WSI | Wrestling Shoot Interviews cover art
Ended / dormantSportsUnited Kingdom

WSI | Wrestling Shoot Interviews

Hosted by James Romero

A UK-based interview show where host James Romero gets legendary pro wrestlers to share candid stories from their careers in the 80s and 90s.

The brief

This is a classic "shoot interview" archive, where a knowledgeable host prompts veteran wrestlers for unvarnished stories from their careers. The show is notable for its focus on legends from the 1980s and 90s, digging into topics like wrestler pay, the mechanics of signature moves, and road stories involving icons like Andre the Giant and Bruiser Brody. Interviews are often released as a series of short, single-anecdote clips from a longer recording session.

Unlike broader wrestling news podcasts, WSI is laser-focused on the historical shoot interview format with older, often-less-interviewed legends. Its clip-based release strategy on YouTube makes it easy to consume specific anecdotes without committing to a multi-hour interview.
— What makes it distinctive
§1 · The host

Who hosts this show

WSI | Wrestling Shoot Interviews is a UK-based YouTube channel hosted by James Romero, dedicated to long-form conversations with professional wrestling legends. The show focuses on eliciting behind-the-scenes stories and specific details from the careers of figures like The Barbarian, Haku, and Eric Bischoff. Romero is also an author of wrestling biographies and owns the WSI Network, which produces other podcasts like "Story Time with Dutch Mantell".

AI-extracted bio · help us verify· Source: gemini-video-grounded

Credentials & credits

  • Host, WSI | Wrestling Shoot Interviews
  • Owner, WSI Network
  • Author, "Owen Hart: King of Pranks"
  • Author, "Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson: The People's Champion"

Other ventures

  • WSI Network
  • Story Time with Dutch Mantell (Producer/Co-host)
  • The Stevie Richards Show (Network)
  • Shane Douglas Official (Network)
§2 · Classification

What kind of podcast

Format
Interview
Region
uk
§3 · Cadence & catalog

When new episodes drop

Publishing rate
Daily
Not shown by Apple / Spotify
Total episodes
1.7K
Last episode
1.4 years ago
Jan 26, 2025
Status
Ended / dormant
§3b · Editor's picks

Notable episodes

AI-extracted picks + commentary · help us verify
  1. 01
    Barbarian on Andre the Giant's Drinking Feats!

    A classic example of the show's "road story" focus, detailing a legendary anecdote about Andre the Giant's drinking capacity.

  2. 02
    Barbarian on Bruiser Brody

    Showcases the host's method of digging into a wrestler's relationship with and influence from past legends.

  3. 03
    Barbarian on Destroying Wrestlers with The Big Boot!

    A deep-dive into the mechanics and history of a single signature move, a hallmark of the show's content.

  4. 04
    The Godfather Full Shoot Interview | WSI 11

    A full-length interview that demonstrates the show's ability to cover a wrestler's entire career, from their start to their business outside of wrestling.

§4 · Signature

What you'll be asked on this show

AI-extracted from recent episodes · help us verify
How James Romero interviews

James Romero's approach is that of a patient historian. He often opens by asking about a signature move's origin or a superlative "road story" to get the guest comfortable. He uses viewer questions as a foundation but builds on them with his own knowledgeable follow-ups, clarifying timelines ("Was it in the territories or WWF?") or specific details like pay. Romero's key technique is asking a short, direct question and then ceding the floor, letting the veteran wrestler narrate the story in full without interruption. He doesn't typically push back or challenge, preferring to elicit memories rather than create conflict.

James Romero hosts one-on-one interviews, often using fan-submitted questions as a starting point for a topic. He asks direct, concise questions to prompt specific stories and then allows the guest to speak at length without interruption. The show frequently publishes short clips from a single, longer interview over several consecutive days.

Questions James Romero keeps coming back to

9 catalogued

If you're going on this show as a guest, expect some version of each of these. Each note explains when James Romero reaches for it.

personal

3
  1. Q.01

    Do you have any stories about [legendary wrestler]?

    Used to prompt anecdotes about famous, often deceased, figures his guests worked with.

  2. Q.02

    Who was the last man standing at the bar, drinking-wise?

    A classic opener to elicit "road stories" about the infamous drinking culture among wrestlers.

  3. Q.03

    Were you a big drinker on the road?

    A direct follow-up question to probe the guest's own personal habits and stories.

origin

1
  1. Q.01

    When was the first time you met [legendary figure]?

    A go-to question to establish the origin story of a guest's relationship with an iconic peer.

craft

2
  1. Q.01

    How did you come up with your [signature move]?

    A common question about the origin and mechanics of a wrestler's famous maneuver.

  2. Q.02

    Who was the best at 'selling' your [signature move]?

    Asks the guest to evaluate the skills of their former opponents in making moves look effective.

process

1
  1. Q.01

    Did you ever accidentally hit someone for real with that move?

    This question is used to get stories about in-ring mistakes and their real-life consequences.

money

1
  1. Q.01

    Was [wrestler] the highest-paid foreign wrestler in Japan at the time?

    Probes into the often-secretive topic of wrestler pay in different territories and eras.

backstory

1
  1. Q.01

    Was that in [Promotion A] or [Promotion B]?

    A typical clarifying question used to pinpoint the exact time and place of a specific story.

Signature segments

  • · Name Association
  • · Viewer-submitted questions

Topics covered repeatedly

Professional Wrestling HistoryShoot InterviewsWWEWCW80s Wrestling90s WrestlingRoad StoriesWrestling TechniqueAndre the GiantBruiser Brody
§5 · Guests

Who gets booked here

AI-extracted guest list + profile · help us verify
Typical guest

The show almost exclusively books veteran, often semi-retired, professional wrestlers, primarily those who were prominent in the 1980s and 1990s WWF and WCW eras.

Recent guests
  • The Barbarian (Sione Vailahi)
    on Barbarian on Bruiser Brody
  • Haku (Tonga Fifita)
    on Barbarian on Destroying Wrestlers with The Big Boot!
  • Siva Afi
    on Barbarian on Andre the Giant's Drinking Feats!
  • Jerry Lynn
    on Jerry Lynn Full Interview | WSI 112
  • Jim Brunzell
    on "Jumpin'" Jim Brunzell Full Shoot Interview 1 Hour 30 | WSI #36
§6 · Channels & links

Where to find this show

§7 · Stats

Audience & reach

YouTube · first-party
Subscribers
181K
181,000
Avg views / video
17.9K
Trailing window
Total views
46.4M
46,432,940
Videos published
1,667
Sponsor readEstimated

The show is sponsored by independent wrestling promotions like Appalachian Championship Wrestling. The channel description also includes a direct email for sponsorship inquiries.

AI-extracted sponsor read · help us verify

Subscriber and view counts are pulled live from YouTube and re-verified on a 30-day cycle. Listener estimates for the RSS feed aren't published here unless they're host-verified.

§8 · Contact

Pitch James Romero

Sign-in required
Verified contact
Host / booking email
i•••@•••.com
Public channels

Free: limited reveals · Pro: unlimited reveals + CSV export
You’re only charged when we return a verified hit.

§9b · FAQ

People also ask

AI-extracted researched answers · help us verify
Who is the host of WSI?
The host and owner is James Romero, a British podcaster and author.
What is the format of the show?
It's a one-on-one interview show with veteran professional wrestlers, often released on YouTube as short clips from a longer recording session.
Is the podcast still active?
Yes, the channel continues to post new interview clips and full episodes.
How can I pitch a guest or sponsor the show?
The channel description provides an email, romeropodcast AT gmail DOT com, for sponsorship inquiries.
What kind of guests appear on WSI?
The show features legendary wrestlers, primarily from the 1980s and 1990s, such as The Barbarian, The Godfather, Eric Bischoff, and Ken Shamrock.
Where can I listen to the podcast?
The primary platform is the WSI | Wrestling Shoot Interviews YouTube channel.
Last updatedJun 29, 2026Not yet host-verified
Research depthDeep dossierHigh confidence · Jun 29, 2026 · gemini-2.5-pro

Built from the show's public RSS feed, YouTube, the host's own websites, and the cited sources below. Computed and AI-extracted fields are labelled. Facts only — no private info, no fabrication, no transcripts republished.

§9c · Methodology

Sources & how this page was built

This page is AI-assisted, grounded in the public sources cited below, and host-verifiable. We publish facts only; we do not republish transcripts. If anything here is wrong, the host can claim and correct the page above.Model: gemini-2.5-pro · high confidence

  1. [01]WSI | Wrestling Shoot Interviews - YouTubeyoutube.com
  2. [02]James Romero - Grokipediagrokipedia.com
  3. [03]Story Time with Dutch Mantell - YouTubeyoutube.com
  4. [04]British man pins down pro wrestlers for interviews - GRID NEWSgrid.news
  5. [05]The Godfather Full Shoot Interview | WSI 11youtube.com
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