Former WWE star provides details on how Triple H wanted them to be presented on NXT in 2016
In 2016, Triple H wanted Malakai Black (f.k.a Aleister Black) to be presented to the NXT audience as a good guy despite the now-former WWE star being a heel on the independent scene.
Before making his WWE debut in 2016, Black made a name for himself as the villainous Tommy End. He wrestled in promotions like Pro Wrestling Guerilla, Revolution Pro Wrestling, and Progress Wrestling.
Despite being known as a heel, Black, during a recent interview with Universal Wrestling Podcast, revealed that Triple H, the head booker of NXT, wanted him to portray a good guy:
"I always considered this installment of who I am to be a mesh of the years on the independents and the years in NXT and WWE, predominantly, and kind of blend them together. That’s what Malakai basically became, and even funnier though, this was actually the character I was supposed to debut within NXT, but then Hunter [Triple H] wanted the character to be a good guy." (H/T: Wrestling Inc)
The Era of @WWEAleister has begun.
#AndNew #NXTTakeOver #NXTChampionship https://t.co/pvggf3sFOg
The Game's decision for Black to be showcased as a good guy paid off as he went on to create a great connection with the die-hard NXT fans.
Triple H recently congratulated an old teammate of his
While WWE celebrated the 20th debut anniversary of Randy Orton on RAW, another member of the iconic stable Evolution was recently heralded for his contributions: The Animal, Batista.
On May 9, 2002, Batista made his WWE debut, which marked the beginning of an extremely successful career. The Animal's emergence onto the main event scene came when he joined forces with Randy Orton, Ric Flair & Triple H to form Evolution.
Yesterday, The King of Kings took to Twitter to congratulate his fellow Evolution stablemate on his legendary WWE run:
In the 20 years since @DaveBautista was first introduced to the @WWE Universe, he has never stopped growing and evolving. A main event player, multi-time champion and Hollywood star, one thing has stayed the same: he never stopped chasing his dreams. Congratulations Dave! #Proud
Batista has since gone on to achieve many great things outside of WWE. The former WWE Champion shone as the loveable powerhouse Drax in the Guardians of the Galaxy film series.