Big Show Talks Advising Braun Strowman To Never Take A Bump From Sami Zayn
Big Show is coming upon his 20-year anniversary with WWE and he's lived through multiple wresting eras. This current era is unlike any previous one, according to Show, because politics have been scaled way back compared to back in the day.
Show joined Busted Open Radio where he talked about how the business has changed in that regard and how it's affected what the talent does in the ring.
"No, there isn't any more politics," Big Show told Bully Ray. "You didn't have to out-maneuver the guy next to you who was influencing through promos, or burying you through promos, or doing something to you in the ring that made you look stupid or took advantage of you and did things they shouldn't do to make themselves look better.
"You had to be conscious of all of that, but nowadays I saw Braun Strowman, what was it – a year and a half ago and was all over him because he was taking a clothesline from Sami Zayn, and he was all, 'Well, it was just one bump before I would kill him.' I was like, I don't care. Sami Zayn should not bump you ever. Sami Zayn does not look like a guy – I asked him if Sami Zayn can kick his a** in real life, he said, 'Well, no.' I said, alright then. Why are you taking a bump for him? You know what I mean?
"This is coming from a guy with personal experience who had bumped for the wrong people my entire career because I didn't want to do the no-fall down stuff. I wanted to be respected as a worker so I can thank my knees, shoulders and back because I wanted to be a worker."
From his time in WCW to even his early days in WWE, Big Show struggled to find an indentity as a big man. "The World's Largest Athlete" may have looked like Andre the Giant, but Andre even on his best day couldn't move like the Big Show.
It took a couple of years for Show to find his niche and he credits many of the performers he shared a ring with for helping him. Big Show talked about those who helped him find his way as a performer.
"My biggest problem was, and this isn't an excuse, but I didn't have a mold to fit because I was way too athletic to work like Andre the Giant like everybody wanted me to work. But I wasn't a phenom like The Undertaker because let's face it, The Undertaker was the best big man athlete I have ever seen in my life. You have worked with him," Show said to Bully Ray. "You know how amazing he is. So, when you're a hodge-podge mix trying to fit in the middle where you can't decide whether you are going to attack the entire locker room one week or get knocked down by the mechanical bull the next week.
"There was a lot of things to work with and I had learned a lot to tell you the truth. I learned a lot from Steve Austin when I started to work with him where things started to click in my head that this was the thing that I should be doing. Then I started understanding the business aspect of it of making people come to the show and putting a**es in seats and delivering every night when you are in the main event. It isn't that you are in it, but you have to go out there and put that match on with whoever it is.
"I was fortunate as well and had a lot of great guys help me along the way like Brock Lesnar, John Cena, Edge, Eddie Guerrero. The tag team division I tagged with Kane. I got to work with you and D'Von Dudley, so there was a lot of things that helped me along the way to make me understand who I was as a talent."
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Busted Open Radio with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
Source: Busted Open Radio
Peter Bahi contributed to this article.