When Mark Andrews was announced as the final competitor in the WWE United Kingdom Championship tournament Jan. 5, you would have expected his Twitter mentions to be flooded with messages of congratulations.
Instead, he had to deal with a bunch of fans asking why his Twitter handle still read '@MandrewsTNA'.
"Man, I had so many people messaging me saying that," he told ESPN on a phone call, laughing. "It was so frustrating. It's like, I can read, I obviously know it's still that, but it's a process, you know?"
Andrews eventually changed his username to 'MandrewsJunior,' reflecting his role as the bassist and vocalist of three-piece Welsh pop-punk band Junior. In doing so, he also officially closed the book on the past two years of his life, which he had spent wrestling for United States promotion Total Nonstop Action.
"I had a great time in TNA, but I decided it was time to finish up with them to try and take a bet on myself, because the UK has been such a hot spot for wrestling," Andrews said. "Fortunately for me, literally instantly after my contract was up, this opportunity came around, so it was kind of perfect timing."
Andrews' TNA contract expired Jan. 1, and, having spoken back and forth with William Regal at various independent shows over the previous three months, he decided to sign up for this weekend's historic two-night tournament in Blackpool, which will air live on the WWE Network at 8 p.m. local time (3 p.m. ET) Saturday and Sunday.
"I had a great two years with TNA -- there were no hard feelings when I left," he continued. "There's a lot of incredible talent in that company. Not just with the roster, but the staff and everyone involved. I think a lot of rumors online make it seem a lot worse there than it actually is. I just wish them the best of luck, and I really hope they can carry on doing well.
"I never planned for this to happen, but everybody wants to work with WWE. It's the top company in the world for professional wrestling. If this hadn't happened, I think I would have just kept my doors open and carried on doing this more as a labor of love than a labor. I still planned to leave TNA after these two years, not with any hard feelings, but just because I'm young and I'd like to get as much experience as possible to become the best possible all-rounder I can be. I wouldn't know what was in sight, but I would still be looking to broaden my horizons in wrestling."
Andrews has always sought self-improvement. In 2013, having just finished a Film Studies degree at Cardiff University, he packed his bags and bought a plane ticket to the U.S., along with fellow UK Championship tournament competitor and best friend Pete Dunne, whom he has known since he was 14 (and also the man he faced in his second-ever match).
They spent 10 weeks wrestling in 10 different states, gaining the kind of experience which simply wasn't available on the UK scene at the time.
"At the time we got a lot of s--- for it, actually, pardon my French," Andrews said. "A lot of the people in the UK were almost bad-mouthing us, because that wasn't the appropriate thing to do, to fly yourself to another country. But at the time the UK wasn't in the booming state it is now. We were just desperate to get out there and get more experience. It was the best decision of my life. I regret none of it. We had an amazing time. That entire year was a huge learning curve for both of us. We made loads of contacts and friends. That also made it more accessible to us, to be able to go back and forth to America. We went back the following years and brought some of our friends from the UK.
"British wrestling has such strong history, sometimes people have made rules about how you should treat the business," Andrews continued. "Some of our fellow workmates thought that it was bad practice to pay for your flights to go out to another country, whereas we just saw it as a learning experience. At the time we weren't the biggest names in the UK scene -- we were working in the midcard -- but now no one would bat an eyelid. At the time, some of the guys who were a bit higher up on the shows in the UK almost looked down on us for investing in ourselves to fly out there. Still, to this day, I think I have no idea why that's a bad thing. I guess it's just the dos and don'ts people have, that old-school mindset. I would at least like to think we helped the scene going in the right direction and being a hot spot in the world for wrestling."
Andrews had been back living in Wales for the past year and a half despite his commitments with TNA, but he still felt like he had been missing out on the British wrestling boom.
He pointed to the success of Will Ospreay and Marty Scurll in Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling as evidence that the British scene has benefited from homegrown wrestlers gaining experience abroad.
"I feel all across the world everybody is starting to notice the UK," he said. "It's a shame, actually, because I felt just before I moved out to America in 2014 for about six months, the British scene was about to start booming. I felt like I had a big part of being involved in that and helping the scene grow, and then as soon as I left, it exploded and I just missed it.
"This is now the highest point we've had in the UK scene so far, so I'm really glad to be involved in this tournament. There's so much talent in the UK. It's great to see Britain being represented across the board of wrestling."
While there are a handful of names that stick out among the field of 16, Andrews anticipates quite a few of the participants will use this opportunity as a springboard to more success and notoriety.
"I feel like after this tournament, a lot of the guys over the weekend will have caught up with me in terms of exposure and name value. You work for WWE and it's the holy grail, essentially. But going in, it gives me confidence to know that maybe some of the audience watching at home on the [WWE] Network may be more familiar with me because I've wrestled in front of an American audience. You never know with the internet these days, though -- die-hard wrestling fans will find information on any wrestler they take an interest in."
Andrews instantly became the most recognizable name when he was added to the tournament lineup but said he feels more pride than pressure as the event looms.
"I was really fortunate, I started at TNA when I was 21," he said. "Getting that experience in front of a TV crowd with the lights, the audience, the cameras ... I'm hoping it will help me with my confidence in the ring, rather than it being daunting. I'm incredibly excited to keep learning at the highest stage of them all. This weekend is gonna be a huge learning curve."