This week on the Gentleman Villain podcast, WWE Hall Of Famer WIlliam Regal discussed the NXT San Jose show from 2015, the show that paved the way for large scale Takeover shows.
Regal talked about the evolution of the women’s division in NXT:
“From the very beginning, the women would be presented just the same as the fellas, Saraya, Emma, and then Charlotte, Becky, Sasha, and Bayley, and it just keeps going. They were going to be an equal part of the show. At many points, they became the biggest part of the show. They are talent, they are athletes, and they’re going to do their thing.”
On the development of the character for Bayley:
“I thought of that character, and then I met Pam (Bayley) and hired her, and she developed that character with this in mind, between Pam and Dusty and whoever else made that character. They developed that character. This is just what I had in my mind.”
On Sami Callihan and CJ Parker:
“Sami always did great. He always worked hard. He was always well thought of. He might have his story. He asked to leave because he wanted more. He wanted to go and prove itself. He didn’t think he was in the position he wanted to be. He didn’t get let go. Rightly so, everybody wants more sometimes and he left. He left on his own accord. He’s done well. He’s still doing his thing with Impact. Sami always kept busy, but Sami left on his own accord. There can only be one main event or a couple of matches, right? So if you feel like you’re at the peak of your game, and you’re not getting what you want, especially there, you could talk to Triple H and look, I’m not happy here. He would happily let you go and do your own thing. There’s a few people that will tell you that they got let go. They didn’t. They asked to leave. CJ (Parker) (Juice Robinson) asked to leave. He didn’t get let go. I can think of one other person who might tell people that he got let go, but he didn’t the first time. He did not. He came and asked to leave. But I also know within six months, he was asking me to come back.”
You can listen to the entire podcast at AdFreeShows.com.
If you use any portion of the quotes from this article please credit AdFreeShows.com with a h/t to WrestlingNews.co for the transcription.
