, but when you’re talking independent professional wrestling, you’re talking Hunter Drake, and I don’t think he did it my way. That has really pissed me off to the point where I don’t just want to hurt Jamesen; I don’t just want to make him bleed, but I want to make him earn it. He didn’t have to earn this championship; it was handed to him. I had to earn it. I want Jamesen to have to earn it exactly the way he should. But the only problem is he’s not going to, because on the other side is me. The reigning, defending TWE Champion, and the one who put him through an exploding chair and pinned his shoulders to the mat to win this championship. It’s going to be good. I’m very excited for Saturday.”

This will be a Barbed Wire Baptism 2, where you’ll defend your TWE Undisputed Championship. Does this type of match add anything to your mindset as you enter this one?

“For sure. It’s that deep feeling of I’m the guy who I feel like has put the south on my back. I have traveled these roads, and I’ve tried to do everything to be looked at as the best professional wrestling to come out of the southeast. Jamesen Shook, a guy who’s been here for three years, all the fans just want to give him the flowers now, that I have tried to earn and I have busted my ass to earn. He just walked in, and he got the flowers because they like his entrance music, and that already is what started this whole thing. That’s what caught my eye on Jamesen. The fact that Jamesen Shook walked out of the Scenic City Invitational, the same finals I was in, and he walked out the winner, made me sick. That’s what kicked off this whole thing, was personal feelings. Then you mix in my wanting the TWE Championship so bad. That’s really what made me think of the whole plan of entering myself into his match, into his world. That’s what he wants to call it, his world. I entered myself into his world and took what was his. That was my statement number one. This Saturday, I call it the final statement. After I put Shook down for good, no more. It’s over. It’s done. I hate you, you hate me, but you don’t come after my championship again.”

You became the TWE Undisputed Champion back in March at Jamesen Shook Presents “Good 4 U 2,” knocking off Jamesen Shook, who was the former champion, John Wayne Murdoch, and Kasey Owens in an Exploding Cage of Death match after cashing in your championship contract. What was this moment like for you?

“The moment itself, the whole plan of coming out and putting myself in this match, it really started when, because y’all know, I’ve been on the past two Jamesen Shook shows. But then, once I started putting my eyes on his championship, he wanted to leave me off the show. He didn’t want Hunter Drake coming to the building. He didn’t want to put me in that match himself. He knew what would happen. So, I earned my chance by beating CJ Lawlor, the matchmaker at TWE. I earned my chance at the championship match whenever I wanted. I immediately knew what day I was going to choose. He had planned all along for John Wayne Murdoch; he had planned all along for Kasey Owens, but he did not plan for Hunter Drake that night. The shock factor all alone could have been one of the things that helped me win. But doing it at his own show, in his own main event, and ruining his big moment, yet again, was just the cherry on top.”

What was it like to defeat Jamesen Shook in his own match to win the TWE Undisputed Championship for the first time?

“See that, now that just goes back to the universe pays you off in the end. You work hard. You do everything the right way, but then you’re going to have some clown who walks in and gets handed everything. But the real talent prevails. Not only did I take his championship, but I pinned him. I pinned him. That was the exact exclamation mark from the statement I’ve been preaching about this kid from the moment I met him. So yeah, that was just the perfect storybook ending for Jamesen and my story. But the fact is, he still thinks he wants one more shot. He wants to step up again. If you think that was going to be the perfect ending. No. You’re wrong. What I have planned to do to him to keep this championship on Saturday, that. That is the perfect ending to the final chapter of Hunter Drake and Jamesen Shook.”

Following your title win, you wasted very little time as you had to face off with a deathmatch icon, Matt Tremont, in your first-ever defense. What was this match like for you, and how did you prepare for Tremont?

“It’s not easy for sure. Especially because I really wasn’t expecting it all too much. That match happened on a Monday at the Monday night “Crash Course” show. I got called on Friday from TWE management saying that I’m required to defend my championship at least once within the 30-day mark or your stripped of the championship, that’s their rules. I already had prior obligations for the next two shows. So, my only option was to come on a Monday. So, I was like, sure. I’ll come on a Monday, I’ll put my boots on, and beat up on some kid at the “Crash Course” show. Then, I find out it’s against Matt Tremont. Deathmatch legend, and probably the best deathmatch wrestler of all time. There’s little to no time to prepare. So, what did I do? I had to do what I always do and make a plan. I had to give my old friend Dylan Hales a phone call, and I had to make sure that no matter what happened in the match, I was going to walk out with the championship. By the good grace of God, I did just that… I could have been like Jamesen Shook. I could have walked in there for the people, and I could have given Matt Tremont everything I had. No. I knew the whole time what I was going to do. I told Dylan, as soon as it looks like Matt Tremont is about to take this title from me, you do what you have to do to make sure that doesn’t happen. Dylan, who’s a good old friend of mine, made sure that didn’t happen.”

On Friday, May 1st, you and Nick Iggy, collectively known as The Carnies, will be at Scenic City Invitational to take on the ACTION Wrestling Tag Team Champions, Top Team, for their titles. What’s your mindset heading into that?

“You know, the Carnies, we usually are the smartest people in the room. That is where I developed all my great ideas and plans, from the Carnies. They taught me a lot. They take me under their wing. Nick Iggy and I, who were undefeated at ACTION Wrestling until two weeks ago, when Top Team gave us our first loss in our first championship match, didn’t walk in with the best plan that day. However, Top Team revealed their whole playbook in one match. We still have stuff in our back pocket. We’ve watched the footage, sat down, dissected what went wrong, and why we lost that match to Top Team. On May 1^st at the SCI Rumble, I guarantee you that not only will we get back on our winning ways and get back on our win streak that we had going for a year and a half now in that tag division, we ran through everyone, we’ll run through Top Team like we were supposed to two weeks ago, and we will be the new ACTION Wrestling Tag Team Champions. I will add another belt to this fine collection behind me.”

You’re very close with Kenzie Paige & Kylie Alexa. What has it been like for you to be front row and see their growth and all they’ve been doing and accomplishing?

“If people don’t know, a lot of people do know, but Kenzie and I have been together for seven/seven and a half years now, literally, since we were 18 years old. We really had to grow up together, and I got to see her go from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. She’s seen me go through the same thing. To see her become, in my opinion, the greatest women’s professional wrestler in the world, is very amazing. She deserves every bit of it. She works very hard. She’s helped me become the wrestler I am today. We get to help each other in all different avenues of the business, and I love to do that with the person I love. As for Kylie, it’s crazy to me. I met her back when she was 13/14, just a kid. I remember back when she didn’t even want to be a wrestler. She just grew up wanting to support Kenzie. They were always so close, best friends. She always wanted to go to shows with Kenzie and show her support. She was the loudest in the audience in Kenzie’s matches, and she always records them. Then, Kenzie finally convinced her to give it a try. To see Kylie go from not even knowing how to take a bump to now being one of the best women’s wrestlers going today, that has been awesome, too. It’s very awesome to see people who work so hard and their hard work pays off, especially people who are so close to me. Kylie’s like my little sister. Kenzie’s my love. It’s a blessing.”

You’ve also got to showcase your talents on what I would consider to be the largest independent wrestling company in the world, GCW. What has it been like to work at this promotion and be a part of that locker room?

“GCW. It has given me the greatest opportunities of my career, thus far. Being in the locker room with the caliber of talent and characters like EFFY, to the in-ring talent, to guys like Jordan Oliver & Alec Price, to just all of the deathmatch guys, and just everyone is a huge family at GCW. I think GCW is by far the best locker room I’ve been in. If you’re looking at closeness, everyone loves everyone, and everyone supports everyone. The OGs. The OGs do a great job at helping young talent like me, telling us why we should or shouldn’t do things, watching our matches, giving advice, even when they have a bunch of other stuff to do. Then you get mixed in with the surprise appearances. The big-time guys. The former WWE guys who are coming down and they’re making their debuts, and you just get to watch their independent run get that GCW kick. It’s a whole other world. I’ve enjoyed GCW so much in my career. I’m very grateful to Brett for giving me all the opportunities that he does and that he continues to give me. I’m definitely team GCW for life. I love GCW.”

In your time at GCW, you’ve worked with several great matches, including singles contests against Zayda Steel, Allie Katch, & Billie Starkz. What has it been like to work with them?

“So those three matches, specifically, are some of my favorite matches I’ve had at GCW. Each one of those matches just feels next level, feels top tier. I really enjoyed those. I enjoy working with everyone. There aren’t many people when you go to GCW that will leave a sour taste in your mouth working with. I love every match that I’ve been put in, and I love every opportunity, but those three specifically are up there on my list of GCW matches I got to have. Another one that was very special to me that I got to have was a triple threat in Los Angeles with me, Zilla Fatu, and my main man, Bobby Flaco. Those three and that match are probably four of my five favorite GCW matches I’ve got to have.”

Looking ahead for you, what are your future goals for 2026 and beyond?

“My goal is to just keep doing what I’m doing in my day-to-day. Work hard, hit the gym, put on some more size. In wrestling, my goals are to capture more gold wherever I go and, hopefully, continue to climb the ranks and find myself on an even higher level. Maybe TNA X-Division. I’m always looking at that level of high-caliber talent. Obviously, you have Ring of Honor and AEW. There are so many opportunities now that I don’t just want to say one and put myself in one bubble. But, I want to get to that and take my career and get to that next level, and I want to start competing with even more talented people on those levels.”

Do you have any future opponents you’d like to share the ring with?

“There’s a lot of great wrestlers right now. I’d love to do some rematches with someone like Myron Reed, Alec Price, or Jordan Oliver. As far as first-time match-ups, I’d love to go one-on-one for the first time with EFFY. He’s a former GCW Champion, and is a guy who has been a staple on the independents for the past however many years. I’d really like to do a rematch with Matt Tremont, but this one has to be a deathmatch. That’s the only way I’d do a rematch with Tremont, if he would do a deathmatch against me. I’m always down to wrestle anyone. Put me in the ring with anyone, and I’ll show them why I can compete.”