Triple H has addressed recent reports that NXT will be changing format very soon due to the likes of Vince McMahon, Nick Khan and John Laurinaitis wanting the brand to feature bigger-bodied and younger wrestlers.
This is what he had to say following the tryouts in Las Vegas:
âItâs a funny thing, people talk about the shifting of what it is. It never really shifted. So if you go back and look at the hiring process, not the hiring process of a television show, the hiring process of who weâre looking to train and make WWE Superstars. Long term. If you go back and look at it, it hasnât shifted. Itâs been the same process. I donât negate anybody. From a standpoint of, âI wrestled some independent stuffâ. âWell all right, youâre out!â Thatâs not a factor to me, but itâs also not the factor that makes me go, âOkay, youâre inâ. When they get in here today, if somebody goes in and hits the ropes perfectly every time, has every roll perfect, does all the stuff, (makes) it look easy because theyâve been training, thatâs not really showing me anything. You should be able to, if youâve been training, if youâve been working indies you should be able to do all of that.
âTo me, what is the potential long-term? What is that potential? And are they willing to do the work to live up to that potential. Vince used to always say, âWeâre a variety showâ. We are. In some manner, you need a little bit of everything. Thatâs the key to all of this. But people hear one statement and then make one (assumption). âNow itâs that. No, now itâs thisâ. It always has been.
âPeople use that term âit factorâ, âx-factorâ, âcharismaâ. Itâs hard to put your finger on what it is. Sometimes I feel like, for women, thereâs this emphasis on, âOh man she looked like a million bucks when she walked in hereâ. Theyâre dressed a certain way, makeup is a certain way, hairâs a certain way, doing all those things. Itâs important. At the end of the day though, itâs more personality to me. I donât care, if somebody doesnât have the money and they donât wear makeup. I mean present yourself well, but you donât have to have high dollar hair extensions and a bunch of makeup on and do all these other things in high dollar clothes to come in here and go, âOh yeah, theyâve got itâ. To me it almost has nothing to do with it.
âItâs personality, itâs how they engage with you, itâs how they connect with you. Do they make you feel something when you them when theyâre working? Whatâs that connection point that you have with these people? Do you feel something from them? Do they engage you in some manner? Some people you donât see that when theyâre here. Sometimes the red light goes on and they got it, âBoomâ. Iâm sure youâve heard people say, âThe camera loves themâ. Yeah they take great pictures. Iâve seen that a lot too. When you get to a tryout youâre like, âThis person looks greatâ. Then they get there and youâre like, âWhen do they get in?â Itâs not the same person. In person it doesnât resonate. On camera it does. Thereâs factors of that but itâs not an image thing. Thatâll fade. I feel like thatâs part of the process of the two-day journey or the three-day journey or the four-day journey, depending on the tryout style that weâre doing.
âYes somebody walks in the room, those things might catch your eye for a minute. And then very quickly, that personâs not really doing anything else, and this person is. And they donât have any makeup on, they donât have their hair done. So itâs never those other things. You can look past those. Whatâs really in here, thatâs what it factor, charisma, all those things. Part of that is a passion and a connection to the person, and if you feel that, that person has charisma, that person has an it factor. Itâs funny because I look at these tryouts sometimes totally differently. I find myself, catching myself, looking back at the same person in the first half of the first day.
âI find myself constantly looking back at that same person for some reason, or the same 10, 15, whatever people. Like constantly find myself, catching myself interested in what theyâre doing. And if I mentally see that, I put a check there. I check that person out 10 times, I keep seeing that person do this. They might be terrible. But I keep going back to it. Thereâs a reason, theyâre drawing my eye for whatever reason. I donât have to figure that out, I donât have to tell you what that reason is, I just have to know that itâs there. So I donât know, I just look at it a little differently. But thatâs a factor. Is it different for men and women? Itâs different for every single person. It doesnât matter, man, woman, it doesnât matter. Itâs different for everybody. Youâve just got to open to it.â
WWE Monday Night RAW
July 21, 2025 at
Houston, Texas, USA
Hashtag: #raw
Leave a Comment ()