Drew McIntrye Talks Needing To Be The Backstage Veteran That WWE Talent Can Learn From
As noted, Drew McIntrye recently spoke to Planeta Wrestling. Below are some more highlights from the interview:
Having unfinished business with Andrade "Cien" Almas:
"When Andrade 'Cien' Almas & Zelina Vega had a game plan that cost me my NXT World Title, it caused me to miss 5 months of my career after tearing my bicep. It was the first time I had time off as a wrestler in over 18 years that I have been performing. I had never had time off more than 6 weeks more than my career, so it was very difficult at first, especially after losing my title when I was working so hard coming back to WWE. I wanted to be part of NXT because I felt that it was a brand that I can help, and we started doing some great things, and for it to be taken away because of Andrade was very disappointing. The goal was to come back [to NXT], and since he took out my arm I wanted to take out his head, which is still the case, but he is on SmackDown Live and I am on Raw, but soon enough our paths will cross and when they do he is going to feel the pain."
Teaming with Dolph Ziggler:
"Dolph is somebody who I met as soon as I got here. We used to be on the road with The Undertaker, Edge, Rey Mysterio, Christian, and even Ric Flair. When I was 22, Ric Flair was on the roster and we have been on the road with these people for a long time. Undertaker, right up until his last day was working full time constantly, even when he was beat up, had fire in his eyes. If he couldn't walk, he was flying around and he was The Undertaker in every way. That was such an inspiration.
"Now, these guys haven't been on the road with those guys and hadn't had the chance to learn from these people. They may have met them once or twice but they haven't been on the road, and hadn't had the chance to look up to these guys the way I had looked up to The Undertaker. Now, we don't have that anymore, and I feel like I need to be that guy. I am only 32, and have been wrestling for 20 years. You may think that I am in my 40's because I have been around forever, but now i know that I need to be here and be a good example, not only for me but for the entire business."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Planeta Wrestling with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.