Let’s go back to that bar in Ayr, where Drew Galloway just told us about his WWE debut!
WtW: You were the first and only Scotsman to ever wrestle at Wrestlemania. How is it different from the other WWE PPVs?
DG: Night and day. It is a week-long event, with the Access, all the signings, the appearances… the fans are in the area for the entire week, it is non-stop. When they did it in New Orleans, for example, pretty much everybody was on Bourbon Street every night. There were 80,000 people at the show, there must have been at least 20,000 on Bourbon Street every given night. To walk down it was insane, it was all wild wrestling fans.
One night Sheamus and I were there, in New Orleans, with Finlay and his wife; we took over a balcony and we watched. You feel like a Hollywood celebrity when you are at ‘Mania, you risk being trampled to death by the fans, and everyone is so knowledgeable, so cool. The biggest wrestling fans from all over the world are there.
This year I did the Evolve show there, in the ‘Mania week. I told everybody we should call it Wrestling Week, not ‘Mania Week. All the biggest wrestling fans in the world come together for ‘Mania, but they also go check out the indy shows. The smart marks… and I’m the biggest smart mark, I’m the one who took it too far and became a wrestler, really, at 10 I used to send out for autographs, I’m the biggest smart mark there is… they all come together in one place and they are so knowledgeable, every single person you talk to. It’s not like going to small-town America, where most only know what they see on television and they believe it. Which is cool, by the way. At ‘Mania you have fans who can tell you more about your career than you actually remember, matches you’ve forgotten about, which is so cool.
Then you get to the actual show and the atmosphere is so different, everybody wants to give everything because… first of all, it’s Wrestlemania. Then… you see. when I was The Chosen One I couldn’t sell how I was feeling, when I walked out I had to keep a straight face, I couldn’t look around, I just had to look straight ahead, but in my head I was exploding, I thought “Oh my God, this is insane”. The one I did when I was in Team Johnny against Team Teddy I wasn’t a particular character, I was just Drew McIntyre, so I walked out and during my entrance, you see it if you watch it back, I just burst out laughing because there were just so many people, incredible, I was at Wrestlemania… it was not prepared, it was a legit reaction, I looked around and I saw all the people, I realised that I really was a wrestler at Wrestlemania and 80,000 people were just looking at me and I couldn’t help laughing. I thought “This is all I ever wanted to do, and I’m doing it right now”.
At ‘Mania you just want to give everything you have.
In the first one I was in a Ladder Match, I took a blow to the balls… it did not feel good, but it was worth it because in the future people well watch that Wrestlemania and see me fall off a ladder and black and blue my balls. It did not feel good, but it was Wrestlemania, if you are ever going to do a spot like that, it is the place to do it.
WtW: Do you think you have already met the next Scotsman who will perform at Wrestlemania?
DG: I don’t like to single people out, and you never really know for sure. But I do think Damo O’Connor has a good chance: he’s so different. They are not looking for cookie-cutter characters any longer, they are not all models now, in the WWE there are a lot of different looks, and Damo is as tall as I am, 6’4”, he is gigantic, hairy, he looks like a bear, he’s Irish and moves like a cruiserweight. If anybody has a chance, it’s probably him. I would sign him.
WtW: Let’s move on to 3MB (that, with Hornswoggle, became 3MB + 1KB). It looked like you were having fun. Were you, or are you just that good an actor?
DG: Well, if you are handed something like that… first of all, it was supposed to be different from what it was: nobody had told the boss that I needed surgery on my wrist the following week. I mean, it was always going to be somehow comedy, but not as ridiculous as it was. But I broke my wrist, I got surgery, I couldn’t be touched nor I could touch anyone for six months, so the other two guys had to do all the work.
But yes, we could either be upset and complain or accept the fact that after all we still were on television every single week in multiple segments, millions of people were watching, we were still living the dream. And we are friends, we decided to have a laugh embracing those silly characters. Fighting them was not going to work anyway. We were making jokes at each other the whole time, backstage. We went out partying and video it, then we’d say that we did it because it was our character. And then we put them online: it was just us drinking and partying.
It’s like Damian Sandow, he embraced everything he was given. He got the big opportunity with the Money in the Bank briefcase, everybody cashes in… he didn’t. He got a silly character and he embraced, and now he seems to have a good chance to get back in the title frame.
WtW: What happened then?
DG: I have no idea. They had lost a lot of money with the launch of the Network and 3MB was… I mean, we were pretty over, especially in the rest of the world; somehow the fans were having a good time with us, because we were having such a good time. But I think they thought: “Do we really need this on the show right now?” I couldn’t logically be put in anything serious again, after being so silly for so long… it was the right time for me to go. After eight years, six of which on television, it was a right time to take a break from each other. And after I was gone, it was up to me to re-invent myself instead of just disappearing like most people do.
I was actually sleeping, when I woke up I saw all the messages and then a missed call from a number I recognised… and then I understood I was out. I called back, they were trying to break the news to me in a really nice way, I was all nonchalant. Everybody thought I’d be f**king devastated.
Immediately after I was gone everybody tried to contact me, Chris Jericho asked me to be on his podcast the following week… Jinder Mahal messaged me to tell me he had been let go and asking if I had heard anything… I was fine though, no problem. Sure, it was a little scary, but when I sat down to think about it I felt like a big weight had been lifted off my shoulders. And I started having all those ideas, 1314 to start with…
WtW: Would you go back if you had the chance?
DG: Never say never, but WWE is WWE, they are pretty much self-running. They don’t need anybody, the name WWE is what matters, it’s such a global juggernaut. Now I’m having so much fun, I’m part of companies that are growing, that rely on people working hard to grow the company. I like the idea that I can be part of growing different companies: ICW, Evolve, even TNA… and I’m helping with my creativity and my knowledge of wrestling, I’m using what I’ve learned to benefit a lot of people including myself, I’m allowed to come up with ideas on what to do, while in WWE it’s like a TV show, you are given your role and your lines, you are part of a machine that’s already in place.
For me the biggest thing is to be creatively fulfilled, and right now I totally am, in the ring and out. I’m not in any rush whatsoever to be back, but… never say never.
WtW: If you did go back, how would you like to do it?
DG: The biggest and the most obvious story of all is a feud between myself and the McMahon family. The kid who was promised the world and ended up stuck in a band and then fired, then Seth Rollins got their endorsement and did win the title, and all that jazz. Really, the most obvious feud in the world, me going back to terrorise the McMahons and Rollins. If you watch my old videos, I looked so young. If I went back now, with a beard… I was a kid and I’m a man now. It’s a money-making storyline. That’s the thing that would entice me to go back, if they offered me to do that storyline. It’s very entertaining, like when Stone Cold feuded with the McMahons, he was the everyman who ended up doing everything to his bosses. Of course I’m not Stone Cold, I couldn’t do exactly the same things, but there would be a good build-up, at 23 I was promised the world, I was the chosen one, a future world champion… cut the video montage to me stuck in a band… cut again to them cutting their losses and boom letting me go. Some of the guys, older and more experienced people, told me that it’s a feud waiting to happen, have McMahon talking some sh*t and me popping up and attacking him, people wondering who the f**k I am… the smart fans recognising me, knowing I’ve gone away, made a name for myself… the kid who was promised the world is back and went crazy, he is now terrorising Rollins… the chosen one attacking… well, attacking the new chosen one…
WtW: From 3:16 to 1314 then?
DG: Well…
With this brilliant idea, we conclude the second part of this interview.
In the third we’ll be discussing what Drew did as soon as he left WWE, focussing in particular on ICW and its fans! Don’t miss it!
Interview by Marco Piva
wethethewrestling.altervista.org
