Preston Vance, better known as Dark Order's "10" never wore a mask until he was initiated into Brodie Lee's group.
Vance debuted in AEW in January 2020 and became "10" in April 2020.
Speaking to Dynamite Download, Preston Vance recaleld first learning about the mask and how he turned it into a positive.
"When I got signed, I hated the mask, absolutely hated it. I didn't understand the character, but I wasn't going to say no, obviously. I didn't understand. On the Indies, I never wore a mask, I wasn't this dark creepy person. That's just not me. I'm like, 'What the hell am I doing?' Now, I absolutely love it. It's just another element to your image. Now you're not just a body guy. Whether you're a heel or babyface, you're either a real life super hero or a real life villain. It's really cool. I let the fans create all my gear. Fans will tag me in sketches they do. I love fan art because I can't draw, so it's really cool. So, they'll tag me in stuff and I'll send it to a gear person and they make it come to life. [The fans] are watching TV and they see me like, 'Whoa, I drew that.' Now they are always connected. I always look at it like, if I'm a kid watching and I drew something and sent it to a wrestler and he actually wore it. I'd be like, 'He's my favorite wrestler forever,'" he said.
Vance has been regularly featured on AEW television and has arguably the biggest match of his career on Wednesday when he faces Jon Moxley in the first round of the AEW Title Elimination Tournament.
Fightful will have live coverage of AEW Dynamite beginning at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday.
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit the original source with a h/t and link back to Fightful for the transcription.
