Adam Copeland understood that the Raw and SmackDown! separations presented him with an extraordinary opportunity to advance his singles career. He also realized that in order to shed his tag-team specialist” label, he'd have to raise his intensity level and modify his character. Through hard work, good fortune and a tremendous series of matches with Kurt Angle, Copeland took advantage of this opportunity and became the breakout star of the SmackDown! roster. Now regarded as a top-notch singles competitor, he's closer than ever to achieving his ultimate goal: becoming the WWE Undisputed Champion. As he explains in this RAW Interview, success is rarely an overnight thing, but when opportunity strikes in this business, you better take advantage of it,RAW Magazine: Many credit your match against Kurt Angle at Backlash as a watershed moment in your career What did it mean to you?
Edge: I think the match at Backlash was a coming out for Edge. I saw one comparison in that the original ladder match with Christian and myself against the Hardys was a coming out for both teams; we stepped up and showed people what we could do. What that ladder match did for us, I think this match at Backlash did for me. It finally cast off the tag-team “stigma” that I may have had.
RAW: Were you worried that you might be pigeonholed as a tag-team specialist?
Edge: Of course. I enjoyed everything that Edge & Christian did; it was a lot of fun. But, it was time to move on.I had a few concerns. One was that I was not only going from a tag to a singles wrestler, but also from a heel to a face. It's a huge transition, and I didn't know how the people would take it. It can be a very tough period, and for a long time, it was. But, I really think that my match with Kurt at Backlash helped solidify me as a singles player who's here—and here to play.
RAW: Once you became a singles player you also refined your character Today, Edge is not just an entertaining jokester, but one tough hombre as well. Was getting tougher a priority for you, and how would you describe yourself now?
Edge: The new Edge is a combination of what I am now and the old “Bill & Ted” Edge. Maybe now I'm a little bit cooler and not quite so dorky. I'm still having fun, still playing practical jokes, and I make fun of myself a bit. I've always said it's good to make fun of yourself before someone else gets the chance. But, I can get serious and turn the game face on when I need to, like when I get in there with the Angles, and one day the Triple Hs.
RAW: Do you think the sports-entertainment community takes you more seriously now?
Edge: I think so. And I think it needed to come about through the type of angle I had with Kurt. People can see how I'm making strides as a singles wrestler. They can see that I'm doing my own thing and getting better at it. But, it wasn't easy, and it was long transition. It just isn't something that you can do in a week or two. Christian and I went through this when we first turned heel; we had to focus and retool our whole game.
RAW: DO you think your success as a tag-team specialist delayed your development as a singles star?
Edge: I think it did. I think expectations were, and still are, higher for me because Christian and I won seven Tag Team titles. So when I went on to become primarily a singles wrestler, everybody thought that I could just make a big splash immediately. Now, if the splash isn't as big as you thought it was going to be, it can be a letdown. I think lover-thought things at the beginning. I feel like I'm now in a groove, and ideas for matches and vignettes are just coming to me. It's because I'm more comfortable and feel more confident.
RAW: Can one match make that big of a difference?
Edge: One match can be a springboard to start something else. I think it started with the brand extension. When Smack-Down! became a separate entity, I knew this was going to be an opportunity for me, and that I had to pick up the ball and run with it. Who knows when an opportunity like this will come again? I remember one match I had with Goldust a week before the extension. At the very end of it, I kicked him in the Golden Globes and speared him. It felt so intense. It's almost as if that one act in that match turned the switch for me. From then on, I've been really happy and comfortable.
RAW: You ‘ye been quoted as saying that having patience is a very important quality to have in this business? Are you still patient, or do you feel a sense of urgency now?
Edge: Well, patience is a virtue. But at this point, I'm running out of patience— which is a good thing. I want it. I want to grab that brass ring. But, I don't feel any more pressure. It feels good. I'm stepping up and proving that I can do this. Like I said, people are starting to realize that I can do it, that I can compete with the big boys. It's rarely an overnight thing. If you look at Triple H's career, he had a slow build. But I think that now, I'm starting to make some strides to where I want to go and play with the big boys.
RAW: You've been wrestling with Christian since you two were in the sixth grade. How is it to be apart now? Did you know this day would come?
Edge: We knew one day it would happen, but it's really no different. We're both consumed by the business. We were together for so long before we actually got into this business. We had already experienced so much together that business would never come between us. I think Christian's still a very underrated talent, and I think one day he'll show everybody what he shows me every night. He can go in there every night and put on a match that has people on the edge of their seats, not knowing what's going to happen. I've seen him do some great stuff with a lot of people, and he's going to get his opportunity. The cream eventually rises to the top. When we first split, I think he thought a little bit too much and put a little too much pressure on himself, but he'll hit his stride. I'm sure we'll meet again down the road.
RAW: Now that you‘re a major player on SmackDown! do you feel a larger sense of responsibility?
Edge: When it comes to conducting myself, I've always tried to act in a professional Manner. I'm a pretty easygoing guy. But with that said, I think there comes a point where you have to becomea leader. Hopefully, I'll get to where I can become a leader. But right now, we have a lot of leaders like Hunter and Kurt. I'd like to think that I will get there. When it comes to the matches themselves, I have more of an opportunity for my ideas to get used. If I pitch an idea, I probably have a better chance of it being used than before. I'm more involved now and more confident in speaking up and being a part of things. I'd rather be hands on than just sit back and take the attitude that whatever happens, happens. Also, when you have more time with your match, you have more opportunity to get several ideas in. You have to be more hands on to keep people interested in a longer match.
RAW: What's it like to be in the ring with Kurt Angle?
Edge: It's intense. It's certainly brought my intensity level up a notch—which needed to be done. Kurt's truly amazing for a guy who's only been doing this three years; I've been doing it 10. So that says a lot about what Kurt has been able to do in such a short period of time. I always thought I was pretty good, then I got in the ring with him and realized, “Wow, I need to step it up a notch to compete with him.” The good thing is that it has translated to other matches I I'm in, and the intensity of all my matches is now much higher.
RAW: Outside the ring, you are pretty laid back. Do you do anything special to ratchet it up when you go to the ring?
Edge: I'm laid back. But at the same time, if I'm disrespected, or I feel that someone is being a p**** to me, I have a different side. But that̓s rarely seen, because I'm not put in that situation too often outside the ring. When I step in the ring, I turn that side of me on. I listen to some music, usually some pretty heavy music—Rob Zombie, Metallica, Disturbed. I loosen up a bit and then just go out there and do my thing.
RAW: You've won every major championship except for the WWE Undisputed Championship. Do you think you're ready to challenge for it?
Edge: I always look at my career and compare it to guys like Shawn Michaels or Bret Hart. They started off in tag teams and had success like Christian and I did. Then they won the Intercontinental Championship, which I've held four times; I've also won the King of the Ring. So it's been a nice, steady, gradual process. Eventually, I want it to lead to the Undisputed Championship. I've always said that if you get into this business and don't want to be World Champion, then why are you in it? That should be your goal. Your goal in anything should be to be the best and that is what I want to do. I want to be mentioned in the same breath as The Rocks, Triple Hs, Stone Colds, Angles, Undertakers and Jerichos. I plan on doing it, but I can't say when it will be.
RAW: What's the key to doing that?
Edge: Running angles that are successful is the key. You can't win every match with all the great competitors here. Sometimes you advance when you lose, like what happened to me at Backlash. Even though I lost, that match did more for me as a singles competitor than my winning any other match. I had fans come and thank me for the match, and when that happens, when we can entertain them to that degree, it's pretty damn cool. That means people appreciate what you do; it feels good and it energizes you.
RAW: Finally, during down time, you can often be seen reading in the arena. Have you always been an avid reader?
Edge: Growing up, I read a lot. I read comic books endlessly. We take so many plane trips that when I get back to my hotel room I need to unwind, so I always make sure I have a book with me. My routine is that after shows, I'll go back to my hotel room, watch SportsCenter read a chapter or two of whatever book I have with me, and then crash. I usually go through a book per trip when I'm on the road. •