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Welcome to PWInsider.com's live, ongoing coverage of today's WWE conference call with Triple H promoting NXT Takeover: New Orleans event.
We are starting about 20 minutes late. HHH apologized, noting he was coming back from the Andre the Giant documentary premiere in Los Angeles and Wrestlemania is keeping them busy. He put over Takeover and said he feels that this show is something special, one of the most stacked cards from top to bottom. He said lots of long term stories and new stars and they are firing on all cylinders.
I ended up being first and asked about the North American title being added and whether this was a precursor for growth in the brand, was so there could always be a title on the different tours and to give talents something new to aspire to. He said, "Yes." I told him that was great insight. He said that it was the right time to do something with it and it was a long-term play as part of their strategy and was to create new opportunities. He said it was a long-term play, similar to how the UK championship is part of a long-term move. It will assist with both domestic and international tours. He teased there would be announcements coming soon regarding the UK.
I asked him if there would be a similar belt added for the women's division. HHH said there wasn't anything immediate, but when the time and talent are right and it helps the brand, he is open to it. He just wants the brand to be the strongest it can be and they have to make sure the creative is there to support the idea. He looks at the female division as no different from the men's division and just wants what's best for the brand long-term. The NA title is being created for the men because there's a need for it right now.
Jason Powell asked about the process of how talents are brought up. HHH said it's an ongoing process strategically over the course of the year between his NXT team and the team responsible for main roster movement. He compared it as going from college to the pros. They try to move talents to where they can fit, here they are needed and where there are opportunities. It also comes down to Vince as he's not aware of everyone in the system and there's a process there.
HHH was asked about the other companies running Wrestlemania weekend. He said likes it and he has no issue with it as long as they are quality events and his only issue is when fans who come to Wrestlemania week make the choice to go to another event and are let down with that experience. HHH said that WWE can't provide everything for every single fan but Mania week is about celebrating their fans so they want those fans to have the best overall Wrestlemania experience. He said they are open to working with other groups (like EVOLVE and PROGRESS, obviously being referred to here) if it makes the overall experience and process better for fans who come in for Mania weekend.
Dave Meltzer was up next. Triple H put him over his appearance in the forthcoming Andre the Giant documentary. He asked about how long they could keep the NXT shows and Takeovers with the right time and balance in terms of time, because the shows could get so much longer with all the talent and attractions. HHH said that could happen, but you could make assumptions that some of the talent will thin out and leave the brand to move up. From there, he's not a believer that every single person has to be on every single card. That doesn't happen in UFC or boxing. You can shift the storylines and they don't have to match where every talent has to be on every live event. If they got so fortunate that the talent roster got so deep that he had to leave talents off all the time, he'd prefer to add a second, meaningful event as opposed to making Takeover longer and less meaningful.
Meltzer then asked about storylines that seem to repeat from NXT and the main roster. HHH said that sometimes that happens. He said he's booked in advance and filmed well in advance but does ask if there's a ladder match planned whether the main roster has anything similar coming. They try to work it out, but sometimes four weeks later, they end up with a similar story. It is what it us.
Raj Giri asked about how HHH balances the increased responsibilities with 205 Live and NXT and whether there was talk of changing 205 Live. HHH said it is a creative addition but one that he enjoys and welcomes. There's a great team that works on it but he gets to be the final part of the process. He gives a long-term idea and then they go and create and he helps guides it. He's not there writing every moment. He has the oversight and not being in the weeds every second is helpful. He's happy with the product and their feedback and the viewership is up. It trends now where it hadn't been. The NXT viewership and excitement is up as well and that's a good thing, as long as fans enjoy it.
Sean Ross Sapp asked about talents that made it to the roster on Raw and Smackdown who made it there without an extended NXT run and asked whether there may be others who can do that. He said there on the outside, it may seem like NXT and the Performance Center are the same thing, but it's not. Anyone who goes through the system are taught with the idea of going to the main roster and it's a learning curve and anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong. They want to figure out where they can fit into the brands and the feel of those shows. The personality and level of entertainment all depends on the talent. He said that the general entertainment of what Elias does and how he puts it out there was more suitable for the main roster but they had him in the system to polish him, so he could learn the process and give him experience. it was about getting him ready. If he was moved up a year before, he wouldn't have been ready. The level of talent can make bad creative awesome. The business is a marathon, not a sprint.
HHH was asked about the influx of MMA talent and how they are doing in WWE. He said it seems like doors open and then it's like a huge influx. He said they sign a NFL guy and suddenly they get a lot of calls from people in that circle. He said a lot of the MMA talents are well suited because of the mannerisms and other things that are similar to what they do. He said the more pieces you have, the more successful you can be. Not everyone has to be a great in-ring talent if they can excel in other aspects. The ones that will succeed will be the ones that pick up all the pieces.
Greg Oliver up North in Canada asked about NXT storylines and how they are crafted and how they compare to the main roster creative team. HHH said he didn't want to say they were structured differently. There are three different teams that write, format, time and everything else that goes into creating the show. He talked about the crafting the destination they want to go to but the difficulty that comes with changes that come over time. They ask talents for creative input and feedback and help them try different characterizations to try and develop different aspects. The live events in Florida sometimes features them trying out characters and promos and potential ideas. It's not failing, it's learning. All of NXT and the PC is about learning because you can never stop learning. He said they are building the foundation of the learning needed for the business.
Ryan Bowman was the final caller. He asked which performers HHH has been happiest with in terms of development and who's been the most pleasant surprise. HHH said it was a tough question because there are so many talents there. HHH said that when you look at Adam Cole, who had a following and a brand that was built, dealing with Cole and seeing the level of pro and understanding and the right thoughts coming out of him and the way he approaches things. He's changed so much since he's joined them and has shown he has the right thoughts towards everything. He praised Lars Sullivan and Velveteen Dream, saying he doesn't know of anyone in the system who has improved as fast and a greatly as Dream. He praised Ember Moon and how she's found herself and changed since coming in and put over Shayna Baszler for becoming more well rounded. As he was naming names, he said there are so many names who have improved dramatically. He doesn't watch them every day but he can see the changes in conversation, in their mentality, in how they approach the business. It's speaks well of the system and the tools they have. If you are in the system and don't improve, that's on you, because the tools are there. He said the exciting part of all of this is seeing how everyone has improved. It's hard to say who has stood out more than anyone else. He said that even with Pete Dunne, there's been a huge step forward in who he is and how he approaches wrestling and puts things together. It's night and day. He said when you look at talents who had no or minimal experience and see how they are handling things, using Braun Strowman as an example, and see where he is vs. the day HHH met him, that's a shining example of their system in its best form.
That's it for questions!
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