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Legendary wrestling booker Dutch Mantell believes Dexter Lumis has similarities to WWE Hall of Famer Stone Cold Steve Austin.
Lumis received his release from WWE in April before surprisingly returning earlier this month. Last week, the 38-year-old’s unpredictable character kidnapped The Miz on RAW and briefly reunited with his storyline wife, Indi Hartwell, on NXT.
On Sportskeeda Wrestling’s “Smack Talk” show, Mantell made it clear that he is a big fan of Lumis’ work:
“I think Dexter Lumis is a star waiting to take off, I really do. He’s got that story with [Indi Hartwell]. People are gonna like him, everybody’s gonna like him because he’s the guy who doesn’t speak. Everybody else talks around him, but I think people will really, really gravitate to him and that little girl helping him. He’s a star in the making. I liked him when I first saw him in NXT.” [0:51-1:36]
Mantell wanted IMPACT/TNA management to book Lumis on television during his stint with the company five years ago. He added that the new RAW Superstar possesses the kind of “magic” that Austin did many years ago:
“I met that kid about, I don’t know, 2017, he came to TNA, I wanted to use him and they wouldn’t use him, but I liked him then,” said Mantell. “He reminds me a little bit of Stone Cold, just a little bit. He’s not overly big, but you can tell there was something there, there was some magic about him that I feel can be manipulated, manufactured. You can’t manufacture magic, but you can take it and amplify it to where it’s pleasing to the fans.” [1:39-2:27]
Watch the video above to hear more from Mantell about several wrestling topics, including one big change Triple H could make behind the scenes.
How WWE can educate fans on Dexter Lumis
In storyline, Lumis has appeared unadvertised in the front row as a disguised fan over the last few weeks on RAW.
WWE viewers may not know about Lumis’ history if they did not watch him in NXT. However, Mantell thinks that can easily be solved with the help of video packages:
“Once you get him over you can do anything with him. I will say one thing about Triple H: he understands the wrestling profession. He understands it’s more than just going in a ring and beating a guy up. You gotta tell a story, and Lumis’ story, to the wide majority of WWE fans, they don’t know Lumis’ story, and look at all that video they [WWE] can go through and catch them up to speed in two weeks.” [2:28-3:03]
Lumis previously worked for WWE on the NXT brand between February 2019 and April 2022. His most notable moment arguably came in September 2021 when he married Indi Hartwell.
What do you think the future holds for Dexter Lumis on RAW? Let us know your predictions in the comments section.
Please credit Sportskeeda Wrestling’s “Smack Talk” and embed the video if you use quotes from this article.
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