If you had been amongst those that had a difficulty with Pat McAfee being featured in a match with Adam Cole at NXT TakeOver: XXX this previous Saturday, he understands. After all, McAfee is a lifelong fan {of professional} wrestling, and like many people, has seen "outsiders" use wrestling platforms to place themselves over with no respect for the enterprise.
By the top of TakeOver, there have been actually few doubters of McAfee's expertise left. The match between McAfee and Cole stood out in a present stuffed with wonderful matches, and the previous NFL punter greater than held up his finish of the competition.
"As a lifelong wrestling fan, I completely understand where everybody was coming from," McAfee instructed CBS Sports. "I always hated the thought of an outsider coming into this profession that I love and enjoy watching. I think it's known by everyone that, normally, the outsider is there to try to get a little pop, try to put themselves over and they rarely put on anything that is anything worthy of being a good match. That's something that I think has always been pretty disrespectful to anybody that has made a living wrestling. I very much understand anybody that was a little bit upset about it, or a lot bit upset about it, especially because NXT has never done anything like that before. Being such a fan, I could understand where the potential hatred was coming from from people. I also knew that there was a chance that I was going to hopefully go in there and put on a show for people.
"I'm not trying again and grading it, it was form of bizarre to observe it after I acquired residence. I acquired an opportunity to observe it again for the primary time, and it was form of bizarre, to be trustworthy. It was only a surreal second to see me within the ring with Corey Graves, a man I've recognized for a very long time, calling it with Vic and Beth. It was a type of surreal moments, and I'm making an attempt to not be too vital of myself. I tousled plenty of issues in there however I feel we put on a hell of a present."
It wasn't simply McAfee displaying off some conventional professional wrestling chops that gained individuals over within the match, but in addition unimaginable shows of athleticism. McAfee's background as an NFL punter will surely counsel a level of reputable athleticism, however he took to the skies a number of instances, nailing a flipping dive to the skin in addition to a real eye-popping second the place Cole shoved him from the highest rope just for McAfee to execute an ideal backflip and stick the touchdown on his toes. Seconds later, McAfee ran ahead and leaped from the canvas to the highest rope in a transfer few full-time wrestlers on the WWE roster might execute as easily.
"Being a fan, you always have those freak athletes," McAfee mentioned. "Shelton Benjamin is obviously the guy that made the leap up to the top rope something awesome. Being a fan, I was always drawn to the people who were very athletic. Granted, you have to be able to talk and all that to put on a good show, but for me, I enjoyed the athleticism of people. I always had these grand visions of if I ever got into a ring what I would like to do and what I think I could do if I ever got a chance to try it in a match.
"I feel after I was flying by means of the air on that backflip, when he pushed me off, I feel there have been a pair moments there the place I assumed, 'Oh, I'm flying by means of the air proper now, that is fairly cool.' I had by no means achieved that earlier than, so I had no thought if I used to be going to land it or not. Happily, I caught the touchdown. Getting again up there to do the Shelton Benjamin soar to do the superplex, going into the nook there, there was a bit little bit of marvel on whether or not or not I used to be going to have the ability to stand up there. But it labored out, and I'm very grateful for that."
Of course, a profitable match left many questioning if McAfee would return to the ring. It's clear the wrestling instincts and athletic capability are there for the 33-year-old. There could be far much less resistance from the followers and media to a different McAfee match after seeing his debut efficiency, however McAfee mentioned he has no thought if one other match is in his future, although he does suppose he'd like to provide it one other go.
"It's very interesting because Triple H referenced a conversation he and I had a couple years ago when I first got a chance to work the kickoff shows for NXT," McAfee mentioned. "I told him I wanted to be a weapon for WWE, and how I wanted him to induct me in the WWE Hall of Fame, and so much has happened since that conversation. The thought of me ever getting a chance to get in the ring -- this Adam Cole situation, the way it all kind of happened was just the perfect opportunity for that to happen. But the conversation about what happens after, it never really happened.
"For me, I by no means even actually thought of it. I talked this morning on my present about the way it was such a cool bucket checklist factor for me as a result of I've dreamed about it since I used to be 10 or 11 years previous. Now we're on the level the place, yeah, it was superior. Do I wish to do it once more? I do not know, I feel? Plenty of my associates that I've which are within the enterprise are like, 'Oh, wait till you see what it is like in entrance of a crowd.' I'm like, 'Wait, I do not know that that is going to occur.' But they mentioned, 'No, you must do it in entrance of a crowd.' I feel that is all up within the air proper now. I'm not 100% certain what is going on to occur. I assume Mr. H and I are going to have a dialog about that sooner or later. But proper now, I'm simply making an attempt to benefit from the hell out of the second and simply get pleasure from that I used to be capable of carry out at TakeOver: XXX."
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