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Tap DMV and WWE recently hosted a roundtable discussion with the former WWE United States Champion and currently one half of the reigning RAW Tag Team Champions, WWE Superstar, Riddle.
Riddle is one of the most charismatic Superstars right now in WWE. His carefree and lax demeanor are usually overlooked by his opponents that leaves them surprised when he finally uses his arsenal of strikes and submissions.
The Original Bro exploded into the scene by using his background in Mixed Martial Arts to take control of his opponents with his striking and grappling expertise. During his run in NXT, Riddle was able to dominate the tag team division with Pete Dunne in where they won the 2020 Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classics. In a span of less than 3 weeks after winning the Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classics, Riddle and Pete Dunne were able to capture the NXT Tag Team Championship by defeating The Undisputed ERA.
Since his move to the main roster, Riddle has won the United States Championship and is now sitting on top of the RAW Tag Team division alongside The Viper, Randy Orton as the reigning, defending, WWE RAW Tag Team Champions.
Is your WWE run everything you hope it would be?
Riddle: You know, I think it’s still the beginning of my run and I think I have done a lot of great stuff, a lot of cool things. I’ve been the United States champion already and now I’m RK-Bro with Randy Orton and we’re the current WWE RAW Tag Team Champion. I mean, the crowd are loving it, I’m loving the reaction we’re getting. I’m pretty juicy about how everything is going so far but I’m always wanna shoot for the stars. You know how it is, bro.
Can you talk to me about how well your comedic sensibilities work on-screen with such serious partners like Pete Dunne and Randy Orton?
Riddle: Whenever you see people on-screen, for the most part, it’s a group of people with a lot of interest or a lot of common things. They have a lot of personality traits that are similar. When you mix Yin and Yang, when you got me and Randy, or me and Pete, They’re so serious, Randy likes putting people on fire, Pete is a Broserweight, he likes breaking people’s fingers. Then you got The Bro, I can kick your head off or maybe choke you out but I ride a scooter and I’m kinda goofy. In pro-wrestling, most people are like, “I’m going to beat you up and there’s nothing you can do about it” and I’m more like, “Bro, do you think you can beat me, dude? You know you can’t”. So I think I have that personality and demeanor, and that’s what makes me different and what makes me work so well with the more serious wrestlers and entertainers that we have.
What was preparation like against Roderick Strong at NXT Takeover 25?
Riddle: He’s (Strong) definitely a workhorse. With me and my style of wrestling, I know I’m a little goofy outside the ring, even in the UFC where I fought MMA, I was goofy but when I get in there, It’s nothing but business. When you get a guy like Roderick Strong, who does not take his foot off the gas pedal for a second, he doesn’t waste any movement. The guy is attacking, he’s kicking, he’s slapping, he’s punching, he’s suplexing, he’s doing everything all the time so I have two choices, I can either get beat up by Roderick Strong or I could beat him up. That’s NXT Takeover 25 in a nutshell.
Why do you think people tune in to see your quirkiness and everything that goes with it?
Riddle: What goes on with me is it’s real, it’s natural, I’m really enjoying myself and I think it’s contagious. If you go to a party or you go to dinner and somebody is over the top and having fun, you kind of end up having fun yourself. I think Randy is very popular and very talented, but never been a super fun type of guy. So when you have super fun guy like myself who’s trying to cut loose and have fun with the crowd and mix it up, I think with me and Randy, it’s refreshing especially in professional wrestling where most people are very serious, they’re trying to attack people, they’re scheming, they’re planning and I think when people see a natural friendship blossoming on TV, I think they enjoy it especially that we are so different but we do enjoy each other’s company. Even when Randy says that he doesn’t like it, Randy enjoys The Bro’s company. Trust.
What are the things you’ve learned during your time working with Randy Orton?
Riddle: Working with Randy has been a long time but I’ve learned a lot in a short amount of time. The one thing I learned is Randy is extremely cool and laid back. In a sense, I’m kind of like that. But Randy, even though he’s been doing this for years, he’s one of the best, he’s a 14-time world champion, He still makes sure he takes care of every little thing he has to take care of every single week. Sometimes I forget but Randy is on the ball every time. He doesn’t make mistakes and even when he does, you can’t tell because he’s Randy Orton. That’s something I’ve learned from Randy. Just being in the moment, doing the right thing, and just crossing those T’s and dotting those I’s. Make sure you don’t leave any loose ends and that’s something I kind of got away from because I’m wild and I’m like “whatever, dude” and let’s get wild and crazy. Being with Randy, especially if I’m trying to work with others throughout my career, some people aren’t as crazy as me. I’m going to have to work a different way, or talk a different way. That’s just what it is.
How special was the feeling when you won the RAW Tag Team Championship with Randy Orton in Summerslam?
Wrestlemania was big but Summerslam was humongous. It was a spectacle. There were so many people there. It was one of those things and I talked to Triple H a while ago and he’s like “When you’re in these moments, it’s hard because you got stuff to do and you’re working but try to take it in.” and at Summerslam, walking out there with Randy, down that huge ramp with thousands of people on every side, seeing the reaction, seeing all the RK-Bro shirts, getting that love. It was super special and an amazing moment. Then to have to share that moment with Randy Orton, to be able to strike that Viper Pose, It was awesome.
Are you satisfied with the opportunity given to you by WWE?
Riddle: I, Personally, Me, Riddle The Bro, The Original Bro, I love working at WWE, I’ve loved every opportunity. If it’s me doing a party in the background, popping a bottle of champagne for somebody else’s win or if I’m the one at Summerslam holding the RAW Tag Team Championship above my head, or even if it’s just me cracking jokes with the absurd ideas that I have. I love it all. I really enjoy my job. I enjoyed my job before I was in the WWE when I was making scraps, making pennies, struggling to get by, selling t-shirts out of my suitcase. This is something that I really love and something I really love to do. It entertains me and it keeps me happy. I couldn’t be more happy working for the WWE. I’m stoked.
How do you prepare a physical match and how does it compare to your preparation back when you were competing in MMA?
Riddle: They are very similar because you can get hurt doing both. I think the difference is if you work well with somebody in professional wrestling, the match is going to be hard hitting. It should be. But I’m not going to get brain damage, I know where I’m going, I know where to turn. And with my MMA career, it’s like a game of tag where you’re not trying to get touched while wrestling is where you test each other’s might or test each other’s will. I think it’s different when you look at it like that. Also in MMA, most people are dropping weight classes and dieting while in pro-wrestling, I used to fight 170lbs, now I weigh about 210-220. I’m much bigger, I’m much healthier, I’m much stronger, and I can deal a lot more damage and I can also take a lot more damage.
Watch the full video here.
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