Titus O'Niel talks World title ambitions, praise for the New Day, WWE and African American stars
For a college Football player, Titus O’Niel has done quite good for himself to reach where he is in the WWE right now and he plans to go higher. Although many would argue he is quite underrated, the man himself has huge ambitions and time will tell whether he can achieve those dreams.
The former tag tea champion and one half of The Prime Time Players, Titus sat down for an interview recently and talked about his goals of becoming a World Champion, New Day, WWE’s booking of African American stars and more. Below are the highlights from the interview:
His ambition of becoming the WWE World Heavyweight Champion
The confidence O’Niel exudes is really impressive and he knows for a fact that he is championship material, which is his ultimate goal.
“I am one-hundred percent confident that I am WWE world heavyweight championship material. That is my goal. I won tag team gold, and while I’m in a tag team, that is my goal, but champion should be the goal of every single person on the roster. Otherwise, you’re wasting your time, and you’re wasting my time,” says O’Niel.
On WWE’s booking of African Americans and the fact that there is only one champion of the same descent in WWE history
Although Titus admits never being involved with WWE creative branch, it saddens him in select cases as to the way African American’s are treated. “I’ve never been involved in the creative process in any aspect of this company, so I couldn’t tell you why there has only been one. Is it disturbing in some cases? Yes, but it’s no different than any other form of entertainment. There aren’t a lot of places, whether it’s film or television, with African-Americans as heroes,” says the powerhouse.
Titus couldn't answer as to why there is only one African American Champion in history but validated the fact that he would be the next as he has earned every right to be a Champion. He says, “I can’t answer the question of why there has only been one, but I would definitely like to be the next African-American champion. Not because I’m African-American, but because I’ve deserved and earned the right to be WWE world heavyweight champion.”
On learning from The Dudleys and praise for The New Day
Titus pointed out to the fact that it is not only the Dudleys their learning from but also from each other and the New Day as each day they get to do what they love doing most.
“Being able to go out and perform, and create storylines and create drama within those storylines, that takes not only the veterans–it also takes the young guys who are hungry and looking to prove themselves. I’ve learned a tremendous amount in a very short period of time from the Dudley’s, but I’ve learned a lot from New Day,” says the Prime Time Player.
He showered praise on the New Day for salvaging a gimmick that was bound to fail and turning into one of the best things on WWE TV. “Those guys [The New Day] have definitely taken what was looked to be a doomed gimmick and made it gold. I’m very proud of all three of those guys,” states Titus.
He adds, ”They’re not only great representatives of the company as far as being educated and articulate and represent the brand of WWE, but they’re also very talented athletes and all have college degrees. I’m proud to say I have the pleasure of being able to learn from them.”