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Paul Levesque met with reporters on a conference call today in advance of next week’s NXT Takeover Stand And Deliver events.
He opened by saying he was excited for the show and it was the first time ever that they have done two nights of Takeover. Night 1 will be simulcast in the US on Peacock and The USA Network. Night two will be on Peacock here. It’s the biggest event in their history since there will be ten matches over two nights. It’s exciting to have an event like this. He then ran down the card.
There will be hour pre-show specials heading into each night. Sam Roberts and Mickie James will be joined by former MMA fghter Jimmy Smith, and MMA/Sports Illustrated writer Arash Markazi for the shows.
The first call came from Jason Powell. He said with the move to Tuesday there will be pro wrestling on five nights a week. Is that good for the industry or overkill. H said it’s about availability. It’s there if you want to watch it. No one is forcing anyone to do it. It’s there for those who want to watch it. He said people devour content on their terms now. There are comedies on all the time, news, etc.
Next caller was from Spain. Guess who he asked about? Heritage Cup champ A-Kid! Will it be defended on a Takeover? H says it’s about logistics right now with the pandemic. They were able to plan ahead for WALTER and Jordan Devlin to get here. He said it’s on the table down the road. Inter-branding is an exciting opportunity for NXT. It’s just a matter of being able to do it when the pandemic eases up.
The next caller asked what he thought of Undertaker saying that the product is too soft. H said everyone has opinions of the business. The business always morphs and changes. He said Taker has always been blunt with his opinions and his intentions are always meant to improve things. H says Taker has a lot to offer and when he speaks you listen. It’s all about what you like. It comes down to what the masses like so that they can be tapped into. H absolutely respects Taker’s opinion and he looks forward to working with him on every level.
The next caller asked about Chris Jericho appearing on the Network with Austin. Does that mean WWE is willing to work with more companies in the future? H said he isn’t sure how that correlates but as Vince says they are always open to business. He said sometimes people create situations in their own head but the Jericho thing is not shocking. He said the perception of what people believe with no knowledge of what is really going on is amazing to him.
Mike Johnson asked with two nights of Takeover, how did you strategize putting it together, with what on each night. H said there is a lot more to break down. It’s like having two Takeovers. One with commercial breaks, on Peacock without breaks. You have to approach it differently. From their standpoint from their standpoint there is a nuance and art to it, when you do it right. They are still working the commercial split out. It’s a work in progress and probably will still be so at 7:59 on Wednesday. The intent is to give the best event possible with as minimal disruption as possible.
Power Wrestling asked what it will be like to have change to having fans back. H said that the fans are everything to WWE. All that they do is for the fans. The people at the show are the ones who guide the show. He mentioned Edge saying it’s weird having no idea what to expect from the fans going into Mania. He said bringing fans back is everything. He is cautiously excited about it. He hopes we can begin to get back fans to everything, safely, as soon as possible. He said you have to do everything to keep people safe.
Miami Herald asked about NCAA brother wrestlers Bobby and Gable Steveson and what H’s opinion on them. The new Steiners? H said we already have Bronson Rechsteiner in the PC now. He put over the Steiners and said Bronson is a stud just like them. He said that the brothers are great and he looks forward to working with them if they come in. He said they are talented and great people.
MetroUK asked about Omos. What can fans expect from him. He is a sponge. You have to be careful how use use him. He’s a quality person who loves what he is doing. They don’t want to give him too much too fast. He is a guy you just want to see succeed. He is an incredible athlete but it takes some time to learn to do what they do. He thinks people will be shocked at what he can do.
Lucha Libre Online asked about Bad Bunny. H put him over. He said Bunny wants to do this. He has moved to Orlando and is working hard every day at the PC and has been for many months. H said Bunny has earned his respect because he is doing the work. Pat McAfee is another guy who is a next level athlete who they will work with whenever they can. His work was good because he was willing to put in the work and that mattered to him. He said they will gladly have crossover people when they want to do the work.
TalkSport asked about AJ Styles asking H to have a match with him at Mania. H said it’s true, he did ask. He said getting ready Mania is a difficult thing, especially as you get older. He said you stay in shape but there is a difference between that an Mania shape. He said that the performer in him would love nothing more but the manager in him just doesn’t have the time. He is flattered but he just doesn’t have the bandwidth to do it at this time. He is at a point where the in-ring stuff to him is bonus. He said Ric Flair calls him and tells him he needs to get back in the ring. There is a part of him that wants to do it but there is a bigger part that is just too busy. He said he just doesn’t have the time to put in the ring work to get back up to where he would need to be to do it.
The last question came from ComicBook.com He was asked about how he would rate the time that NXT spent on Wednesdays. He said he would say it’s successful. They went from an hour taped to two hours live. Then they had injuries, pandemics, etc. He is proud and happy with what they did with the brand. He said at first it was about staying on the same day and time (cough, cough). Now they have established an audience so they feel they can change nights. They got a multi-year deal and USA is happy. It’s all for the right reason. There will be promotion from Monday to Tuesday. He said if you asked before it started, that is how he would have seen it going, establish a fan base first then you can make changes. The idea is to give people the best possible show, building long term. There’s ebb and flow, ever week can’t be the best show ever. He likes the path we are on.
Paul said he appreciates everyone being here. There will be more press next week and he looks forward to the shows next week and the post show conference call.
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