"They were laughing at him" - WWE Veteran reacts after Butch loses to Xavier Woods' new finisher (Exclusive)
Industry legend Dutch Mantell has had his say on Xavier Woods' new finishing maneuver and the aftermath of his victory against Butch on this week's WWE SmackDown.
Woods scored a singles win over Butch on SmackDown with a small package rollup. The New Day member has named his new finisher 'The Backwoods'.
On the latest episode of Sportskeeda Wrestle's Smack Talk, Dutch Mantell made it clear that he wasn't against the rollup, as it was merely a maneuver to catch opponents off guard. However, the former WWE manager took issue with how Xavier Woods reacted after his victory against Butch (fka Pete Dunne).
Woods was seen laughing at Butch after the bout, and Mantell stated that it made the former NXT Superstar look bad in defeat:
"It's just a go-to finisher; it is what it is. Just catch him coming off, surprise him and just roll him up, boom, and then he hits the floor. This is what I don't like; when they hit the floor, they were laughing at him," revealed Dutch Mantell. "That doesn't help him either. He almost beat him, so why would you start laughing at somebody because when he almost beat you. It's like adding insult to injury." [50:31 - 50:55]
You can check out the latest episode of Smack Talk below:
"Critiquing them is like talking to a tree" - Dutch Mantell is not surprised with how WWE booked Woods vs. Butch
Wins and losses are a part of wrestling's career, and Dutch Mantell said there is always a way to preserve the credibility of a superstar taking the three-count.
Giving props to the losing contenders is one known method that promoters have utilized in wrestling for decades, but WWE went in the opposite creative direction for Butch and Woods' match.
Mantell stated that WWE made a mistake by letting New Day ridicule Butch after the SmackDown match:
"I mean if they want him to be taken seriously because if I'm going to go out here and beat a guy, I want to beat a guy who was competitive. So, when I would get out of the ring, I would look at him, like, 'Hey, you gave me a hell of a fight, buddy!' But, we're dealing with WWE here; we're dealing with a different animal. So, critiquing them is like talking to a tree. They are not hearing you. They are not hearing the fans either," stated Mantell. [50:56 - 51:30]
Are you a fan of Xavier Woods' new finisher? Let us know in the comments section below.
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