Interview Highlights: Miz talks about weaving Maryse’s real life pregnancy into TV storylines, Lavar Ball not rehearsing, wrestling Cena

The following are highlights of The Miz on “The Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast.” The excerpts were provided by the show’s producers to PWTorch.com…

Miz on the Lavar Ball Family Not Rehearsing, Using Racial Slur:

Miz: This was the first time that Lonzo Ball would be at the Staples Center as a Los Angeles Laker, so I walk in to their dressing room to go over their script, it’s kind of a baseline do you want to go over it and LaVar says ‘we are good,’ so I guess we are going to wing it out there, sounds good

SR: So, when LaVar started coming at you and he takes his shirt off, because it felt in that moment that was not something that was pre-planned.

Miz: No, it was not planned at all and I was like, I will just let him do his thing and people will talk about it months on and I swear to you that is one of the number one questions I get asked is about LaVar Ball. People say they can’t stand him but he knows how to create drama and I applaud him for it, you love to hate him but you will talk about him

SR: How do you react in your own head when that little kid drops the N bomb in the middle of live TV.

Miz: I didn’t hear it, there’s so much going on, and I think it was during Dean Ambrose’s music. In the ring sometimes you can’t even hear the person speaking to you. I am really good lip reader a lot of the times.”

Miz on trying to work Maryse’s pregnancy into TV promos even more

SR: I’ve always liked it when wrestlers use their personal lives and inject it. Was there any part of you that didn’t want to talk about your unborn child?

Miz: No, I wanted to use it more. I thought it was really cool that we could go in the ring and announce to the world in front of a huge worldwide audience that Maryse is pregnant and I came up with this huge storyline where we are pregnant. How terrible would I be as a guy? But no, Maryse is still doing Total Divas and she is loving it.

SR: Is she in the same camp as you and wants to put it on TV?

Miz: Yeah, she is always onboard with whatever. She thought it was hilarious. Obviously, WWE is dangerous. As much as we sit there and look at it we always tell people not to do it at home we just said you take it easy we will do Total Divas every Wednesday on E.”

Miz on WrestleMania with John Cena in 2017 vs 2011

SR: When you talk about experiencing where you are and being an elite athlete, how different was it working with John Cena at this year’s WrestleMania than six years ago?

Miz: So, six years ago I would say, it’s not that I wasn’t ready, but I have so much more confidence than I did then, now. You live and you learn and it’s through the learning process now I know that even when you don’t have a title you have to remain main event level and don’t allow anything to hinder that. Before I would be like I can get this done. Now I am thinking how do I get people to look at me as elite and I think I have been proving myself and making memorable moments watching the show and making the Intercontinental Title the most prestigious it’s ever been. That’s been my goal since winning it, how can I make it how it used to be. When I was growing up, the Ultimate Warrior was on the same level as Hulk Hogan who was the World Champion and, right now, what singles title do you see every week on Raw? The Intercontinental Championship.

Sam Roberts Wrestling Podcast is published every Thursday morning on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, notsam.com, and wherever podcasts are available. This podcast has been posted at http://notsam.com/wrestlingpodcast.

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