Kemo
04-06-2018, 09:24 PM
Former ROH World Champion Adam Cole has taken the WWE by storm since signing with the sports entertainment company last year.
Cole was with Ring of Honor from 2009 – 2017 and made his name known there. As a result of that signing, he made his debut at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III last August in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center. Instead of him just sitting in the crowd at the NXT special, WWE had much bigger plans for him.
As seen at the event, Cole beat down then-NXT Champion Drew McIntyre along with Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly after McIntyre’s big win over Bobby Roode.
Cole recently spoke with Newsweek to talk about various topics. During the interview, he was asked if it was his idea to start in NXT instead of the main roster.
“No they put me in NXT, but I also wanted to be in NXT. I remember I did a podcast interview with Steve Austin and he asked me, “In a perfect world, what would you want to do?” And I told him, for sure, go to NXT. And the big reason, again, is those fans and the talent that’s down there. If I were to go right to RAW or SmackDown, I would miss out on something really special. I think the guys who have been on NXT and got to go to RAW or SmackDown got the full experience. That’s what I want.
NXT is not overlooked now. For a long time NXT was seen as developmental. NXT is absolutely a third brand now. If you get to be a part of NXT and a part of something special, these shows that are so cool, and the relationship I’m building with the fans there will absolutely transition into RAW or SmackDown. So NXT was something I wanted to be a part of right out of the gate.”
As seen at the Royal Rumble PPV event in January, Cole competed in the Royal Rumble match which was his first match on the main roster.
“That was surreal. Not only because it was the Royal Rumble, it’s when WrestleMania season really starts. The fans are a bit more excited, the performers are a little more on edge. I love that environment.
On top of that, because it was in Philadelphia I used to go to all the shows when it was called the First Union Center and I used to go and watch Monday Night RAW, SmackDown and the pay-per-views. I would drive or get my mother to drive me, an hour and a half to two hours, to watch these shows. That place was so special to me, I had so many positive memories as a child there. So for the Royal Rumble debut to happen by circumstance in Philadelphia, I don’t know—it was like a book, or a movie. I was so excited and happy. If we were to talk about top three moments, that’s in there for me.”
Cole added, “Not necessarily. I see so many cool things going on in both brands that I can sink my teeth into. Obviously, going to SmackDown where Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn are. AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Randy Orton, Bobby Roode… the list goes on, there’s so many talented guys. They have them on RAW too. That’s the coolest thing about the two shows right now, they offer something different, but no one is really better than the other, they have their things and their strengths and things that make you want to watch the show. I look at the performers on RAW or SmackDown and I see where I can fit in, and I feel I can fit in a lot of situations on RAW and SmackDown so I don’t know, it’ll be tough for me to pick one.”
Cole was with Ring of Honor from 2009 – 2017 and made his name known there. As a result of that signing, he made his debut at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III last August in Brooklyn, New York at the Barclays Center. Instead of him just sitting in the crowd at the NXT special, WWE had much bigger plans for him.
As seen at the event, Cole beat down then-NXT Champion Drew McIntyre along with Bobby Fish and Kyle O’Reilly after McIntyre’s big win over Bobby Roode.
Cole recently spoke with Newsweek to talk about various topics. During the interview, he was asked if it was his idea to start in NXT instead of the main roster.
“No they put me in NXT, but I also wanted to be in NXT. I remember I did a podcast interview with Steve Austin and he asked me, “In a perfect world, what would you want to do?” And I told him, for sure, go to NXT. And the big reason, again, is those fans and the talent that’s down there. If I were to go right to RAW or SmackDown, I would miss out on something really special. I think the guys who have been on NXT and got to go to RAW or SmackDown got the full experience. That’s what I want.
NXT is not overlooked now. For a long time NXT was seen as developmental. NXT is absolutely a third brand now. If you get to be a part of NXT and a part of something special, these shows that are so cool, and the relationship I’m building with the fans there will absolutely transition into RAW or SmackDown. So NXT was something I wanted to be a part of right out of the gate.”
As seen at the Royal Rumble PPV event in January, Cole competed in the Royal Rumble match which was his first match on the main roster.
“That was surreal. Not only because it was the Royal Rumble, it’s when WrestleMania season really starts. The fans are a bit more excited, the performers are a little more on edge. I love that environment.
On top of that, because it was in Philadelphia I used to go to all the shows when it was called the First Union Center and I used to go and watch Monday Night RAW, SmackDown and the pay-per-views. I would drive or get my mother to drive me, an hour and a half to two hours, to watch these shows. That place was so special to me, I had so many positive memories as a child there. So for the Royal Rumble debut to happen by circumstance in Philadelphia, I don’t know—it was like a book, or a movie. I was so excited and happy. If we were to talk about top three moments, that’s in there for me.”
Cole added, “Not necessarily. I see so many cool things going on in both brands that I can sink my teeth into. Obviously, going to SmackDown where Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn are. AJ Styles, Shinsuke Nakamura, Randy Orton, Bobby Roode… the list goes on, there’s so many talented guys. They have them on RAW too. That’s the coolest thing about the two shows right now, they offer something different, but no one is really better than the other, they have their things and their strengths and things that make you want to watch the show. I look at the performers on RAW or SmackDown and I see where I can fit in, and I feel I can fit in a lot of situations on RAW and SmackDown so I don’t know, it’ll be tough for me to pick one.”