WWE Executive Vice President of Global Talent Strategy & Development Paul “Triple H” Levesque says he’s happy for the former WWE NXT Superstars who went to AEW, if they have great gigs in their post-WWE careers.
Triple H spoke with Chris Vannini of The Atlantic during WrestleMania 38 Week and was asked about seeing some of his former NXT Superstars in AEW. Vannini name-dropped people like Adam Cole, Kyle O’Reilly, Bobby Fish, Keith Lee, Andrade El Idolo, and Malakai Back.
Triple H commented on how he feels about those names and how they helped get NXT to TV. He also mentioned how main roster call-ups are left to WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon and the fans.
“I like all those guys,” Triple H said. “They helped us get where we needed to get, and I’m thankful for it. The truth is there was a period of time where we were trying to build NXT. We built NXT. Then we were trying to build a brand that could get a television show and sustain it. All those names helped us get there.
“Whether anybody believed or not they fit on Raw or SmackDown, those aren’t necessarily my decisions solely, and they’re Vince’s (McMahon) decisions and fans’ decisions; and then, can we continue to do business with them?”
Triple H continued and said he keeps in touch with some of the former NXT Superstars. He said he likes to think that the wrestlers came to WWE, learned and got to a higher level, and then picked up the knowledge needed to be successful elsewhere. He also said some of those wrestlers may leave WWE for AEW some day, while some may not, but that doesn’t stop the WWE train.
“If they have great gigs, I’m happy for them. I stay in touch with almost all of them,” he said. “I like to think they came into us here, we taught them a lot, got them to (a higher level) where they learned how to do television, how to be professionals and all that to be successful there. At some point, they might come back with us, or they might never because they don’t fit our brand as well, but that’s OK.
“They got us to certain places, and I’m thankful for that, and they’re thankful for that, and they’re off to different things. But that doesn’t stop the train. People leave football teams, move to different teams all the time, and it’s great.”
Triple H made a special appearance at WrestleMania 38 to kick off Night Two of the big event, leaving his boots in the ring to symbolize his recent retirement from in-ring action.
Stay tuned for more.
Follow Marc on Twitter at @this_is_marc. Send any news, tips or corrections to us by clicking here.
