Shawn Michaels took questions from the media during the NXT Stand & Deliver press conference. The event will stream live on Peacock at 12 PM Easter on Saturday afternoon, just hours before WrestleMania Night 1.
Michaels talked about the move to CW, Carmelo Hayes, Ava Raine, Trick Williams, Oba Femi, the positive demo numbers, younger people on the creative team, the entire Stand & Deliver card, and more.
Michaels on Gallus training with The Rock: “He needed some folks to train with. We’re talking about 3 guys that know what they’re doing and understand every aspect of the business…you can have somebody younger that can fly around but you need guys that are professional and are mature and can adjust to what The Rock wants. I guess, obviously I’m partial to those guys. They’re fantastic guys, they’re so professional. They are very dependable. They said thanks and sent us a picture of The Rock and all 3 of them doing the Gallus pose so I feel like that’s probably a good sign that everything is going pretty well.”
On Carmelo Hayes vs. Trick Williams, Michaels said that it’s “staggering” and “mindblowing” what they’ve been doing. He said, “I want them to understand how big that is and to enjoy this moment that they’re about to have tomorrow afternoon.”
Michaels on Lyra Valkyria vs. Roxanne Perez: “I’ve said on many occasions, I’d put our ladies up against anybody in the world and I know that I’m biased but a fact is a fact. We’ve got more depth in our women’s locker room than any company in the world. I mean that for the main roster as well. I put my ladies up against anybody any day of the week. Lyria is ahead of that pack. Will say that Lyria was somebody that I looked at from day one when I saw her in the UK. I thought she was special then and she’s still special now. She’s been a great job for us. I’m happy that she’s been able to have this moment and this run…”
Michaels said that so many things from the pandemic and injuries came up and it hasn’t been an easy road for her but he’s happy for her and he’s happy that Lyria and Roxanne can have the spotlight tomorrow.
On talent from AEW that he would love to have in NXT: “I would take darn near anybody. I can’t say specifically because there’s so much talent there…I don’t know everybody’s situation. The last thing I want to do is get anybody in trouble. [There]s a] lot of guys that used to be in NXT are up there that I’ve always loved. I don’t get the opportunity to watch as much as I would like to. I know that I love working with young talent. Especially when I get to know them and understand their passion. Until I know what your desire is in this business, it’s hard for me to say whether you are the one I’m gonna work really hard for… there’s certain people I see from a talent standpoint that you go, ‘oh my goodness, they’ve got a great deal of ability, I think we could do something special with them.” Shawn Spears…I always liked him because I always thought he was a formidable secure professional dude that can give you anything you ask for. I’ll say this, we enjoy working with darn near anybody and trying to make them better than what they were doing before, whether it’s coming out of college or with another promotion. I do know if you give us at NXT the opportunity to work with you, I think we can get you at least a hell of a lot closer to your goals and what you want to accomplish out of this business than anybody else. Whether it’s AEW, whether it’s Japan, TNA, go around the globe. I’m really excited about NXT having the opportunity to make anybody’s career better than what they’re currently doing and allow them to have the opportunity to enjoy weekends like the one we’re about to have.”
Here is the card for Stand & Deliver:
NXT Championship
Ilja Dragunov (c) vs. Tony D’Angelo
NXT North American Championship
Oba Femi (c) vs. Dijak vs. Josh Briggs
NXT Women’s Championship
Lyra Valkyria (c) vs. Roxanne Perez
NXT Tag Team Championship
Baron Corbin and Bron Breakker (c) vs. Axiom and Nathan Frazer
Carmelo Hayes vs. Trick Williams
Thea Hail, Fallon Henley, and Kelani Jordan vs. Jacy Jayne, Kiana James, and Izzi Dame (with Jazmyn Nyx)
Shawn Spears vs. Joe Gacy
