From wrestling in the WWE to ROH to NJPW, to growing up as the sons of Haku, Tanga Roa has has an interesting road to where he is.
A former WWE talent, Roa, who went by the name Camacho, didn't quite have the impact he'd hoped he would in the world's biggest wrestling company. After being cut loose from the WWE, he knew he wanted to join his brother Tama Tonga, who had carved out a great spot in New Japan Pro Wrestling as a member of the Bullet Club. According to a new interview with Sports Illustrated, Roa said that was his original plan all along.
“I am bigger than most of the talents in Japan, but in WWE, I’m the same size as the other wrestlers, so I didn’t look as big and I didn’t work ‘big.’ Now I need to work like a giant, and that’s the only transition I’ve had to adapt to in Japan. They want me to move like a giant in Japan, while I could move a lot faster in WWE. I’m proudest to be working with my brother. That was our goal from the very beginning in the summer of 2004. I was still in college playing ball, and he was in the Air Force, and I call him in the middle of the night and told him we were going to become professional wrestlers. And he said, ‘You promise?’ and I said yes," Roa said.
Coming into the WWE, Camacho was known as the son of one of the most notoriously tough wrestlers in history, Haku. Later re-named Tanga Roa, he doesn't feel as if he needs to validate the time he spent in WWE. According to the man himself, he's happy where he is, and to be wrestling with who he's wrestling with.
"We’re here together, working for a great company in New Japan and we have this opportunity to work alongside Ring of Honor, and that’s what I’m proud of," Roa said. "I have nothing to prove to WWE. I appreciated the time I had over there and I learned from it. I learned from it, make your weaknesses your strengths, and our goal is to keep kicking ass. I take great pride when I step in the ring with him knowing where we’ve been, what we’ve done, and what we are now trying to accomplish.”
Tanga Roa will be joining his brother Tama Tonga and Yujiro this Friday at ROH Death Before Dishonor to take on CHAOS. Fightful.com will have full, live coverage of the PPV, as well as a viewing party.
