Select Portions: NXT Notes, Baron Corbin, More

NXT Backstage Notes From Corey Brennan

- Several sources within NXT that we spoke to were surprised by the announcement that the brand would be running the 2300 arena. Some had heard of it being a possibility, but dismissed it as being too out there.

- As we reported previously, this week’s NXT’s ending was extensively planned, and has left several in the brand frustrated with The CW.

- This week’s episode was internally titled "Who's Afraid Of A Little Old Spin".

- Zaria’s name change was one that didn’t surprise sources we spoke to within the brand, as difficulties with trademarking Delta would be expected by those we spoke to.

Notes from Sean Ross Sapp

• MJF has still been filming movies, which is why he's appeared in videos as opposed to live.

• CW plans on doing election coverage, which is why NXT is changing nights during Election Week
  

Baron Corbin

Fightful caught up with former WWE United States Champion Baron Corbin.

Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp mentioned to Corbin that the last time they spoke, Corbin unblocked him on Twitter live on the air. They mentioned it was likely Football-related. Corbin is a Chiefs fan.

Corbin mentioned that the hotel where they conducted the interview was the same hotel where the Chicago Bears stayed before their NFL Hall of Fame game against the Houston Texans, who they would be playing in Canton, Ohio.

Corbin, who was once in the NFL, shared a story about running into the 2024 NFL number-one overall pick, Caleb Williams, in the hotel elevator. He also mentioned running into a not-so-familiar face, and they informed him that they were one-time roommates and teammates. Corbin said he looked at him and had no idea. Corbin said it was Jimmy [James] Dray. Corbin said they were teammates when they were with the Arizona Cardinals. Dray is entering his third year as the Tight Ends coach for the Bears.

Baron also told Sean that he messaged known die-hard Bears fan Seth Rollins to inform him that his team was at the hotel. Corbin said seeing them was fun but still had to say, “Go Chiefs.”

Corbin spoke about evolving in the ring and said there was definitely a concentrated effort for his return to the main roster. Corbin told Sean that he went back to NXT to fix many things. Corbin added that it was not just with his wrestling; it was because he had to revamp who he was and leave that in the past to get a fresh start.

Corbin said if you saw him do the same thing he did two years ago, you wouldn’t care.  He said it was a concentrated effort to create a new way of moving and doing things in the ring. 

Corbin also said it elevates and makes things exciting for him. Corbin said he had to evolve his game to run with people like Ilja Dragunov, Carmelo Hayes, Bron Breakker, and people we haven’t seen yet. Corbin said, “I had to step my game up. It made me better for everybody to see.

Would Corbin be interested in participating in Bloodsport? Corbin said to Fightful, “Absolutely. It would be awesome. It would be a lot of fun. I watch it.” He mentioned watching Shayna Baszler and said it looks like she’s having a heck of a time. Corbin also noted how The Creed Brothers destroyed their opponents. The Creed Brothers won both of their matches by TKO. Brutus Creed defeated Tom Lawlor, and Julius Creed defeated Matt Makowski.

Corbin mentioned that he trains jiu-jitsu three days a week and will try to fight in the IBJF in November.

He also added that he wants to choke some fools out and get another gold medal. Corbin said that Bloodsport would be a fun place to demonstrate his skills.

Sean asked Corbin about the recent pair-up with Apollo Crews. Corbin said he was standoffish when he discovered he would be paired with Apollo. However, he mentioned that more and more people told him they loved the pairing. 

Corbin said he just got working with former NXT tag team partner Bron Breakker. Corbin mentioned that he did not know if it would be better. He said working with Breakker was fun and organic, and he loved working with Breakker. 

Corbin told Sean that Crews is an unbelievable competitor and mentioned wrestling Crews at NXT TakeOver. London. Sean mentioned when Corbin told Crews to go back to ROH even though Crews never worked there. Corbin, chuckling, said he didn’t know. Corbin said working with Crews has been exciting.

[Writers Note: The Chicago Bears defeated the Houston Texans 21-17 in the Hall of Fame game. The NFL felt bad for the people who had to watch the Bears and ended the game late in the third quarter. Yes, this Minnesota Vikings fan took a shot because it will likely be a long year for me. In reality, the game ended early because Mother Nature felt bad for people having to watch the Bears.]

David Francisco Interview Notes

Fightful Select’s Corey Brennan recently sat down with RevPro’s David Francisco for an interview on all things RevPro. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5HDRP-pVQU) You can check out the early notes from the interview below.

The two men kicked off by discussing David’s match with Suicide on October 19th, with David referencing the tendency for imports to face off with the young stars of the UK scene. David also talked about possibly getting to face his original opponent for that date, EC3.

When discussing the differences between the Portuguese wrestling scene and the UK one, the biggest difference that David thought of was how he would have to explain what he does to people in Portugal, while people understood what a pro wrestler was when he moved to the United Kingdom. David also compared the schedule of events, noting that what he would wrestle in a month, he would wrestle in a year at home.

David also spoke about his time as a contender in RevPro, noting that he felt like it was a positive to be introduced to the audience as a contender, which helped take some pressure off of him to perform. He emphasized how grateful he was to RevPro and Andy Quildan for the opportunity.

While speaking about his tag team with Goldenboy Santos, David noted how it was a reassuring thing to have each other in the RevPro locker room while also not being just ‘the Portuguese team’. David noted that he feels that the two play to each other’s strengths and can learn from each other, and hopes to challenge for the Undisputed British Tag Titles in the future.

In his recent Respect Match with Sha Samuels, David stated his belief that people were not expecting the brutality of the match, and showed off some of his battle scars from the bout. He also spoke about his mother’s reaction to the match, and how he feels his character managed to come across defiant in the face of the brutality.

As the interview drew to a close, Corey would ask David for some memories of Mad Kurt, with David reminiscing about talks the pair would have about wrestling and life in general.