During the latest edition of the Snake Pit WWE Hall of Famer Diamond Dallas Page spoke about a lesson he taught a few years ago when he was at NXT, and how top superstar Tommaso Ciampa thanked him afterwards with a big hug. Highlights are below.
Recalls a less he taught when he was at NXT:
“I’m doing this same talk at the end of a workout in NXT with 100 kids, all on a mat. This is about two and a half years ago, maybe a little more than that. I do this thing and I get to the end. I go, ‘here’s his affirmation. You tell me who this is. I am the greatest, I am the greatest of all time’. And everybody just said, ‘Ali, Ali, Ali, Ali’. You kids didn’t grow up with him but they know it. I go, ‘how do you know that?’ ‘Maybe because he said it a billion times.’ Like, a billion times, it’s like ingrained — the greatest of all time. You think of Mohammad Ali, no matter what. He’s been gone for years.”
Says Ciampa took the lesson to heart:
“So after, you know, everybody comes up because I got done working out with everybody, and then everybody’s coming up and shaking my hand. The last person is Tommaso Ciampa. He looks at me and he’s got, he’s a little glassy-eyed. And he looks at me and he says, ‘You have no idea how much I needed to hear this today.’ And he gave me a huge hug.”
How Ciampa later tore the house down with Aleister Black for the NXT title:
“So, later that night, he’s going against Aleister Black and they’re going for NXT Championship. And back then, Tommaso had no music or anything. I guess he wanted it like that. I’m off to the side but I’m backstage, and right before he goes on, he looks over at me and he goes, ‘affirmations,’ and goes to the ring, and boy, did those guys tear it down. You know, a hell of a match. It’s so important and I’ve watched Tommaso numerous times put that quote up {the repetition of affirmations leads to belief} and share that with people because it’s so true.”
(H/T and transcribed by Wrestling Inc.)