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Amid the tumultuous past week in America, both CM Punk and Daniel Bryan joined the show as special guests. Bryan discussed his past before WWE and his run so far as well as his Intercontinental Championship Finals match with AJ Styles. CM Punk discussed a variety of goings-on from WWE and also had some poignant comments regarding the social strife in the US. Mark Henry and Booker T also joined the show with Henry revealing that he took part in the peaceful protest in Austin, Texas over the weekend.
Seth Rollins relived his infamous cash-in from WWE WrestleMania 31 where he made history. Another storyline, the recent Jeff Hardy/Sheamus incident, was also analyzed due to Hardy's past struggles with substance abuse. Christian also revealed that he would be at WWE RAW this upcoming Monday for a special edition of the Peep Show with Edge as a special guest.
Matt Riddle's ascension to WWE SmackDown was briefly addressed as was the ongoing struggle between Rollins and Rey Mysterio. This week, we saw Dominick once more, which fueled the speculation of his future. Here are six takeaways from this week's episode of WWE Backstage (June 2nd, 2020).
#5 Riddle's Cage Fight/SmackDown arrival
A brief vignette aired during WWE SmackDown to hype the arrival of the Original Bro, Matt Riddle, to the Blue brand. It came on the heels of his Cage Fight with Timothy Thatcher on NXT. Punk claimed "I liked it and I hated it. When I hear fight pit, I'm not thinking pro wrestling cage match, but in MMA you fight in a cage." He also added that he "didn't need the platform on the top and sometimes they do things to be different." Instead, the Voice of the Voiceless suggested that "they could have taken the ropes off of the ring" and that "it's a very hard style to work." He ended by praising both men, saying that "they both did really really well. It's a difficult thing to do in the sports entertainment arena but I do appreciate Riddle giving the rub to Thatcher."
Christian said "I like the concept of something new and something fresh and this was that. It's just something that needs the two right competitors." Booker T wants Riddle to wear boots and said that he's "not a huge fan of the MMA ring coming into the pro wrestling world unless it's done right."
Booker T also said that "to change the whole name of the game, we aren't there yet. Matt Riddle has a lot more to prove to me. I want to see Matt Riddle go out there and perform at that level and have some psychology and a blueprint and a science" to his matches.
#5 Daniel Bryan joins the show
Bryan is one of the best performers of this or any generation. He's slated to face AJ Styles in the finals of the IC Tournament. He was asked about how excited he was and he said that he feels "like my career a lot of times is surreal. I meet these people early on in my career and then 20 years later, I'm still meeting them." Bryan also said that he still has "this very competitive inspiration for trying to be the best and performing at the highest level. For me, it's a lot of fun."
Punk and Bryan worked together during 2010-2012 in WWE. He remembered that "this is when we're doing stuff with the WWE Championships and we're not in the main event. The main event then was John Cena vs. my now father-in-law (John Laurinaitis)." He also added that he remembered "being in these title matches and saying 'let's go out here and show them'" and that "it was this point where the crowd was behind me but that only lasts for so long and you either get involved with something that keeps you going forward or lose the momentum."
Of pre-WWE life, Punk said you were always "challenging yourself and trying to be the best. He added that "WWE was always there and we always knew we were good enough to be there but there are a lot of hurdles of being on TV and being good and successful on the indies and being good and successful in WWE. It's more of an art for guys like me and him."
#4 Punk and Bryan, continued
During his time on the independent circuit, Bryan claimed that he "actively didn't want to go to WWE" because he "really liked the DIY aesthetic and being in control of my own schedule and take a few weeks off." He claimed that "when Punk signed with WWE, I thought 'if they give him a shot, he's going to blow them away.' I didn't think that about myself because WWE is so promo heavy and I wasn't good (with promos) at that time. I could do a sports promo but as far as being entertaining, I could do that a little bit and that's not what they do with smaller guys."
The former WWE Champion also added that his "interest has always been in my love for wrestling and I never wanted to be famous. I wanted enough money to survive." The turning point came when he said that "I got a decent amount of injuries and said that 'I can sign with WWE or I can look at another path like going to school.'"
Bryan was a part of the original iteration of NXT when it was a game show. He claimed that "2009 was this make-or-break year for me. I trained MMA for the whole year and tried to get into WWE and if that doesn't work then I'll go back to school." Of his friend and contemporary, Bryan claimed that "when I saw Punk and his interviews and the way he carried himself, he was a star and that's one of the things I never thought about myself."
Another interesting admission Bryan made was that along with promos, "the hardest part of wrestling for me was walking to the ring. That moment from when you walk to the ring and then get into the ring." He was curious as to what to do with his hands so he started to do the "Yes!" and "No!" gestures "and now with no people, it feels really awkward and they still want me to do it and it's like 'what do I do with my hands?'"
#3 Rollins, Money in the Bank and the impact the briefcase has now
Depending on your point of view, the night WWE Superstar Seth Rollins cashed in his MITB briefcase in the main event of WWE WrestleMania 31 may be one of the best endings ever to a WM. Rollins relived the moments before, during, and after his monumental win. To no one's surprise, he commented that "it was nerve-racking sitting up in gorilla just waiting for my moment. It's one of those things where you plan but it almost seems too good to be true." Rollins also said that he "couldn't think about anything else except executing the plan. I kept telling myself 'don't trip' and 'hurry hurry hurry.'"'
The ability "to have that moment of surprise in a match that was hotly contested up to that point was special. We were in a time crunch at that moment and I didn't want the show to go off the air without my moment." Rollins also reflected that "it was a moment I dreamed about in my entire life. I never expected it to happen. Standing there with that title above your head is something you've dreamed about since you're four years old."
WWE Backstage host, Renee Young, pondered if a MITB cash-in has surpassed a win in the WWE Royal Rumble in terms of making a new start. Captain Charisma mentioned that he "was in the first MITB match and we all thought it was a really cool concept going in. We saw how it could propel your career to the next level." He also reflected that "the IC title, when you won that title, you were the next in line to be WWE Champion. When the IC title lost its luster, winning that briefcase took its spot in my opinion."
WWE Backstage analyst, CM Punk, won two briefcases and said, "what I love about the MITB is that you can put people in different situations." One reason was because "when I cashed in my second briefcase on Jeff (Hardy), people weren't happy and didn't get it. They were confused" because both men were faces. He does like how "you get really interesting stories and character development and for wrestlers to find themselves" with cash-ins.
#2 Thoughts on the Jeff Hardy and Rey Mysterio storylines
WWE blurred the lines of reality on WWE SmackDown last week as the IC tournament was thrown into turmoil after it appeared as if Jeff Hardy had hit Elias with his rental car. The action allowed several other stars a chance to face Daniel Bryan later in the night. With Hardy's issues with substance abuse well known, it was a touchy subject.
Former WWE champion CM Punk said "I'm speaking from experience here because I worked extensively with Jeff and he might not have been at a great spot at that time. My thing with this segment and story is that I believe that someone's sobriety is very fragile and very important." He went on to say that "we discuss if they should do it or shouldn't do it and if he (Hardy) green-lit it (the angle). To me, it's the responsibility of the writer or promoter to get in front of it and say 'we're not doing it to Jeff again.'"
The Voice of the Voiceless also thought that "this is the wrong way to go about. Someone's sobriety is special" while former WWE Superstar Christian claimed that "if Jeff was okay with all of it, I guess it's to get heat on someone else. I'm not sure that it was the best way to do it." WWE Hall of Famer Booker T claimed that he "saw a lot of guys that had a lot of substance abuse problems. A lot of those guys were my friends and a lot of them aren't here today." He concluded by saying that "he's a guy that has been a part of real life angles before. I hope everything turns out right in the end."
Regarding the reappearance of WWE Superstar Rey Mysterio's son, Dominick, Christian said he's "in a wait and see" position at this point, but "Rey is one of the very best to ever do this. It's going to be hard for Dominick to step out from the shadow." Punk said that "this is a good use of a real-life situation. I like that dynamic." He added that "Dominick is a little wooden with his delivery but he's going to come out of his shell. If it goes the way of becoming a disciple of Seth Rollins, it's something that I think would be intriguing. I'd watch that."
#1 The protests through the eyes of various WWE performers
There has been much civil unrest lately in the USA for many reasons. Several thousand Americans publicly protested all across the country while others around the world also joined in. One of those who protested was WWE Hall of Famer Mark Henry who joined a march in Austin, Texas. Henry said that "I'm not a complaining guy. I'm a solutions guy. I hope that out of this the regular person can walk up to the police and they say 'can I help you' rather than 'get the hell of here' or 'get that camera off.'" He added that "we (his family) walked. It was peaceful. It was Black, White, Hispanics, Asians. It was a real melting pot. I was very happy."
WWE Backstage analyst and former WWE Superstar CM Punk had a lot to say. He started with that "people talk about 'we need to have a conversation.' I'm a white guy. I'm not here to pretend to understand how Black people feel and it's not my place to tell them how to react." He went on to say that "this country has a problem. I'm here to tell the White people that you need to listen to your Black brothers and sisters and need to understand where they're coming from. It's hard to walk in someone else's shoes."
He also discussed how "the paradox is to deal with intolerance. Fascism and racism cannot win and if you're struggling with a way you can help, then combat that intolerance with intolerance." WWE Hall of Famer Booker T added that "seeing something and hearing something are two different things. It's always down to leadership. We as human beings and Americans need to stand up and be leaders and not followers and stand up when they see something."
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