Rob Van Dam Says Former WWE Star Was 'Able To Outwork Everybody'

After being released by WWE last year, the former Dolph Ziggler has returned to the world of wrestling under his real name, Nic Nemeth. While he remained at the mid-card level for almost the entirety of his WWE run, many praised Nemeth for his talent and work ethic. That includes WWE Hall of Famer Rob Van Dam. 

Speaking on a recent "1 Of A Kind," Van Dam shared his thoughts on Nemeth. The veteran described the period when he first noticed Ziggler in WWE: as a member of the Spirit Squad, a group of five wrestlers with a cheerleader gimmick. Van Dam didn't hate the gimmick, and he saw Ziggler as the group's breakout member.

"Dolph has always been a good guy," Van Dam said. "He's always [had] good energy. I've always enjoyed his company, hanging out with him, joking around with him, and I think he's a great wrestler."

Van Dam thinks Ziggler hung in there and outlasted many others to secure his position on the card. However, that alone isn't enough to find success, and Ziggler put in the effort.

"It's not just outlasting everybody, but it's being able to outwork everybody, and staying in there for decades," Van Dam continued. "Eventually, you might get noticed."

As for the future of Nemeth, Van Dam doesn't think he'll have a hard time finding success. Not only does Van Dam think Nemeth will have plenty of opportunities outside of WWE, but he could build himself up and return to the company with even more value than he had before, like Drew McIntyre and Cody Rhodes have both done in the past.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "1 Of A Kind" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.