Wrestling tails knock you off your seat, TuneIn.
Now don't you be late. Wrestling Punk has never felt
this great. Tails, ladders, chairs, they
tell it all. From the highest highs to the
lowest fall. Great glory tails from the ring.
Every chain, every cheer they'll bring Wrestling tales knock you
off your seat. TuneIn.
Now don't you be late. Wrestling Podcast never felt
this crazy. Brothers and sisters, we have
made it. It is officially WrestleMania
week and let me tell you something right now there is no
one on the planet that I would rather talk to during
WrestleMania week then our dear brother here, the Hall of Famer,
Five time Hall of Famer, one of the greatest of all time,
brother Devon Dudley. What's going on there, Devon?
Just sitting by my pool deck waiting for WrestleMania.
Man, listen, I, I'd have told you now, we, we didn't have snow
in Boston. We we had 67° rain every minute
the the weather changes over here and you out there working
on your tent. Well, here's the deal.
You ain't got to live in Boston. Come to Florida, tell the wife
you're packing up and you're heading down South.
Listen. Listen, I, I may never come
back, man. I, you know, I kind of.
I've been gone for 23 years. I left New York and ain't never
looked back. That's a good point.
That's see, that's the reason
why I can't go. You know what's crazy too this
week tree pollen is through the roof.
So that, so if you, if you suffer from the allergies,
people are just having a hard time this week over here, man.
You know, it's, it's crazy. Is it bad down there like that?
The pollen it it, it can get, it can get to that level, but it
hasn't gotten there yet. Got it, Got it.
Yeah, eventually everybody goes to Florida.
That seems to be one of those places, man.
Auto is the move. Yeah, I hear that.
Well, well, listen, before we even jump into our WrestleMania
talk here for Devon and the Duke, I I got it.
I got to get something straight because the dirt sheets, the the
fans, a lot of people have been swearing up and down that there
is some kind of heat between the Dudley Boys and Booker T.
And it goes beyond wrestling. Like there's some hard feelings
there and especially between you and Booker in particular.
So, so, so I got to ask you straight up here, Devon, because
you know, you, you ain't afraid to tell the truth.
Is there some kind of issue between you and Booker T?
No, there's no issue. We play like that all the time.
We play like that in WWE. We play like that in promos.
We played like that in general. So for them to so for them to
actually sit here and think that there's real legit feet, that's
wrong. Look, I made a comment about the
whole thing with Swerve and Booker and all I said was these
two brothers don't need to be fighting like this in public or
going back and forth verbally. Don't give these people, you
know, anything to be able to write in their dirt sheets or
anything like that. That was it estimate from the
heart. That's one brother to another.
And so with that being said, you know, we already fighting
amongst each other. We don't need to bring it to the
forefront and fighting amongst each other in front of people.
And then, you know, and it's not we're attacking ourselves.
And that's the whole thing behind what I meant by what I
said last week. So again, we don't.
I don't have Pete with Booker. Yeah.
We like to get on each other about who's the greatest tag
team. We always do that.
We do. We do that everywhere we go.
It's it's funny. It's entertaining.
Booker says something funny. We say something funny.
It's like, boom, will we ever be able to wrestle Harlem Heat?
Probably not. You know, and I say that
because, you know, a lot of times our time is up and and
over and my thing is let the younger guys take the stage.
You know, we had our runs. So there's no heat whatsoever
between Booker and myself. People needed to stop reaching.
So what? So what, you know, what was said
was said. But again, do you know how we
joke? Do you know how we interact with
each other when the cameras on around?
No, you don't. So stop assuming that we're
going at it and we're not. So, you know, again, there's no
heat. That's just the way we are with
each other. Like I did on the show when
Bubba said, you know, I want to warn you, book us here.
It's like you could have warned me before I got here.
Do you honestly think that WWE would have put that in there?
They probably would have, but still, no, we're not going to do
that. We're not going to do that.
If Booker, if Booker had a problem with us, he would bring
it to us. If we had a problem with Booker,
we'd bring it to Booker. We'd have to go on social media
and take cheap shots at each other.
That's not what it's all about. No, that's that's not how any of
y'all roll. And, and you know, the show that
Devon's referring to folks, is WWELFG.
It's the new hit series that's on A&E Network.
So definitely check it out. Sundays, 8:00 PM Eastern
Standard Time on the latest edition.
Devon was a special guest and he came out and like you said, you
know, the the Dudley boys and Booker were having a little
banter back and forth. But it's, it's shocking that
people would see something like that and not realize that it's,
it's joking around, it's entertainment.
It's not, you know, no, no one's going to take it to the
mattresses like it's the Godfather or something.
Give me a break. You know, it.
It's, it's important for me to get this stuff right and to make
sure that the facts are out. For this reason, with everything
going on in society today, people are losing their jobs.
The stock market is up and down. You know, people are having
immigration issues. There's a lot of anxiety and and
fear unfortunately happening throughout our nation and
beyond. And unfortunately, when you have
people online left to their own devices, they got all those
other issues and they bring it and introduce it in different
ways into everything else, including pro wrestling, you
know what I mean? So I don't want somebody trying
to roll up on on or Devon with a steel chair or something like
that 'cause they don't like the fact that you got a problem with
Booker T allegedly. We don't need these problems out
there 'cause you get an ass whooping, you know what I mean?
I'm trying to save y'all out there.
Wick. I'm trying to save y'all from
having a problem out there so. So just know that there is a
such thing as entertainment. You're talking about fellas Who
have been up and down the road together.
They're legends. Very few people will ever
understand what these folks have been through, but they
understand each other. So to assume that there's some
kind of animosity there is just ridiculous.
So I'm glad you cleared that up, big man, cuz that that's AI was
very surprised to see that. But a lot of people were, were
latching onto it like it was a real problem.
And I'm like, come on man, what? What are we doing here?
You know, exactly, you know, Devon, I was thinking about
this, everybody who has a podcast, they're talking about
WrestleMania and in in which they should be.
It's the biggest events of the years, the granddaddy of them
all, the whole 9 yards there. And I was thinking, you know,
you and I could go over the card, but we've been kind of
doing that leading up to this week anyway.
So I want to, I want to take a detour.
I want to, I want to talk about WrestleMania from a different
angle here. WrestleMania week for me as a
fan has always been this thing that I got to prepare for.
No matter what job I've ever had, I always make sure that the
Monday after WrestleMania, I have that day off and I always
make sure that the Friday before the WrestleMania weekend, I take
a half a day because I I just wanted this is like the thing
for me, you know what I mean? I want to clear my schedule.
I want to relax, I want to get all my food, my drinks, like
this is it. Don't even call me.
I'm locked in the WrestleMania. That's the end of it.
So everything leading up to that is you got to bust your ass at
work. You got to you got to try to get
ahead because you don't want to have a whole bunch of work piled
up next week. You know what I mean?
And, and, and everything else, tie up all the loose ends so you
can actually enjoy your reward, so to speak.
So that's always been my ritual on my end as a fan.
But I want to talk to you as a legend, as somebody who
performed at WrestleMania, as someone who has had legendary
moments and what have you. We haven't really heard enough
about folks like yourself and what that week is like from
start to finish. So I want to open this up with
with the Raw before WrestleMania.
Look back brother, on your career and what have you.
Give us some insight. What's the Raw before
WrestleMania like? Is it like any other Raw or is
it a different energy and what have you?
No, it's a different Raw. It's, you know, excitement, the
build up knowing that it's the last Raw and you're leaving to
go to wherever WrestleMania is going to be.
I think that's when everybody eats the cleanest, you know,
they don't want to eat bad. They want you want your body to
be ready and fit. And even though you've probably
been training, you know, through the whole year leading up to
this moment, but now you're getting close to the wire,
you're trying to stay healthy. You're you're getting massages,
you're going to chiropractors, you're trying to make sure that
everything is loose for you. So when the time comes, you're
ready to go. And I know that's what I that I
know that was my ritual. You know, I would.
I would basically just try to get my body as fit and ready as
I possibly could. One of the things that I, that
always terrifies me this time of year is when I'm watching
matches on the Raw before WrestleMania, the, the Smackdown
before WrestleMania. And I'm seeing people taking
risks, doing dives outside the ring or, or taking some, some
bumps that are like, oh, you kind of, you know, you sure you
want to take that bump this close to WrestleMania.
What if you get injured or what have you?
Does does that ever cross your mind when you're performing on
the shows before the big one? Were you ever nervous or
concerned about possibly getting injured?
No, I, I think I, I think I basically just had that mindset
that I was, that I wasn't going to be hurt, that I was at my
strongest. I felt great, looked great and
want to go in there and tear the house down.
I don't think there was any fear of that if we were in because
we've had matches where we've had live events after Monday
Night Roar or something like that and we did them and then
went to WrestleMania. But again, I don't think she
ever entered my body when it came to that because you're just
so focused on WrestleMania. That's all you can think about.
But you definitely taking it easy.
Don't get me wrong. You're not going out there doing
things that you would normally do at a live event or even on
Monday Night Raw, a smackdown that could possibly injure you.
Well said, Well said. Because that's that's always the
thing, man. And we've seen it happen.
We've seen people get injured close to wrestle Mania.
I mean, look at poor Kevin Owens.
I know it's not the week of Mania, but it did happen within
the past two weeks where he got injured and that pretty much
knocks him out. He's not going to be competing
at the big event, you know what I mean, which is heartbreak.
Samoa Joe. Samoa Joe was famous for that.
He would always get injured before he would have an
opportunity to wrestle at WrestleMania.
So getting his WrestleMania moment always was slipping
through his fingers when he was with the company.
So it's it's it's really interesting and kind of scary
thing when you if you were to take a step back and think about
it, but you stay focused, you stayed safe.
So you didn't have those problems there.
So that's Raw now. Smackdown is literally right
before WrestleMania. You've been on Smackdown on
Tuesdays, you've been on Smackdown on on on Fridays.
This is the last show before WrestleMania.
What is that like? Especially behind the scenes?
What it what is that feeling like?
I. Mean it's very, very, very, you
know, the intensity is not really there as much.
I mean it's enough to have a match and to make sure you
entertain the people that are there in the arenas and people
watching at home. But you just want to be laid
back a little bit. You don't want to go out there
and injure yourself. So you kind of take it a little
bit easy. You don't take any risk.
You just go out there and have fun.
That's what a lot of people do. That's I know that's what Bubba
and myself did. We did a lot more stupid stuff.
You know, I maybe did 2 what's UPS in a row, you know, things
like that. We did things that would still
entertain the people, but not to the point where we thought we
were going to injure. Ourselves.
What about the Hall of Fame? I mean, this is an event that's
added to your schedule and it's an event that happens after the
matches, so that extends your night.
It's a long night now, brother. And then you got to get up and
you got to actually do WrestleMania the next the next
day. Talk to me about that.
Just the fact that you got to sit through the Hall of Fame.
It's still a joyous event. Of course you appreciate it and
stuff like that. But was that ever a challenge to
have to stay up that late, participating in something like
that, knowing you had to be on for the big event the next day?
Well, yes, and that's guys, it's a little hard, you know, knowing
that we had to get up. You mean like knowing that we
had to get up to do WrestleMania?
Yeah, because it if if you have Smack down and then right after
that you got the Hall of Fame and then you going to, you going
to take, you know, go to bed eventually and then you get up
and now you got to perform at WrestleMania.
I mean, brother, that's a long, that's a long stretch within 24
hours. Well, I will say this normally,
like now they do Smack Down and then they go change and then get
in their suits and stuff and then they go right back to the
arena. Again.
I wasn't privileged to be able to do that.
Thank God, you know, because again, we would have Smackdown
on Tuesdays, you know, we would have Smackdown on Tuesdays and
then the weekend, remember, WrestleMania was back when we
did it, It was only one night and it was on Sunday.
So you had the Hall of Fame on Friday, you had off Saturday and
then you had WrestleMania on Sunday.
You know, as opposed to having it right after smack down and
then getting dressed and then going back out to the arena to
sit down and continue to see. We didn't we, we didn't have the
lunge here to do that. I did that as a producer, but I
didn't do this talent. So, you know, again, it's people
don't realize what we go through and what we put our bodies, you
know, through not just in the ring, but even leading up to
something like that, you know, mentally you got to be prepared.
You have to have the mindset and this business to be able to
withstand anything. Professional wrestling is the
hardest part, is the hardest entertaining, or I should say
the hardest entertainment there is out there.
I don't think there's anything harder than what we do in the
WWE. You know, the way you have to
turn it on and off, it's incredible.
And a lot of people can do that, but a lot of people can't.
And for those that can't, don't last with a cup of coffee.
But the ones that do, man, they're buying a whole bag of
coffee grains and enjoying themselves because that's what
we do. That's what we did for so long,
you know? So, you know, it's one of those
things where you got to figure it out quick if this business is
for you or it's not for you, but there's no time to say I'm tired
or I'm beat up and this and that.
You got to go. All right, so, so talk to me
about the day as a wrestler. We'll start as a wrestler before
we get to as a producer. So back when you were were most
active, Wrestle Mania was still one day.
So it's it's show day. You take me through waking up in
the morning. You you wake up.
What's your day like right from the beginning?
Well, I'm waking up. Like I said, we try to eat
clean, get the nicest breakfast I possibly can.
Nothing filling, but my nerves would go all the time.
So it was like I would barely eat breakfast.
I'd barely eat lunch. You know, you get in the car
with your family if you're bringing them, get to the arena,
find out what you're doing, find out if anything has changed and
you're just going over stuff, you know, just trying to make
sure that what you're doing out there is going to work.
And so that's a lot of what, you know, I used to do as talent,
you know, just go out, just get to the arena.
Not super early, but early enough even like maybe 45
minutes before call time so I can settle down, settle in and
just feel the moment of WrestleMania walking around the
arena, you know, seeing how the production is being done.
I mean, it's, it's a different feeling, man.
It's, it's not like Raw, Smackdown or even other paper
views. It's a different feeling.
WrestleMania and all the hype leading up to it, man, it's
amazing. So, so you're going through so
much emotionally and you, you have to wait, right?
You got to wait for the show to start.
You got to wait for your your match to be called and what have
you. So there's a lot of waiting
around. There's a lot of nervous energy.
There's a lot of dormant energy to to a certain degree.
How do you keep yourself awake? How do you keep yourself up?
Well now it would be 5 hour energy.
Back then it was Red Bull or any type of stimulant that would
make you, you know, try to stay alert.
Nothing illegal, but something that made you, you know, like I
said, like a Red Bull or a version of a 5 hour energy
backed in for me. But again, your nerves are going
so much. You're just so excited to be
there that you don't have time there, you know, relax your body
and all that. You just, you're constantly just
trying to get everything focused and ready for the match that
night. So, so we get to the point where
your match is called you, you, you step out, you doing your
entrance or what have you. Talk to me about that energy,
especially from the crowd because you're talking, you
know, 4050607080 a 110,000 people all in one place making
noise, cheering, booing, the whole 9 yards.
And, and they're all focused on you.
They're all focused on you. Your, your partner, Bubba.
They're, they're focused on your opponents, but all of these
people are, are fixated on whatever it is that you guys are
doing. And that doesn't even count all
the people watching around the world, you know, whether it be
PLE, pay-per-view, whatever you want to call it, what have you
there. But talk to me about that
energy, the feeling of knowing that that many people are are
focused on you. It's a feeling you can't
respond. It's an amazing feeling.
It's a feeling that if you only done it one time in your career,
you'll never forget. That's how special and amazing
that feeling is. It's like a feeling like no
other. Once you experience it, then you
can honestly sit here and say that you, you know, you know how
to describe that feeling and this and that.
But then there's some people that have, you know, been at
many Wrestlemanias, can't describe it.
Now you get a guy like Triple H and ask him, you know, I'm sure
Hunter will tell you almost the same.
You know, it's, it's just a feeling like no other when
you're going out there and you're really ready for those
100 and you know, 100,000 people or 8070 thousand people cheering
your name and just enjoying life at that point.
Is it, is it easy to communicate with everybody in the ring,
including the referee? When, when you have that many
people? Cuz again, this is like double,
sometimes triple your normal audience at a, a, a, a
pay-per-view PLE or what have you there.
This is WrestleMania. So it's, it's a lot more people,
a lot more noise. A lot the acoustics are totally
different. Is it?
Is it difficult to communicate? To a certain degree it is
especially I put in perspective, everybody has their own agenda.
Everybody is doing things as well.
So they're focused on what they have to do.
They don't have time to be focused on you, the individual,
They got to be focused on them. Even the person that you're in
the match with, you know, they're they're pretty much on
the side thinking of ways to make the match better just like
you are. But at the same token, you're
going out there and really putting on a show.
And I think that's what even some of the fans don't realize,
You know, when we go out there, it's a different ball game.
It's just a different feeling. It's so hard to it's so hard to
to actually say how an individual will feel and, and
what they're going to do to get themselves ready for this match.
You know, listen, a lot of times, you know, we've gone over
matches and things like that during WrestleMania and we were
good. I do know WrestleMania 17, which
was that ladder mat to tables match tables, ladders and tears.
TLCI do know during that match, I was basically bothered by the
fact that my nerves kicked in, you know, with, with with
dangling with tables, ladders and chairs.
I got to hang 20 feet up with Christian.
Thank God it's not Jeff. And you know, I, I just, I don't
know, I Duke. It's so hard to describe.
It really is. But just know that it's
something special. Well, you brought up the TLC
match from WrestleMania 717, which is interesting because you
guys went about 15 minutes in that match.
Yes. Did it feel longer?
Did it feel shorter? I mean, I did it.
Did it go quick or not? Here's the thing, we got to the
gorilla position, which is the goal position.
We originally were told that we had like 2527 minutes.
So we outlined the match of that and then we get to the goal
position, we're about to go out. All right, guys, listen, I know
we told you this amount, but now you got 15 minutes.
Like what? And then we just had to get our
tails together and OK, this is what we're going to cut out.
And then going back and forth with each other and what is
appropriate to cut. I remember at 17 Edge just went,
you know what, let's just go out there and feel it.
And we all agreed. And that's exactly what we did.
That is so crazy. That is so crazy.
Lifelong wrestling fan, you're out there at WrestleMania making
history. Wow.
Yeah, it's true. It's a feeling that, you know
other it really is. You will not have that high
anywhere else. I saw an interview with Triple H
yesterday on Instagram and you have something about the company
that, you know, when you're in front of a Wrestle Mania, when
you're in front of a crowd like WrestleMania or just the WWE
crowd, it's not. No, it's like something you've
never experienced before and it really is a rush.
It's bigger than any drug you can honestly take.
Yeah, 'cause I mean, again, you, you got to, to borrow a phrase,
you got millions and millions of people around the world focused
on you. And, you know, you have all of
those folks, you know, 50 thousand, 60,070 thousand,
100,000 people in the arena. That's the part that trips me
out, man. It's like, whoa, you're this
small speck and you're in this huge place and everyone is, is,
is they're reacting to every little thing that you do, every
move, every tag, every, every bump, every, every, everything
that you do. Even walking to the ring,
walking back from the ring, everything that you do, all of
those eyes are fixated on you. You talk about the nerves,
brother. I, I hear what you're saying on
that because how could your nerves not go crazy when you
realize that like everyone is, is paying attention to
everything, which means if you do the right thing, they're
going to know. If you do the wrong thing,
they're going to know. Like you just want to get it
done right, right? Yep, exactly.
And that's the biggest thing. That's now I'm getting excited
just even talking about that. It's like, damn, bro, that's a
trip. So, so how does that contrast
compared to when you are an agent?
So you're not physically in the match, you're helping get the
matches put together and all that stuff, but still, you got
to go through the motions, right?
You still got to go through the motions.
You know it. It's just, I don't know.
It's, it's just, again, you can't describe it.
It's, you have to experience it. You really do.
You have to experience it for yourself.
That's how special it is. I mean, I, I can't put in the
words how this works. I mean, I really can't.
And again, I think Hunter said it best.
Once you step out in front of that crowd, it's like, it's like
getting your first real hit on, on like a it's like a drug you
can't stop. Wow, So, so, so now you, you had
your match, right? You're walking to the back.
You you've, you've completed your task for the night, so to
speak here. What does that feel like when
you get to the back? A sense of accomplishment,
knowing that you went out there and did what you were supposed
to do and there was no, you know, telling you, hey, you
know, you did this wrong, Vince wants to see you or what have
you. You just went out there, you did
it. You came back, you were happy.
The boss said he liked it. Then you were.
You were great and you were good.
Do you do you stick around for the rest of the show or do you
go about your business now? No, I think at this point it
seems my career, I I stick around.
I'll stick around and watch the whole show.
Got it. I mean hell, you got the best
seat in the house so why not, right?
And there you go. There you go.
We, we've heard about the after party, the, the after
WrestleMania party where everybody gets together.
It's, it's, it's a private event.
Not just anyone can show up in there, but everyone who's
supposed to be there, you know, they're there.
Talk to me about the celebration afterwards.
Man. What?
What is that like? Well, there's a lot of drinking
involved. That's a show you.
Don't say. There's a whole lot of drinking.
Yeah, there's a whole lot of drinking involved.
Just knowing that you're done and, you know, you accomplish
everything useful to accomplish in that ring that night and told
a great story. You know, your move up to par.
You know, you just, you just got done.
It is this the equivalent of winning the World Series of
winning the NBA championship. So not even the fact that you
won a belt or or you lost a belt at WrestleMania, just
accomplishing the goal of competing at WrestleMania is the
after party like that, like you're you're you're celebrating
the championship. I would say so because you know,
everybody's coming up to, you know, great match, great match,
good job, good job. And you feel like you've done
something, you know, you get recognized by your peers and
it's, it's such a rewarding feeling, It really is.
And you can lay your head down and you know, and be comfortable
and go to sleep. But a lot of times with us, we
couldn't go to sleep because our adrenaline was going so much, so
high that the next day we were at the building, say by 9/9/30.
Whoa, I didn't realize that you're you're at the building in
the morning the next day. Yeah, pretty much.
I mean, because if we're on Roar, you know, in terms of the
producers, then yes. That's a trip.
So, so I mean, listen and, and
you've been a producer for some late Wrestlemanias.
We're talking, it doesn't even end till midnight, right?
I, I, I can remember a few years back when I think Charlotte
Flair was in the main event and that was exactly what happened.
It, it literally ended right around midnight because there
was some issues with public transportation and things like
that, curfew issues. And again, the parties after
that, you're probably not getting back to the hotel room
till about four or five in the morning, right?
Two or three sometimes. It all depends.
I mean, by the time you get out of that building and all those
fans that are leaving, you got to beat, try to beat the
traffic. And although we have police
escorts leading us out because we're in the tour bus or you
know, another tour bus, but kind of like, you know, they got a
charter bus for us. So we get right past the people.
We get to the after party and you know, we're just
celebrating, having a good time, laughing, joking, talking about
the matches, talking about what we did, what we didn't do, what
we should have done, talking about, you know, some of the
mess ups. Wow, wow.
So so now we're at Raw. We're we're at Raw, the Raw
after WrestleMania, which also coincides with the first day of
the new fiscal year for WWE. So WrestleMania is when they
close the books on their, their, you know, their fiscal year,
their business year, so to speak.
So whatever money they made, it ends at that point.
And now you start with the new year.
Talk to me about the energy regarding the Raw after
WrestleMania because now the new feuds start to get put together,
right? A new feud gets to put together,
but there's some people that are unhappy about it.
They may not want to work with the individual or doesn't see
any money in with this individual.
And I know that's the way it used to be sometimes when I was
there, you know, because you're unhappy because, you know, maybe
you thought you want to work, you know, Randy Orton, you know,
and main event every night or maybe you were going to work,
you know, Jimmy, Jimmy Johnson, you know, who's not even a mid
Carter. But yet they're saying, OK,
you're going to start a little program with them and you don't
want to, you know, but you're not going to say no, you know,
you still going to do it. But in all eyes that a lot of
people are excited because again, there's some people that
didn't make the WrestleMania card and they weren't doing
anything with them like during the whole year.
And they've been promised that after WrestleMania, they're
going to start getting the ball rolling.
Sometimes that works in the advantage of the person that's
being told that and sometimes it doesn't because then creator
said, oh, I'm sorry, we put we had to pull a we couldn't, we
couldn't do that. So we'll have to go back to the
drawing board review. So now you're waiting another
however long it's going to take for you to be able to be able to
get that storyline that you want.
So these new storylines coming out after mania is very
important to talent because now it sees what direction where
we're going. And that was always an exciting
part from me and Bubba. You know who they got with, who
they going to bring with us next, Who what, what are we
going to do? And we wouldn't get it.
Deep, deep when it comes to people who are experiencing
their first WrestleMania, right? Because there's always somebody,
there's always somebody who who's competing for the first
time. What advice would you have as as
somebody who's been through it on on many occasions, both as a
wrestler and as a producer? What advice do you have for the
folks experiencing it for the first time?
Well, just experience it, enjoy it, have fun, cheer, Boo, get
excited, you know, do what the crowd is doing.
Just enjoy yourself. That's the biggest thing.
That's what you're there for. You're there to be entertained.
And you know, once you are in that zone, then it's good from
that point on, you know, but just relax and enjoy yourself.
You know, it's like being on vacation, you know, just just
relax and enjoy yourself. Especially as a fan.
You don't want to sit here and expect, you know, over the top
things to be going on and then it doesn't, then you're
disappointed. Just relax and enjoy yourself.
That's it man. Think of it as a vacation, a
night off, you know? Deep.
I love that. I love that.
I love that behind the scenes perspective there because again,
that's not something that a lot of people talk about, but it's
interesting we we see the rock, right?
For instance, when the rock comes out these days, the camera
pans on his his forearm and you can literally see the
goosebumps. The crowd is cheering and what
have you in the rock will show you his goosebumps and then he
slaps his forearm. Is it?
Is it really that deep, brother? It really is that deep.
It really, really is. Again, it's a feeling that like
no other. It's WrestleMania.
You know, it's the granddaddy of them all.
It is the Super Bowl, World Series, NBA Championship all
combined into one. Nobody puts on a show like WWE's
WrestleMania. I'm sorry, nobody does.
There are some that like to come close to it, but don't even come
close to it. And for those of you that
thinking that might isn't talking about me, yes, I am.
And you know who you are. Listen.
You will never be on that route. You know, Seth Rollins just did
an interview picking up on what what somebody else said about CM
Punk. Just the fact that, you know,
you, you, you ran off to go steal money from a billionaire's
kid instead of toughing it out here in WWE.
And now you want to come back and, and, and reap the benefits
of the stuff that guys like me and Roman have have built up.
You left us. We had to carry the bag.
We had to take the ball and run with it while you were out there
playing Patty cake with the billionaire's son and what have
you. It it's just they just won't
stop taking shots at Tony at this point.
Huh. Well, here's the deal.
Tony opened up Season 1 himself, saying the things that he says
coming out there. Somebody should, somebody should
have shut them up. You cannot go out there and say
the shit you say and expect people not to remember.
Don't forget, I want to come back at you.
You know, just because you're a billionaire, son, don't think
you're off limits because you're not.
Yeah. You can get mad all you want if
if I'm saying this, but you're not off limits, you know, fuck
that. No, you're not off limits.
Don't open up your damn mouth. There won't be a problem.
You know, you don't see Vince going public and saying stupid
shit in the in the media. You don't.
And, and the few times that he that he would do something, it
was always to his own benefit. It wasn't like he was.
He wasn't helping the other side out by mentioning them, you
know? Exactly.
It was either storyline driven or what have you, but you know,
you've never seen Vince McMahon do stuff like that.
It's wild, man. People were abuzz this week
because The Rock had posted a photo of himself wearing a New
Japan Pro Wrestling shirt. And there has been speculation
over the past year that with New Japan Pro Wrestling continuing
to not really move the needle, so to speak.
They're just they're kind of dormant as a company.
They don't have any star power, unfortunately.
Maybe this is an opportunity for WWE to swoop in and not just do
a collaboration, but potentially become a partner, whether they
buy New Japan outright or they just invest in them.
Something similar to what seems to be going on with with WWE and
TNA. What's your take on that?
Do you think would be a good idea for the WWE to find a way
to partner with New Japan at least?
I think so. Again, you know, WWE is going to
be always the giant when it comes to stuff like this.
They just are. Whether this is in charge or
Hunter is in charge, you know, if you can jump on that
bandwagon and jump on it. But if you jump on it, remember,
you better be qualified to jump on that.
And that's the difference between a lot of companies.
Listen, I'm loving the collaboration between TNA and
WWE. And if I'm not mistaken, I
believe, correct me if I'm wrong, Duke, I believe WWE is
doing something with one of the Japanese organizations, either
New Japan or All Japan. Well, they, they've been,
they've, they've sent talent over and, and done some things.
They've allowed talent to compete in NXT from time to
time. So yes, there is some kind of
collaboration going on right now.
I think it's actually with Noah. But yes, there has been
something going on and it looks like it could possibly expand to
New Japan. I mean, we did have a working
relationship with All Japan and WWE back in the 80s because we
saw a talent like Andre, the World Warriors when they were
with them. Hogan, you know, go over there
and have these matches over there and you know, I just saw
something on YouTube. When was it?
I just saw something on YouTube the day before yesterday where
they had Andre teaming up with the great Barber.
Versus Demolition, Yeah. And then you had was it Hogan?
Hogan against Stan Hanson, I believe it was.
And it was the Road Warriors against man.
Who were they? Who were they working with?
I can't remember. But, you know, it was huge back
then. You know, here's the thing, man,
you know, again, I don't have any beef with Tony.
I really don't. But instead of trying to say
they get a Pepsi Cola off the West of the, of the pro
wrestling world and the WWE is the Harvey Weinstein or
Weinstein, whatever that guy's name is, they got in trouble.
Should have left that alone #1 #2 How about maybe trying to
find out how you can make your company on the same level as
them? Not saying you got to be with
them or kiss their ass or anything like that, but I'm just
saying burying, burying companies, you know, to get
yourself over is never the way to go.
And I think that's what that's what his ultimate downfall was.
Not downfall because he's still up and going, but, you know, not
being able to, you know, stay at, stay on, stay as hot as he
once was when he first came in. Because correct me if I'm wrong,
dude, they had the talent. Absolutely.
They have the talent. Not only is the talent good,
they're great. And some of them come from what?
From WWE, But you know, again, and the ball just keep being
dropped and I, I don't get it, nor do I understand it.
I mean, look at this, this is a prime example here.
And I know we're, we're coming off WWE for a second, but you,
you have somebody like Mercedes Monet, the, the woman formerly
known as Sasha Banks, right? She has been a headliner at
WrestleMania. She has won the women's
championship what, at least 5-6, seven times.
She is one of the new stars in the Star Wars franchise.
They actually created an action figure for her character, which
lets you know that they got a lot of equity in that character.
And they, they, they plan on doing more with that character.
They see where they can make money off of her, right?
You have somebody with that degree of star power.
Tell me again, why would you make them champion immediately
and, and, and, and push them to the moon?
I don't understand it. Why isn't she the AEW Women's
Champion, you know? I don't know, you know that.
Again, that's a question to ask him and to see what the, you
know, the answer would be. There's a lot of questions that
needs to be answered, but you know, he's not answering a lot
of them. And again, I never want to see
AW fold. I just want AW to make it.
And I want them to be, you know, another large company in the
wrestling world that people respect and love and with the
talent that they have. Good God, why aren't they look
at like that? You know, I've been asking
because I don't really watch the product anymore.
I don't watch nearly as much wrestling as I would like to
because, you know, I have a life with with kids and stuff like
that. So I can't be glued to the to
the television watching it. But, you know, it was kind of
like, I just don't understand why they're not doing bigger
numbers, not only on the ratings, but in the in the
arenas, on TV, things like that. I mean, why aren't they?
It doesn't make any sense to me. You have the talent, you have
it, but what is the hell is going on?
You know, and I'm hearing reports all, I'm hearing reports
all the time about people not being used and, you know, coming
in to catering, just sitting there or some being called in
literally the day before the show to come and fly in.
And then when they get there, they're sitting and catering the
whole time. I honestly believe that when you
don't treat the people who work for you, when you don't treat
them right, they're not necessarily going to feel like
they are their best self and you can't fake it.
Anyone who's paying attention is going to pick up on that.
So I, I honestly believe that part of the reason why the fans
have started to turn the channel, why the fans are not
showing up to the arenas is because they can tell that the
wrestlers are not necessarily happy over there.
You know, I, I, I think it's as simple as that.
Meanwhile, WWE, everybody kind of seems like they got they,
they got sparks flying out of their backside like they,
they're ready to go through a wall.
You know what I mean? Yeah, look, look at look at the
kid Brown breaker, that that spear.
He just did the Carlito the other day.
I don't know if you saw that yet.
He jumped up in mid air. Yeah, when he flipped.
Yeah, Oh my God. Yeah, I saw.
It Jesus, what the hell was that?
You know what he he just jumps out of the TV brother, you know,
but that kind of energy is the thing it it it just whether
you're a wrestling fan or not, if I show you a clip like that,
you're going to want to know more.
You're going to want to see more.
You're going to find that interesting and in this world
and you brought it up. You saw something on Instagram
and what have you in this world where literally a 32nd, 62nd
clip can literally make the biggest impression.
It's like, brother, where are AE WS clips at?
Do they have clips that can translate like a brown breaker
doing that spear? I don't think so.
You know, I don't think so at all.
So it just it's a it's a blunder in my opinion.
And, and it's going to continue to be a blunder as WWE continues
to build, because the crazy part about this is Cody Rhodes and
John Cena are headlining night 2.
Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Seth Rollins are headlining night
one. The night one match is not for a
title. And then, oh, by the way, you
got Jay USO and, and, and you have Gunther who are competing
for the other title. They're not even the main event
to either either night. My point in saying.
And then you got the women right?
You, you Bianca and and EO and and and Rhea, Charlotte and and
and Tiffany. My point in saying all that is
there was so much talent that I just mentioned.
And that's not even that doesn't even scratch the surface of the
rest of the roster. There's so much talent that
could be in the main event that no matter what happens this
WrestleMania, you know we're going to be eating good for the
next couple of years. Because there's so many
different types of matches that you can have on every PLE, on
every Raw, on every Smackdown and matches that people want to
see, feuds that people want to see, development that people
want to see. You don't even need Roman Reigns
to be your champion right now. That's insane.
You know what I mean? So, so it's just when you
compare the two, there's no comparison.
It's just like night and day bro.
And that's the part that bothers me about them because they have
what it takes. They do.
It's just that the leadership is not there, you know, and I and
listen, and I keep hearing the same thing over and over because
I'm, you know, I'm asking them like, how are they doing in
ratings? How are they doing in
attendance? And it's like I get every time I
ask the purse, the people, they, they shake their, they shake
their heads. I don't know, Devon, it's, it's
not good. I'm like, don't tell me this
company's going to fold, you know, because I don't know.
People were saying, you know, well, Daddy's going to get tired
of giving his money if he ain't making a profit and so forth and
so on. And if that's the case, then we
better come up with something quick.
Quick, like yesterday, please. My goodness.
Anyway, let me let me wrap it up on this.
Do you allow Cody Rhodes to walk out of WrestleMania champion, or
do you put the belt on Cena and then quickly transition him to
his next feud? My thing is, I say leave it on
Cody. Wow.
I, I mean, that's my opinion and I say that because it would help
Cody. And remember, if John is only
here for one year and it's less than that now because, you know,
he said he was going to be done in December, then why not do
something that's going to put Cody in the next atmosphere So
where he's the guy that maybe be the face of the company, you
know, or what have you, Maybe he needs that boost that'll get him
where he needs to be. John already has it.
Win, lose or draw, John is still going to be over.
And in my opinion, it doesn't matter.
Wow, so does that mean that John never breaks Flair's record?
Is is is that what you would book?
I forgot about the record. Jeez.
Let me ask you this. What if he went?
What if he doesn't win and say summer slam?
He wins and then come December he walks out?
Yeah, hey, listen, his his last match, he could win, he could
break the record during his last match and I'd be happy with
that. And then then he retires
champion who broke the record. Well, not only that, but then
you can have a tournament and that's even more exciting, like
they did at WrestleMania 4. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Or whoever wins the Royal Rumble could be the champion, which I
I'm not. I'm not as interested in that.
I'd rather see it happen at Mania, but there's a lot of ways
you can go with that if Cena retires champion so why put the
belt on them now? Like you said, why not just wait
till the end and put it on them? Again, that's a question for
creative. Yeah.
And I don't know where they're thinking or where their mindset
is. So, you know, and I'm not even
sure, you know, if John is really leaving in December, like
it is reported. You know, maybe maybe he's just
saying it. Maybe he's not just saying it.
Maybe he is, but I don't know. It's going to be very
interesting this weekend and leading up to John's retirement.
Well, because listen, our our friends over in the Kingdom of
Saudi Arabia, they're dropping $50 million per event.
Are you really going to sit here and tell me they're not going to
get at least one John Cena match?
Come on, come on, All that money, you're not going to give
them a John Cena match? Yeah, that's true.
I, I think you got to give it to them.
They on the, on the, on the balance sheet.
When we look at, you know, what WWE makes for the year and what
have you, those Saudi shows are the difference maker, man.
I mean, it's, it's very difficult.
If you, if you have $1,000,000 house, that's tremendous.
The fact that you can do one event and walk away with $50
million profit? Come on brother you, you just
paid for RAW for the whole year. Yeah.
Pretty much, you know what I'm saying.
You, you just paid for Raw for the whole year with that, with
that one event. So how do you not give them at
least one last John Cena match? Yeah, well, we're going to get
it at WrestleMania. Yeah, yeah, that's for sure.
That's for sure. Speaking of which, WrestleMania
week, where is Devon Dudley going to be?
This is like, where in the world is Waldo or what have you here?
Where are you going to be, you know, for the week?
Here, brother. I'm going to be all over Vegas.
I'm going to be at Wrestle Kong, I'm going to be at this.
It's like a tailgate appearance I'm going to do at the arena.
I mean, I'm going to be all over the place.
So it's going to be a very busy week for me, but the same token,
forgive me for saying this, but man, I can't wait for it to be
over already. I'm just tired.
I'm just tired just thinking about all the crap that we going
to have to do when we get there. But that's the fun part about
it. You making money, you enjoying
yourselves. Listen, you can be digging
ditches for a living and be unhappy.
Nothing wrong with digging ditches, but you can be doing
that and being unhappy with your life.
So I'm very grateful and very humble to know that the Lord has
blessed me not only to have a 25 year career in the wrestling
business and then talent, but not to mention even outside of
the producer. And of course my new, you know,
found thing with the YouTube channel.
So I'm very happy to be able to still be able to do that and
make money and to be able to still provide for the family.
Yeah, like you said, you could be digging ditches.
So, you know, the, the fact that you, all you got to do is meet
the fans, sign some autographs, share some memories.
It's not a bad life you live in right now, brother.
No, it's not. Listen, it's a beautiful life
compared to some of the people from the Andre and Hogan era who
are now starting to reap the benefits of comic cons and
things like that. You know, they they're starting
to understand how this works. So, you know, as far as I'm
concerned, you know, this is WrestleMania.
We get is a learning experience for everybody who's there for
the first time. I think you, you asked me
earlier about a fan, you know, if you're there for the, if the
fan is there for the first time, what to expect or something like
that. But you know, again, just enjoy
yourself. Take it all in because you're
probably if you never go to another WrestleMania, you'll
never experienced anything like that again, especially in Vegas.
Everybody out there in Vegas, if everybody out there in Vegas
again, they're betting. Best of luck to you, man.
I've got hooked. I was playing blackjack and got
hooked on that so much. Dropped four, dropped $400.00
and was scared. I mean, that's nothing to a lot
of people, but it was, it hurt me because.
It goes quick. Now, Blackjack, it goes quick.
It goes real quick and I'm, I'm listen, I'm cheap as hell.
I'm going to let you know right now.
So every time they kept taking that money away from me, I was
crying. Man, listen, I, I, when I go to
Vegas, you know what we'll do like the penny slots and things
like that just so we can extend the time in the casino.
I'm really getting it for the free drinks.
But I did find the craps. You know, the craps game, the
dice game, instead of doing it with a with a dealer, they have
the video craps where everybody sits around this big Dome and
you press the button and then you know, the dice get flipped
automatically and what have you. That was my thing.
And and just like you said it,
it hurt when you lose brother because it goes quick so.
Oh, like you wouldn't believe it.
Yeah, yeah. I I was crying.
Yeah, but good reason. For very good reasons.
For very good reason. So once again folks, Devon is
going to be at Wrestle Con. You can, you can head over to
wrestlecon.com For more information.
I know the Dudley boys together are going to be there on, on
Thursday actually, right. So, so the first day you guys
going to be there is Thursday the 17th.
Devon is going to stick around for the whole weekend though.
We we have you listed here Thursday through Sunday.
Is that is that accurate there? Yes, it is.
It's very accurate. So hey, you have no excuse,
folks. Go out, see the big man,
definitely get a get a picture, get a autograph, share a a good
laugh and what have you. That's what it's all about.
WrestleMania weekend, really WrestleMania week, I should say,
is the biggest convention in all of pro wrestling.
So all of these other events that are happening to help
supplement what WWE is doing, something like Wrestle Con is a
great opportunity. All you fans from around the
world, come, come check Devon out, man.
Let him know what you think of the show, the YouTube, the whole
9 yards. Have some fun for sure, for
sure. Outside of that, Devon, what's
the best way I can keep up with you, brother?
On my YouTube channel, you know Devon W YouTube channel, which
is doing extremely well. We are now at.
Let me see. We are now at, as I'm trying to
figure this out, 142,467 subscribers remind you that's
all in two months. So, so when I tell you that that
you that the the Devon Dudley brand has never been hotter and
you look at me like really? So I don't know, man.
Listen, I'm just very blessed and honored to even have these
people want to even listen to anything that I have to say.
So, you know, thank you very much for all your love and
support on the channel. And you know, doing these
autograph signings, there's a lot of people coming up saying,
you know, we love your YouTube channel, We love what you say,
We love how you tell stories. Again, thank you very much for
that. I really appreciate that.
Cold heartedly. Thank you.
I love it, I love it. That's the good stuff to.
Well earned, well deserved for sure folks.
As always, Duke loves wrestling. On Facebook, on
twitter.dukeloveswrestling@gmail.com continue to send your shout outs
and what have you. We got some great things on the
horizon as always. You just got a real nice peek
behind the curtain here Devon shared with us, which is very,
very special. Appreciate that.
So until next time, which would be after WrestleMania, why don't
you give us our Word of the Week, my brother?
If you don't leave your past in the past, it will destroy your
future. Live for what today has to
offer, not for what yesterday has to take away.
Testify. My brother.
All about the perfect life. Be yourself, let your spirit
lie. In this fashion you'll touch the
sky strictly for the culture. Wrestle fine dressed to impress
and show your shine strictly for the culture every day.
Visit www.strictlyfortheculture.ca.
Backstage whispers and the crowds roar from matching giants
to legends of your Devon's wisdom and Duke's keen view.
Every episode feels like it's brand new.
Devon and Duke bring the heat. Wrestling tails knock you off
your seat. TuneIn now don't you be late.
Wrestling podcast never felt this great.