WWE News INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS: Triple H speaks about fans saying they like NXT better than WWE's main shows (w/Keller's Reax)
Oct 8, 2014 - 3:54:41 PM
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Sam Roberts interviewed Triple H at the NXT Performance Center for his YouTube show.
-On the state of the art training facility WWE provides to prospects: "I say to these kids all the time we're giving you way more than anyone has been given to succeed in this business, so I'm going to expect a lot out of you."
-On the number one trait that decides whether he signs someone to a developmental deal:
"It's really - when we look for a WWE Superstars - one thing we look at first and foremost is the human being. Whenever they bring someone in to me to make the recommendation of who is coming in here - I'm the last call on everybody - one of the first things I ask them is what is their attitude like. I want them larger than life and to have personality. At the same time, I want to avoid those problems. The rest of everything else you can kind of teach."
-On whether it was his dream to have this role in WWE off-camera: "For me [it was] just to be part of it. I've always loved the creative component as much as I dug everything else. Now for me I get as much excitement out of when Bray [Wyatt] first came up and we put him out on TV and he went out and just was this instant success. I felt like this proud dad. Oh man, just to see that and be a part of that and help him get there is so cool. I always enjoyed that part of the process. Did I ever think I'd be the guy, as people say, take Vince's spot. Nobody's ever going to take Vince's spot. He'll probably outlive all of us. He'll probably survive the nuclear holocost and be the only one left. He's not going anywhere anytime soon. I don't think about that. I know they put that out there in the world, and that's part of being a publicly traded company, and that's cool. To me it's just about making the product great and whether people agree with that on the day we do it or not, that's opinion, but to make the product great, ensure the future, build this, take the business to the next level - who's sitting in the chair at the end of the day doesn't really matter to me."
-On people saying NXT is better than WWE's main shows: "Listen, there's a thing about opinions. Everybody's got one. At the end of the day, down here, I just take the talent and try to write a show i'd want to watch and that's all I do. People can say, Oh, the difference in the show [but what if] f I had to write a three hour show every week?that I don't. I write a one hour show. And the pressure is a lot different. There's a lot of masters have to be served with Raw, Smackdown, all those things. I'm flattered people love the product. I'm excited for these kids. At the end of the day the goal is to get them to the main roster, but the bigger I can make the platform for them to jump off of onto that main roster, the better it is.
-On how big he wants NXT to become: "I love being on the Network and being kind of The Thing on the Network and giving these kids the opportunity to grow and then have a Takeover special where we take over the Network and go live without a net and see what they can really do in that excitement and hype of having a pay-per-view type of event. That's just really cool. If people love it at the end of the day, great. I don't think anything is better anything is worse. We work hard to put on the best product possible."
As he spoke to Triple H, trainees can be seen in the background. You can watch the full interview here: CLICK HERE.
(WK Reax: If Triple H were to turn babyface on air and be the corporate face of the company, he would be very good at that role because he excels at giving good vibes about NXT when he asked about it. It helps that he's speaking genuinely about a project that is mostly his doing without interference from Vince McMahon and others entrenched in the production and execution of the main TV shows. I understand not wanting people with a bad attitude. I worry sometimes that WWE filters out the guys who have a bit of a chip on their shoulder or quirks that give them more of an edge on air because the don't let people who aren't perfect corporate employees get very far in the system. Pro wrestling is a business that thrives when there's a healthy dose of outlaw personalities who maybe don't conform to that top shelf attitude from the start. It's a balancing act between management not having problem employees and having a mix of outlandish personalities who give off that outlaw vibe.)
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