As noted, Triple H hosted a media call after WWE NXT “Takeover: Vengeance Day” went off the air. You can click here for his comments on signing LA Knight (Eli Drake). Below are more highlights:
* Having WWE Hall of Famer Dusty Rhodes’ name on the men’s and women’s tournaments is important, and he believes Dusty would be proud. He made it clear that he takes the Dusty Classic very serious
* He praised Pete Dunne vs. NXT Champion Finn Balor as being off the charts, a showcase in technical abilities. He put over the rest of the card and said it felt like NXT was back to the beginning for the brand. He believes there were no injuries
* When asked about the NXT Women’s Title Triple Threat being short, he said they had a 20 minute window and could’ve went longer but it did go short from that. The match, which saw Io Shirai retain over Toni Storm and Mercedes Martinez, went as long as the participants and the agents wanted. He praised those involved. He was asked about the table not breaking during the Triple Threat and said they didn’t miss a beat when it didn’t break. Stuff happens and you have to roll with the punches, which they did
* There are no current plans to increase or decrease the number of Takeover events when the WWE Network moves to Peacock in March. Peacock will bring new eyeballs. The content line-up and delivery of content wont change but there could always be more or less, they’re always evaluating
* When asked about the NXT commentary setup and Mauro Ranallo being gone, he noted that they still keep in touch and he’s a fan of what Mauro does. He said Mauro was phenomenal. He’s very happy with Wade Barrett, Vic Joseph and WWE Hall of Famer Beth Phoenix coming into their own together, noting that Vic is finding his own voice in the middle of a pandemic, and he commented on how hard it has been to work with some co-workers calling action remotely due to the pandemic, such as Mauro and Phoenix at times. He said NXT commentary has a different vibe from RAW and SmackDown
* A NXT Latin America brand is still a goal but the timing isn’t right for them, or for the world in general. As we saw with Superstar Spectacle for India, a goal right now is to do more specialized, localized content. There are huge opportunities but they have to be done when the time and circumstances are right
* He praised MSK and said when they had their tryout, he listened to all the coaches and other wrestlers who put them over and said they were sponges ready to learn, and they were professionals. He praised the tag team division as a whole
Stay tuned for more.
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