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In an interview with Corey Graves on the podcast After The Bell, WWE NXT Superstar Keith Lee revealed that he had to scratch and claw to get to WWE. Lee told the SmackDown commentator that he never thought he would make it to WWE after getting rejected by them three times.
Keith Lee names the former WWE Superstar who helped him get into the company
Lee said that it was current NJPW wrestler and former WWE Superstar Lance Archer who helped him land a job in WWE as an enhancement talent and how he got acquainted with the powers that be. He added that after being rejected three times by WWE, words of encouragement from William Regal and Dusty Rhodes helped him to stay focused.
Then, I got invited to do some work. In my case, I got thrown into a barricade by one Mr. Triple H and also got poked in the eye by Shane McMahon and punched in the face by Vince. That was my introduction to the bosses of today. (h/t: WrestlingINC
At some point, I gained interest in that first meeting and ended up with my first try out. That was in 2008. I was turned down. In 2011, I did some extra work, and I got asked to come back for another tryout. I was also turned down. I wasn't really sure what I was going to do-wrestling wise going forward. In 2013, when the Performance Center first opened up in the fall, I was part of that first class. Then, I was turned down a third time, so, I wasn't really sure if I was going to continue wrestling.
Lee will challenge NXT North American Champion Roderick Strong for his title this week but after getting injured by The Undisputed Era, it will be interesting to see if Lee will truly push all the limits to claim the title.
