Following Thursday night’s WWE NXT TakeOver: Stand & Deliver (Night Two) event, Triple H and Shawn Michaels held a post-show media call. You can check out some highlights below:
* Triple H thanked everyone for joining and said he thought it was another spectacular show, noting that it’s incredibly difficult to go back to back for two nights and keep the same energy and the spectacle at that level. He said the talent delivered and the show was something very special. He praised the pre-show with Breezango vs. Dain & Drake, and thanked Poppy for coming in to perform Adam Ant’s “Stand & Deliver” as well as her own previously-unheard original song. He said that she’s one of those people who have become family in NXT. He called the Cruiserweight Title match spectacular and said that while there were winners and losers to the matches, but there no winners or losers, and that everyone wins. He praised their performances and said Escobar is the champion, but Devlin is proving that he’s absolutely one of the best in the world.
He said that the NXT Women’s Tag Team Title match was great and it’s not the last time The Way will be facing them, saying that the division is heating up and that the depth of the women’s division is amazing. He said Indi Hartwell came into her own, and said she expects great things from them. He said that the NXT North American Title match showed that Johnny never lets you down and is as consistent as consistent can be. He talked about how Karrion Kross had a huge setback when everything was going his way and it was gone in the blink of an eye, but he put that aside and grinded to get it all back, both on the reality side and the show side. He praised Balor for reinventing himself and said what Balor has done and will continue to do in NXT. Finally, he called Cole vs. O’Reilly a master class in storytelling and talked about how they were both put into ambulances at the end just to have them checked out and they checked out fine. Everyone’s healthy and no injuries as of right now for tonight.
* Before questions, Triple H gave an update on Road Dogg and said he’s at home and recovering. He said Road Dogg is healthy and good and was set up so he was on a headset during the shows and being involved. He’ll be back once he gets his strength back, and back to being the Road Dogg. He said they miss him but he’s doing well. He added that HBK will be with them shortly.
* Asked about where Adam Cole’s loss leaves him, Triple H said he would advise everyone to watch on Tuesday and promoted the move to Tuesdays. HBK was in at that point and joked that “You drop a fall around here, and people start going, ‘You’re gone!’ Hunter said that when you succeed and do well in NXT for a long period of time, there’s moments in time where you tell stories and people think that’s the end. He said that’s not the case at all and said it’s a chapter in the story and the saga being told, with Kyle O’Reilly proving himself against Cole who said O’Reilly was a lackey. He said that probably wouldn’t sit well with Cole and isn’t the end of the story.
HBK added that this has taken O’Reilly to the next level, while Cole has been at the top level. He said he can’t see that stopping now.
* Asked about whether two night shows will be a regular thing now for WrestleMania, Triple H said he doesn’t know. He said that even WrestleMania being two nights was something that just came into the right timing and position. He said it’s hard what’s going to be next month right now and they’ll have to see what next year brings as things open up whether it’s a one-night or two-night event. He said time will tell and they can be nimble, moving to what they want to be when the time is come to do what’s best for their fans.
Shawn said he was proud that they were able to have two strong cards in two nights, which Hunter agreed with. He said that they had two shows that could have been their own Takeovers and matches that could have been their own main events, and it wasn’t even everybody. They’ll see where it goes from there.
* The next caller asked about the security guards for Cole vs. O’Reilly being members of the new PC class, and if there have been any standouts so far. Triple H joked that they’re moonlighting at the security company next door, and said that a lot of them have stood out. He said that they haven’t been able to train properly at the level they want due to the pandemic and using the PC as their TV facility for Raw and Smackdown and are back to training at a large basis. He said they had talent, but they wanted a combination of new guys and veterans and TV-ready guys. Things were starting to get thing at the bottom because they couldn’t bring them in, and now they got them all at once. He said he’s been very impressed and that there are some guys who are just jaw-dropping right off the bat. This crop is all full of personality and crazy athletes and the last two months the pipeline opened and he said the future is bright. He said they’re hungry too.
* HBK was asked how 20-something him would have handled life at the Performance Center. He said he’s been asked that and he thinks it really would have helped him because of the structure. He said given his past, they talk very real with everyone and that would have helped. He said that’s what he loves about this, it’s very hands on and it gets personal where they can have personal relationships, which helps. He noted that it was very personal to him and it would have helped to have those kinds of people who were open and honest and supportive.
Triple H added that knowing Shawn, you hear a lot and and Vince McMahon takes some unnecessary criticism, but a lot of people from that time say that Vince was almost like a father figure to guys that didn’t have that in his live. He said Vince told stuff straight, but also said he believed in them. He set them straight and was a strong hand, but he let them struggle or fail in a fatherly, supportive way. He said that the PC has that support system who are there to tell people the truth and make them succeed. He also believes the PC would have helped someone like Shawn.
* Asked about the reports that WALTER’s NXT UK Championship got returned after being stolen, Triple joked that WALTER was chopping people all across the UK right now to get to the bottom of who did it. Shawn said that it was a cool story to hear, and said that the person who returned it had a signed replica sent back, and Triple H said he signed it. HBK said that he has never had that happen to him, but that was why back in the day a lot of guys had the Haliburton that they carried in order to protect it. Triple H joked that Flair lost one every other week.
* Asked about if Pete Dunne has been doing backstage work in NXT in the US as he was doing in NXT, Hunter said that backstage production work isn’t necessarily for everyone and that there are certain people that gravitate toward it and others don’t. He confirmed Dunne has interest in it and is a sponge about it. He’ll dig into every aspect and engage however he’s able to. He said Gargano sometimes produces matches like on the “Coconut shows,” as have Ciampa and Candice LeRae, Damian Priest, and WALTER in the UK. He also said Balor has had interest in it, and he said it just makes people think about it differently and makes them better performers.
Shawn added that they have those who express interest listen on headsets, and they’ve all said it gives them a better understanding of how to accentuate what it is they’re doing. He reiterated that Dunne and WALTER have shown interest in it, and said that when he transitioned to NXT they used him as much as they could and will continue to do it with those who show interest.
* The next question was about an NXT UK Takeover and if the tentatively-planned June 20th date is still in the works. Triple H said they would love to do it of course, though it is more complicated. It comes down to a few factors from a production standpoint like travel, getting fans in, having production people and guys from the US to do the shows. But that’s absolutely their hope. They were hoping to do Ireland and Scotland and the rest before the world shut down and he can’t wait to get over there.
HBK added that’ve had that date for a while and are hoping for the best, but are subject to a lot of restrictions and it’s tough. He said they’ve been able to do their stuff with BT Studio with half of them here, but they wouldn’t want to do that with a UK Takeover. They can’t wait for the world to open up for business. He said they’re thrilled to be able to do it as they can, but there’s nothing better than actually being over there. He said there’s a relationship there and he loves working with them which he’s been doing from the very beginning. He said they can’t wait to get the fans back, and Triple H said he can only imagine what the crowds will be like.
* Asked about Gable Stevenson being in the crowd for night two, Triple H said that he and and his father came and to see the show as a guest. He noted that the upcoming Olympics is a big task at hand, but he’s a big fan of them and they’ve been talking. He reached out and wanted to see Takeover and WrestleMania, and they’ll see where it goes. Hunter said he’d hate to say to a guy who is a junior in college, “Let’s make some decisions in the moment while you’re trying to get ready for in the Olympics.” He said Gable has a bright future in whatever he decides to do, but he’s a massive fan of them and they’re fans of what he does. He has no doubt that Gable will become a star in record time if he comes there.
* Hunter thanked everyone for being on the call and said it’s onto Smackdown tomorrow and then WrestleMania. He expects that having 25,000 fans in that stadium to be incredible and he can’t wait have them back and get everyone performing in front of them. He said Tuesday will then be a new chapter.
(h/t – 411 Wrestling)
