During a recent interview with Daily DDT, WWE Champion Drew McIntyre commented on his title win during the middle of a pandemic, wanting to face AJ Styles, and more. You can check out some highlights from the interview below:
On being champion during a pandemic: “I’m not one to toot my own horn. Obviously, when I won the WWE title, we’re in unprecedented times. No one’s ever been champion in a pandemic, so it’s kind of figuring it out as I go, but the thing I’ve said before I won the title, and I still fully believe is my journey, all the ups and downs of my career, all the negatives and the positives prepared me to lead the company in any situation. It didn’t matter what situation was presented to me, I would be able to lead this company because of my journey, and then the pandemic hit, and then when it did hit, I felt exactly the same, and I felt I was a man to carry the load, and I don’t crack under pressure, because I’ve been through it all, and I found that exciting, to be honest, I take it as a challenge to find new ways to innovate and adapt, WWE’s always innovating and adapting dramatically, I was always innovating and adapting, and from the first show, when there’s no fans there, I was trying to think of ways to connect with the fans at home, because they weren’t in the arena. So the WWE universe is our biggest superstar, number one superstar, we feed off of them, and I was looking right down the camera lens on that first show, trying to connect to everybody home and make that connection since he went there personally and trying to set an example for the rest of the roster that, hey, this is a new time right now, and I’m going to try things, I’m going to throw things against the wall to see if they stick, because there are no wrong answers right now, so let’s just try some stuff, and I wanted to set the examples from the first RAW, but let’s just do whatever it takes, see if the fans react to it, if they like it, cool. If they don’t, then we’ll change it, and we’ll keep trying, we’ll keep adapting, and hopefully I’ve been setting an example to everybody to do that as well. I had a few characters over the past few months really step up and really find themselves, which is awesome; and outside the ring, I’m very proud of my role as WWE brand ambassador, and get to do all the media, trying to get new eyes on the product, and that’s the role I take very seriously. Somebody like Randy Orton, I assure you, is just sitting home, chilling out, counting his money, and he’s not doing all the work. Hey, outside the company is the real responsibilities of a champion, and I’m really proud to say that I do put in the work when it comes to my responsibility as a champion, so hopefully get a high grade.”
On wanting a match with AJ Styles: “Randy was the top of the list, and that’s SummerSlam. I got a few in mind, a A.J. Styles certainly floats around the top of the list, and he’s currently on SmackDown, unfortunately, but him and I have been like ships in the night for the past few years. When I was gone from the company, he was the biggest star for years, independent wrestling, and he was in Japan at the time, and there was a chance we were going to be the same company and things didn’t work out, and then a bunch of independent companies decided to book us together and timing didn’t work out, then he came back anyway to WWE, and then finally I came back to WWE, eventually we’re on the same roster, and I think I was a bad guy, he was a good guy, and then suddenly he’s a bad guy, and oh, that other match is probably not going to happen, and then I’m a good guy, he’s a bad guy, oh, we got a match that is going to happen, then he goes to SmackDown, so over the years when I look at the lay the land and A.J. and I keep missing each other, and I think recently on his Twitch stream, he talked about a few dream matches of his, and one with myself at WrestleMania would be high on his list, which is so cool, because I really A.J., I really want that match. When it happens, I want people to know it’s been a long time coming, years coming.”
On possibly facing Karrion Kross: “Seeing the people has always, again, with last night, in NXT, so much talent who’s stepping up right now, I know Karrion Kross and Scarlett are really making a name for themselves right now, and they kind of come out of nowhere. They didn’t have the big independent run of a lot of NXT superstars kind of just, their name popped up and suddenly they were in NXT, so they’re kind of unknown right now, but they’re really making an impact. I really need that thing with, match with Keith Lee, I think, and this is, and we can take a little history lesson with Keith Lee and I, this is basically how it’s gone. My last night in Evolve, Keith Lee was kind of on the rise, really turning heads, in independent wrestling and then Evolve, and my last night, the night I showed up in NXT TakeOver, when I returned to WWE, Keith Lee spirit bombed me out of Evolve, and then when I was in NXT and I tore my bicep, I was champion. I never had the chance to return and thank the fans and had my goodbye moment. I was straight to RAW. I kept a video on the road, never really had the chance to go back, the first time I showed back up prior to Survivor Series, I have my return moment, the fans are going crazy, who shows up to power bombs me once again, Keith Lee, so basically everywhere I go, he sneaks in, hits me with that power buff, so I think I owed him a few receipts, and I know that a heck of a match is two big guys, but they are really athletic also, so Keith and I’ll definitely have it down the line.”
On Randy Orton’s recent actions: “Oh, I think it was despicable, I guess, is the best word actually to describe it. Let me think about it. From our point of view, Ric Flair is an absolute legend, and an icon, generation after generation look up to him, he’s crossed over into mainstream, everybody knows who Ric Flair is, but from Randy’s point of view, this is somebody he grew up around with his dad, and more importantly, for the past 20 years they’ve spent together on the roads, this is somebody who has mentored him, has been a friend to him, most importantly protected him, because when he was younger, he made some terrible decisions, should have been fired a bunch of times, and it’s because of guys like Ric Flair and he wasn’t fired, and after all that guiding, getting him to where he needs to get to, and look, he said last … A couple of weeks ago, why he’s made his money, and why he is on top of the world, why he can call his own shots now is because of guys like Ric Flair. And what did he do to repair after he made one mistake? Although it was mistake after mistake after mistake that Randy’s made, Ric makes one, he punts him in the head, so that says all you need to know about Randy Orton, the kind of person he is, you don’t kick … Doesn’t care about anybody, he cares about himself. He’s not been trying to pull up the rest of the roster and guide the rest of the roster as a leader, like he should’ve been over these past few years, and my intention at SummerSlam, originally, I didn’t need a reason to take out Randy Orton. I was around Randy when I was younger. I remember what it was like. I remember the fear he struck in younger guys, that perhaps get us fired, I’m a grown ass man now, the WWE champion now, I was going to take him out no matter what, I was looking forward to this opportunity to beat up Randy Orton, and now he’s giving me every reason in the world, and I take it all of the legends, including Ric Flair.”
