WWE producer and former multi-time tag champion TJ Wilson recently appeared on the Wrestling Inc. Daily to discuss a variety of topics, including what the original plan was for the first NXT Takeover, and how WWE has changed their drug testing policy. Highlights from the interview are below.
On WWE’s changes of the drug policy:
For example, the drug test used to — they used to drug test you when you first get signed and if you fail that, you’re allowed to fail that first one. It would be counted as your baseline and then whatever you fail for couldn’t be in there obviously in the follow-up test and things like that, and it’s changed. Now it’s changed to you have to pass clean the first one or your contract doesn’t get executed which is — that’s a giant change and in the right direction.
How plans changed for the original NXT Takeover show:
That’s when we started getting ready for that first TakeOver. I think the first one initially was maybe gonna be some time in July, and then maybe with like the [WWE] Network members and stuff, they moved it to May because I think the original plan that I was told was that I eventually was gonna wrestle Sami [Zayn] on the first TakeOver. We were, I think supposed to become a tag team and kind of — a little bit like Bret [Hart] and Owen [Hart] maybe and then finally I turn on him and then I think we were supposed to wrestle at that first TakeOver. But that’s when it was supposed to be like in July, maybe end of July. Then it got moved to the end of May, and so, I did that Mason Ryan match and they would tape every three or four weeks at that time, four weeks and then I show up at the next taping which is after WrestleMania XXX, I did the Andre Battle Royal and I was talking to the writer there and that’s when he explained to me the Sami — the tag team stuff and I was like, ‘Yo, this is awesome man’ and then that was on — that was literally like I think on the Monday or Tuesday of WrestleMania that week, after WrestleMania XXX, and then I show up at the next NXT taping which maybe we taped enough in advance that it wasn’t the same week as WrestleMania. Maybe it was the following and I show up and I see that same writer. He’s like, ‘Yo, things changed. It’s you and Neville at TakeOver’ and then, you know, so it took on a different thing. It was awesome, I loved it. I loved wrestling Neville [PAC]. I think he’s insanely talented and one of my favorite guys I got to wrestle.
(H/T and transcribed by Post Wrestling)