"It p****s me off how good he is at every aspect of our business" - Former WWE World Champion shares how Randy Orton influenced his in-ring style
The WWE Universe desperately wants Randy Orton back in the ring in good health, as evident by many who have expressed online how much they miss the legend. The Viper has been trending on social media recently after he was rumored to return at WrestleMania 39.
Dolph Ziggler recently shed light on how he got into selling like a pro for his opponents in the ring. In a recent interview, The Showoff credited Randy Orton for helping him reach a state of mind that differed from the direction others were going.
Appearing on INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, Dolph Ziggler spoke of Randy Orton's popularity during The Viper's early WWE tenure. As it turns out, a lot of wrestlers tried to follow the 14-time WWE World Champion's in-ring style, which was more stoic, toning down the selling aspect of wrestling.
"Randy Orton is awesome. But this is 12 or 15 years ago, or whatever it is," Ziggler began. "He is not the guy, but you can tell he is about to be, and I want to say it's maybe, like, Evolution. I think it's that, and he's like the coolest dude in the world."
The Showoff continued:
"Black trunks, doesn't say a word, doesn't move his face, he's a psycho, so everybody, slowly, for a couple of months in Ohio Valley Wrestling, goes to black trunks, short black hair, no selling, not that Randy was no selling, because he is, it p****s me off how good he is at every aspect of our business," Ziggler added. [27:54 onwards]
The former World Heavyweight Champion then detailed how he noticed performers weren't selling enough. Considering WWE was on its way into the "reality era," with wrestlers like John Cena and Randy Orton on top of the card, Dolph Ziggler decided to master the art of selling, deviating from the in-ring styles of some of his fellow wrestlers.
RANDY ORTON IS THE GREATEST OF ALL TIME WHEN IT COMES TO SELLING https://t.co/eIHcRcknMd
Despite some detractors, the WWE Universe seemingly believes Randy Orton is one of the best to lace up a pair of boots. Many even hope to see him kickstart a program with Roman Reigns upon his return. Read more here.
Dolph Ziggler on how his selling style against top WWE stars backfired
Dolph Ziggler's efforts to stand out from the rest of the pack sort of backfired for him at one point in his career.
In the same interview, he revealed that his bosses wanted him to make his opponents look good every week because of how good he was at selling. This effectively made him lose more matches than he won, according to The Showoff himself:
"I think 10 years later down the line, when you have a bunch of money in the bank, they start going, 'Oh. We love the way you take Sheamus' Brougue Kick,' they started booking it every Monday and Friday, and then it becomes a problem for me personally. It looks like a video game, but now I'm losing twice as much as I normally would be, and you're like, 'How do I get out of this?'"
Also on September 16 in @RandyOrton history,in 2012 at the Night of Champions PPV in Boston,Massachusetts he beat Dolph Ziggler by RKO. https://t.co/eJxyABrgi0
Needless to say, Dolph Ziggler is one of the most respected veterans of WWE, who has a loyal fanbase hoping to see him climb up the mountain again.
Watch Dolph Ziggler's recent performance against WWE NXT star Tyler Bate receive a loud reaction from fans here.
If you use quotes from the article's first half, please credit INSIGHT with Chris Van Vliet, and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.