Triple H On If They Keep People In NXT Instead Of The Main Roster To Keep The Brand Strong
FOX Sports has a new interview with Triple H, who was promoting next weekends NXT TakeOver: Orlando. Below are a couple of highlights:
How do you weigh bringing someone up to the main roster versus keeping them in NXT for the health of that brand?
"I would be very hesitant to say for anybody, 'I don't want them to go to the main roster because it's better for NXT if he or she is here.' That wouldn't be the right thing to do for anyone. People stay in NXT because it's not the right time or the right fit to bring them in. People being impatient that there's somebody they want to see, 'Oh this guy would be great on Raw or this girl would be great here, I want to see them there.' I understand that feeling, but if we have a plan that six months from now we have an idea to do this that's going to debut this person in a bigger way ? that six months might seem like forever to a fan who doesn't know what the plan is. To us, it's just around the corner.
"Some of these guys come in the door and it's not a question of 'I'm just waiting to get to the main roster, I just want to move up.' When [Samoa] Joe came in, Joe came in because he wanted to be a part of NXT, and that was the conversation we had. Is there an opportunity on the main roster maybe down the line? Yeah, but that wasn't his intent walking in the door.
"It's all kind of a work in progress of where it can go and what it can be. I think everybody in their mind at the end of the day wants to compete at WrestleMania and be on Raw or SmackDown, but there's a lot of people right now clamoring to get in the door and just be on NXT. If you want to look at it as something different from Raw and SmackDown, it's the second-hottest promotion there is. A lot of people want to just get there. And the money you can make and the living you can make here on NXT doing well is very, very, very good."
The Performance Center has welcomed a number of athletes from China, and you've also showcased stars in the U.K. Do you see WWE branching into other territories in the future?
"I do. I think there's an interesting thing happening to me in the world, that the internet and social media and, for us, the WWE Network over-the-top going direct to consumers, creates a smaller planet ? but it also creates an opportunity not only for a global product, but localization of that product. The U.K. Tournament's a prime example of that, of us going in there. There's a pocket of really talented guys in the U.K. that are sitting there that are really good. We know they're there, we can't use them all on Raw or SmackDown or NXT, but we'd like to do more with them, so we do this tournament, we test the waters, we see how it goes and work with these guys. We help cultivate their talent, and now we're in the process of working towards turning that into its own weekly show in the U.K. And hopefully we'll have something on that soon. That's the opportunity for those guys.
"And then what you're doing in those markets is creating a pathway. Trust me, for all those guys there ? I mentioned Finn Balor before, a guy who came out of Ireland, worked all through the U.K., went to Japan. He never thought WWE would be an option for him. And five years ago, eight years ago, he was probably right. He never thought it was an option, it was just a pipe dream to him."
Triple H also discussed creating pathways for talent to arrive in WWE, the importance of charisma in a wrestler, the process of having a wrestler move from NXT to the main roster and more. You can read the full interview by clicking here.
Source: FOX Sports