{"id":41262,"date":"2017-08-18T05:04:32","date_gmt":"2017-08-18T05:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/?p=41262"},"modified":"2017-08-18T05:04:32","modified_gmt":"2017-08-18T05:04:32","slug":"veteran-performers-finding-increased-fame-wwe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biphoo.com\/bipnews\/sports\/veteran-performers-finding-increased-fame-wwe.html","title":{"rendered":"Veteran performers finding increased fame in WWE"},"content":{"rendered":"

Veteran performers finding increased fame in WWE<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

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After Samoa Joe lost to Brock Lesnar at a World Wrestling Entertainment pay-per-view last month, the crowd chanted \u201cThank you, Joe.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

It was an appreciation of Joe\u2019s effort that night, but a recognition of an 18-year journey that has taken him from independent wrestling icon to main eventer for the biggest professional wrestling company in the world. <\/span><\/p>\n

Joe \u2014 real name Nuufolau Joe Seanoa \u2014 is in the main event again Sunday night at SummerSlam, WWE\u2019s second biggest event of the year. Joe, Roman Reigns and Braun Strowman challenge Lesnar in a Fatal Four-Way match for the Universal title in Brooklyn, N.Y. (7 p.m. ET, WWE Network). <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a watershed moment for me in terms of legitimization,\u201d Joe, 38, said of his performance at Great Balls of Fire in July. \u201cWinning the Universal title wasn\u2019t in the cards, but people realized what they had on their hands. WWE realized that I belong in the main event picture and that\u2019s where I am at SummerSlam.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

SummerSlam weekend will represent a showcase for a group of veteran newcomers \u2014 each with more than 15 years\u2019 experience and each in his mid-30s or older \u2014 who worked in other promotions, but have found greater success and a significantly higher profile in the last two-plus years on the worldwide platform of WWE. <\/span><\/p>\n

Shinsuke Nakamura, 37, will challenge Jinder Mahal for the WWE championship. Finn Balor, 36, meets Bray Wyatt, with Balor again breaking out his body-painted \u201cDemon\u201d character. Nakamura and Balor were stars in Japan before WWE. A.J. Styles, 40, will defend the United States title against Kevin Owens, 33, in a rivalry that dates back more than a dozen years. Both have wrestled around the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

On Saturday at NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn 3 (8 p.m. ET, WWE Network), Bobby Roode, 40, defends the NXT title against Drew McIntyre. <\/span><\/p>\n

On Sunday after SummerSlam, WWE Network will air a bracketology special for the Mae Young Classic, a 32-women tournament. The first four episodes will be released Aug. 28.<\/span><\/p>\n

One thing the veteran performers all share \u2014 other than a history of matches in some combination against each other \u2014 is a feeling that their path has been instrumental in how quickly they have elevated in WWE. Still, all but Styles spent time in NXT \u2014 WWE\u2019s third brand that is focused on development \u2014 and WWE\u2019s Performance Center in Orlando because working for a wrestling company and working for a television company that produces wrestling are different things.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ve got a lot of experience and been a lot of places, but no one has taught them how to do television; no one has taught them camera angles or the subtleties and even from the storytelling standpoint of what we do bell to bell,\u201d said Paul \u201cTriple H\u201d Levesque, WWE\u2019s executive vice president for talent, live events and creative. \u201cWe shoot a television show with a backdrop that happens to be the WWE Universe, a WWE ring and the competitors work in that ring, but it\u2019s still a television show. Nobody is doing the things that what we\u2019re doing in terms of the difference in the product. No matter where you come from, you have to learn that and have that learning curve.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As Levesque notes, the route to superstar begins with the tools to success, but there is much more even in an industry in which the winners and losers are predetermined.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSure, in some ways it\u2019s up to us, but in a lot of ways up to them. They have to deliver,\u201d he said. “You could be the best college football player in the world, win the Heisman Trophy, get drafted really high and then go to the pros and not make it. Why? There are a lot of factors and this is no different. We try to give everyone the opportunity to be the absolute best they can be. We give them the tools to success … and then set them free.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Styles\u2019 WWE debut was at the Royal Rumble in 2016 and he has acknowledged that he faced a more difficult route to get acclimated to the WWE way by bypassing time in NXT. Levesque said it depends on the particular talent and the needs of the main roster as to whether another performer might join the main roster without working in NXT. At the Performance Center, the company can work with talent without being in front of a live crowd to explain camera angles and production. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t have to necessarily have be on NXT television, but they have to be around it and learning it,\u201d Levesque said.<\/span><\/p>\n

For Roode, his NXT debut was in August 2016 and became NXT champion in January when he beat Nakamura. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis has been a learning curve for me,\u201d Roode said, \u201cbut it\u2019s been a lot of fun learning and trying to get better. … The greatest decision I\u2019ve ever made in my career was to come here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Owens recently marked three years with WWE, was the subject of a DVD set in April and hit 1 million Twitter followers last week. He won the NXT title in February 2015, just two months after his debut. Since joining the main roster in May 2015, he has been Universal champion, a three-time United States champion and two-time Intercontinental champion. Before coming to WWE, Owens worked under his given name, Kevin Steen.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOver the three years, there wasn\u2019t really a time when I was treading water and not really doing anything important,\u201d Owens said. \u201cIt\u2019s all been pretty incredible if I\u2019m being completely honest. … <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt felt like it took me a while to get here \u2014 it was 14 years from the time my first match happened to when I got my WWE contract \u2014 but it really does feel like since I\u2019ve been here, I\u2019ve made up for lost time.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Owens also has learned what the exposure from WWE means in life away from the ring. At one point, he was besieged with photo requests during a family vacation to Disneyland with his two young children. He turned down the fans but then thanked them on Twitter for being respectful and understanding of his family time. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s definitely something that comes with it in a way I didn\u2019t expect,\u201d he said of the attention. \u201cI go on my daily routine when I\u2019m at home and people see me, want to take pictures and talk to me about what I\u2019m doing. It\u2019s so humbling and really cool because to me, I\u2019m just this guy who is walking around getting my kids shoes at Target and stuff like that. I don\u2019t feel like I\u2019m a big deal. I just feel like a regular dude. I\u2019m just me.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Joe sees the group of veteran newcomers as potentially opening a new pathway for other talent. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve helped shine a spotlight on talent from alternative places,\u201d Joe said. \u201cI don\u2019t want to say it was neglected, but it was overlooked because of protocol within the company. They are broadening their search and looking at more guys, possibly more than they ever have. If we can be the catalyst for that, then that\u2019s pretty awesome.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Source-\u00a0https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/sports\/2017\/08\/17\/wwe-summerslam-veteran-performers-finding-fame\/578569001\/<\/span><\/p>\n

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