WWE Byte This Report: Triple H, Orton, Regal

[EdwardKnoxII 0]

WWE Byte This Report: Triple H, Orton, Regal

 

Full recap of a packed edition of Byte This....

 

Thursday, April 15, 2004

Host: Josh Mathews, Triple H & Tom Prichard

Guests: William Regal and Randy Orton

Report by: Kevin Gregg of FOX Sports PowerWrestling.com

 

Triple H's video and music played to start off this week's edition of WWE Byte This! and then we were taken into the studio where Josh Mathews, Triple H and Tom Prichard sat for this week's show. Josh welcomed Tom back to Byte This! and Josh thanked him. On today's show, Droz will be calling in with his Backlash picks, Randy Orton will be calling in and of course Triple H is here.

 

Josh asked Triple H if he's prepared for Backlash? Triple H joked, saying that he's not prepared at all. He's been eating Twinkies and all that and his goal is to go out there and stink the place up. Tom said in all seriousness, Chris Benoit is said to have the hometown advantage. That's nothing new to Triple H, going against someone who claims to have an advantage and this Sunday, Triple H is going to go through it again. Triple H said that somebody always has the advantage when they get in the ring with him and that's what they're always saying but somehow Triple H always comes out on top. Triple H admitted that he heard that it is snowing in Canada and he already wasn't looking forward to going there, but he's going to go there and capture the title and bring it back to America. Tom asked Triple H if there's any chance of something like Montreal happening? Triple H said that it depends on the Canadian fans. If someone wants to go Canadian, we'll see.

 

Droz joins the show:

 

Droz joined the show and Josh noted that Droz usually picks against Triple H but will he do it this time? Droz said that he's not sure. He's not sure if he's going to go with Chris Benoit or not. Triple H agreed that it's a tough call. Droz said that he is in his hometown but with three Superstars it's a hard pick. Chris Benoit does have the belt but can he hold onto it? Josh noted that his pick for Backlash is Triple H.

 

Mick Foley takes on Randy Orton in a No Holds Barred Match at Backlash and Tom noted that it's Cactus Jack taking on Randy Orton, not Mick Foley. Tom asked Droz for his thoughts on this? Droz said that he thinks that Randy would be much better off wrestling Mick but with Cactus Jack, he doesn't see Randy coming out of this unscathed. Droz is going to go with Cactus but Randy is going to give him a run for his money. This is a whole new element for Randy Orton. Triple H noted that going against Mick Foley is like wrestling a big Muppet. Mick Foley is a bit chubbier than Cactus Jack. Cactus Jack is a lot more trimmer and he has a pension for using large pointy metallic objects which is never good but Randy Orton is an athlete and one of the top dogs in this business and Randy Orton is going to drop Mick Foley/Cactus Jack/Dude Love/Mankind right on top of his nappy hair head and walk out of the ring as the Intercontinental Champion and one of the top guys in Evolution.

 

Tom asked Triple H if he has any advice for Randy Orton? Triple H said that his advice to Randy Orton would be not to get hit with the Barbed wire. Droz agreed that that's good advice.

 

Another match is Jericho vs. Christian and Trish Stratus. Droz said that he's going to go with Jericho on this one but Christian is the Creepy Little Bastard and Trish is the doggie. Droz is hoping Chris pulls it out but he's looking forward to seeing what happens with Trish and Jericho in the ring. He'd like to see her get slapped around with Jericho coming out on top. Triple H said that he thinks Jericho will have his hands full but Christian will really have his hands full and that's all that really matters.

 

They wrapped it up with Droz, wishing him a Happy belated Birthday and you can read the rest of his picks on WWE.com.

 

Tom said that there's another match that he's sure Triple H will be watching. Shelton Benjamin taking on Ric Flair. Tom asked Triple H for some insight on Shelton? Triple H said that Shelton is playing a big craps game. He's rolling the dice and coming a winner but his luck is about to run out because he is going against the 16 time World Champion. Shelton has been on a roller coaster ride headed to the top of a mountain and he's about to come crashing down off the other side.

 

Surprise call in guest - William Regal:

 

William Regal phoned into the show as a surprise caller and Tom asked him how he's doing physically these days? Regal said he's doing wonderful. Josh asked him how he feels to be back? Regal asked who the hell is that? Josh pointed out who he was and Regal said "hello sir." It feels wonderful to be back and it feels like he hasn't been away at all. When he visited some shows in the last year, it was very strange and out of place but now that he's back it feels like he never left. Triple H told Regal that it's great to have him back from the standpoint of all the guys because there has been a massive hole since he was gone and who better to plug that hole than William Regal?

 

Tom said that William is in a different capacity this time. He's now along side Eugene. How does he feel about that? Regal was a little angry to start but he thinks it's going to be wonderful with the boy. Some say he's a quick learner but they will get there eventually.

 

Josh asked Regal if it's true that he considers Triple H one of his friends in this business? Regal said that it is true and he's one of his only real friends. He's the only person that called Regal every week and most people he knew for 20 years never once called or came around. Triple H was the only person that called him every week. Triple H said it was vice versa. Regal was one of the few guys that called him all the time and hung out in Birmingham when Triple H was out with his quad injury. Regal noted that you don't make many friends in this business but he does have a few. Triple H added that you make a lot of acquaintances but not a lot of friends.

 

They went to a caller for William Regal and the caller thanked Regal for coming back and then she asked Triple H to flex his muscles. Triple H instead wanted to punch Josh so he did that and then he flexed his muscles for the female caller.

 

Josh asked Regal if he's in the best shape of his life right now? Regal said that he truly feels that way. William has been working out and he feels great. He's really working on the conditioning and training and that seems to suit him better than anything else. Tom asked him what are the chances of him getting back in the ring as a wrestler? Regal said that after the 4th of May, he should be able to get back in the ring. They just want to take more tests to make sure there has been no problems and so far, there hasn't been any problems so after the 4th of May, he'll be ready to go. Josh asked if he's ready to be back on the road full time? Regal said that he is because he already is on the road full time.

 

Tom said that having William Regal by Eugene's side is going to help him elevate his game and add a new dimension to Regal's side. Regal said that people don't know something about Eugene and that's that he's actually good at learning and once Regal gets in the ring with him to train him, he thinks Eugene is going to become a tremendous wrestler. Triple H said that William Regal is one of the guys that has the most experience in the locker room and guys should take advantage of that and talk to Regal for help.

 

Tom asked Regal about the changes in wrestling and William said that he's glad to see good wrestling coming back. Good wrestling never left, but he's glad to see new people learn it. When Regal is watching wrestling, he wants to watch good wrestling. He isn't interested in watching people who don't learn how to wrestle because you have to be a good wrestler whether you're a good brawler or not. All of the top guys in this business have always known how to wrestle. The wrestlers he idolizes are all great wrestlers and Triple H is the real deal when it comes to that. He and Triple H trained together and he understands it all and that's what makes him, Shawn Michaels, Chris Benoit and Eddie Guerrero so good, because they all took the time to learn how to wrestle. If you're not willing to learn, it's a shame because there are a lot of people who aren't willing to learn but in the last few years, all the newer guys want to learn how to wrestle and hopefully they'll start learning some more.

 

They went to another caller and the caller asked Regal how his wrestling style had to chance from his days in England in the circus and everything. How has he evolved his style? Regal said that it was a different style all together. The style over there was very wrestling oriented, which is why he does a lot of the stuff he does. When he first came to America, he sort of made people wrestle to his liking. The guys he was wrestling like Arn Anderson could wrestle and they all understood the basics of wrestling and thought above the basics. You can't wrestle somebody who doesn't know how to wrestle back. Triple H noted that it does take two to tango in the ring. You can't just go in there with one guy with a ton of experience and knowledge and the other guy not knowing anything. That's where it gets lost in the shuffle, but hopefully now they're getting back to that.

 

Tom asked Triple H if he feels that since he's been on the road and doing live events, do the fans react the way you'd expect with good wrestling? Triple H said without a doubt. In the last year or so, they've started to go back to emphasizing wrestling again and as they've gone back, the fans are getting more and more into it and they are more and more excited about it. Yeah, you're going to do certain stunts to shock people but the main focus is on wrestling. There's nothing like sitting down in front of a good wrestling match for 20 minutes and getting lost in the story. That's what made Triple H a wrestler and guys like William Regal, Benoit and Shawn Michaels become wrestlers and that's what's going to excite the fans of today. William added that it's not just wrestling. Going to a wrestling match and someone sticking an arm bar on isn't wrestling; it's the quality of the wrestling. A lot of people think they can mat wrestle but it's the detail of how they put the holds on and work people over. That's what keeps people interested. In WCW, William Regal made everyone come up to his standard and that's what Triple H and Chris Benoit do today; make people go up to their standard in a match. Regal said that you have to have people who know how to get out of a hold and do it well or they are going to get lost in the shuffle.

 

Tom talked about the Unscripted book and how Triple H watched old wrestling tapes and this is something they talk about in the developmental leagues. Tom asked Triple H what he gets out of watching the old tapes? Triple H said one of the things he thinks the guys lose when they watch matches is they start to watch for specific moves, instead of the match as a whole. Whenever he sees the young guys in the ring, it hurts him to see them always trying to figure out some new wacky move or do some wacky move they saw on some Japanese tape. They should be learning how to perform and tell stories and how to work holds, sell and all the different things that make a great match, not just going in the ring and trying to hit some move that nobody has ever seen before. What is the story he's trying to tell, what's the big picture of that? Look at the whole wall, not just the single bricks.

 

William added that the thing of it is common sense and most people have common sense and you watch a good wrestling match and they all make sense. If he gets the chance again, he's going to go back to doing what he did best and that's dragging people to his level and that helps to make wrestlers. Regal watches a lot of tapes but it's basically down to common sense. If someone turns his arm one way, his body is going to go with it to get out of it. Some people understand a fight but they can't understand a good match. Regal watches the fans and they pop on certain things but that's not what it's about. It's about drawing them in and making them believe why they are there.

 

Triple H's cell phone rang and it was Michael Hayes on the phone so Triple H told him he's on Byte This! and can't talk right now as Josh Mathews wrapped it up with William Regal.

 

Triple H brought up WWE 24/7 the video on demand system that they are going to have and that is going to be awesome because WWE owns libraries of WCW, NWA, ECW, AWA and a lot of that stuff. You can go back and watch stuff from the 60s, 70s and 80s and that's going to be a huge deal. You'll be able to watch it whenever you want and it'll be constant. Triple H knows that he's going to watch it.

 

People may wonder why someone would want to watch stuff from back then but that's what made guys like Triple H become wrestlers and if they loved it, the fans will love it.

 

They went to a caller for Triple H and the caller said that he is a big fan of Triple H's. It's only been recently with the departure of some guys that he's gotten to see how much Triple H means to the WWE. Triple H has been a part of the top two groups in wrestling with DX and now Evolution. In the beginning, DX helped propel his career to where it is. Does he see the same happening with Evolution? Triple H said definitely. He thinks Evolution has taken them all to a new level. DX was kind of a launching pad for him and he eventually became the leader of DX and then it went further from there. Evolution was a concept that Triple H had that he wanted to do and it involved Ric Flair and he got behind it and the two of them wanted to form a group and take a couple young guys who they thought had potential to be stars of the future and use that as a launching pad for them and they selected Randy Orton and Batista and they've gone on from there. Randy Orton and Batista are great wrestlers right now and Randy has become one of the top guys and so has Batista. Batista is one of the better big guys in the business, so Evolution has done what it was meant to do.

 

Josh brought up Brock Lesnar's departure from the WWE and Triple H said that Brock learned the business fairly quickly and he had become WWE Champion but he didn't get to where he could have or should have gone in the business. If he decided to leave and that he couldn't handle the business, then great, leave. The only negative thing he has to say is that you don't decide to leave and leave a lot of people hanging. A lot of people put Brock Lesnar over to get him to the top and before leaving, he never gave back, so that's where he went wrong. Will we see Brock Lesnar come back? Probably. Triple H added that he doesn't see him playing in the Superbowl anytime soon. At some point in time, he thinks Brock's skill in life isn't going to become an accountant or become a brain surgeon or launch a rocket to the moon so we'll see Brock Lesnar back eventually and if they do, he'd love to get in the ring with him.

 

Tom asked Triple H about the competition between RAW and Smackdown!? Triple H said that it's pretty thick. When they first started the split, it wasn't all that but now it's very competitive. When you go on a show like Wrestlemania and everybody is there and you walk into catering, the room is divided. The Smackdown! guys are together and the RAW guys are together. The guys chat back and forth but it's mainly two groups and its deep. Triple H added that that's a good thing because nothing helps a product than competition. If Smackdown! starts doing way better business on RAW, you watch how the guys on RAW turn it up and vice versa. It's no different than the Monday Night Wars because this is a war and everybody wants to be the best.

 

They went to a caller for Triple H and the caller asked what it was like to work with Wesley Snipes in Blade 3? Triple H said that Wesley was great to him but if you read the tabloids, there were a lot of problems with Wesley on the set. It was pretty intense at some point and some of the stuff that he witnessed but to Triple H, Wesley was great. He was very nice to him and he talked about wrestling, so he didn't have any complaints about him even though a lot of people probably didn't have their best experience. Josh noted that Jessica Biel was there and Triple H joked, saying that it was hard to get her off of him. Josh asked when Blade 3 is going to come out? Triple H said that it was supposed to come out in August, but now it has been pushed back to December 12th. Having seen the early edits of the movie, they feel like it's going to be a much bigger release than they originally anticipated. On one hand, that's great but Christmas time is a time when a lot of movies come out so there's going to be a lot of competition for it.

 

Tom asked Triple H if there's anybody that he hasn't wrestled that he would like to? Triple H said that he would love to get in the ring with Edge. He's a guy who has a lot of promise and potential and he thinks he's going to go really far. When he looks at some of the guys on the other side, he likes Rey Mysterio. He is a guy he'd like to bat around like a Mexican jumping bean. There are a lot of guys in the business like up and coming guys but it's hard for him to look at it. Triple H has wrestled so many greats in the business so it's hard for him to come up with a fantasy match. He looks at it who is going to be the next huge guy or he looks at a guy from the past like Harley Race, Dory, Jr., or Jack Brisco. From now, he looks at the guys that are up and coming that he'd like to grab onto and wrestle.

 

Tom brought up the Hall of Fame and he asked Triple H how cool it was to induct Superstar into the Hall of Fame? Triple H said that it was just awesome. The WWE showing respect to the past of our business and just to be up there on the same stage as guys you grew up watching and sitting next to Ric Flair who is one of his best friends now and then he has Harley Race and Greg Valentine sitting there and then here's Superstar Billy Graham. There were so many guys up there that were just awesome and it was an unbelievable night and it was a huge thrill for Triple H to induct Graham. Ric felt the same way for Harley Race because he was nervous about that one.

 

They went to a caller and the caller asked if it's true what they say about guys having big noses? Do they have big penises? Triple H said he has a big nose, big hands, and big feet. It's a wide screen and he'd take it out but the screen is only so wide.

 

Randy Orton joins the show:

 

Josh quickly moved on and brought Randy Orton onto the show. Randy noted that he wears a size 15 boot. Tom brought up this Sunday's pay per view of Backlash and he is going to have to face Cactus Jack in a Hardcore rules match. How is he feeling? Randy said it's hard to explain how he's feeling. Since he's been aware of what's going to happen at Backlash, it's hard to eat and sleep and stay focused. This is Cactus Jack's kind of match and he pretty much wrote the rules, which there are none. Randy has a lot to think about but he is confident that he will bring everything he needs. He's going to have the mindset that day and he'll be prepared mentally. Who knows what can happen in that kind of situation. It's going to be a very long day for him.

 

Tom said that this is the match that he's sure Triple H can speak on. It's one of those things where you're not going to get out unscathed because Mick is going to be looking to make Randy Orton bleed as much as possible and he's not going to take it easy on Randy; is he prepared to do that? Randy said that he is and anyone in this business who has to be faced with this kind of thing, they signed up for it. It's just one of those things that he's never been involved in and Mick has. Randy has a lot of disadvantages but as far as going through the match without losing any blood, there is going to be blood loss. How does he know it's not over in a minute? Or will it go over an hour? And what will be involved? You can get knocked out and it's over or you can lose a ton of blood and pass out. There's so many possibilities and so many things going on in his mind and it's really going to be tough. Randy Orton is going to have to be very focused and he doesn't have that right now but he's definitely concentrating on that aspect. You mention Triple H and Cactus Jack and Randy has done his best to study up on Mick on all of his hardcore matches that he can, so he's doing everything he can to be prepared this Sunday.

 

Triple H said Randy has to remember that Cactus Jack is going to do all this stuff to try to hurt Randy Orton but you have to remember that when you come out of this match that it could make a career. This is the kind of match that you find out how tough Randy Orton is. He's a good wrestler now but just how tough is he? This is the kind of thing when Randy Orton lets it all hang out and puts it all on the line and still beats Cactus Jack, this is the kind of match that will make Randy Orton a household name. Randy said that was well said and he appreciates the confident Triple H has in him and he's going to do his best to make Evolution proud, along with his father.

 

An email question asked Randy which legend he would like to kill next after he's done with Mick Foley? Randy said right now, he's involved with Mick Foley so that's what he's concentrating on. Triple H said that the question was wrong; when he's done with Mick Foley, he'll no longer be the legend killer, he'll be the legend and people will have to come after Randy Orton. Randy said that he likes that.

 

They went to a caller for Randy and the caller asked what it's like to have the two greatest wrestlers of all time Triple H and Ric Flair to guide him through his career? Randy said that he's in the best company possible, whether it's backstage or on the long trips on the road. They're together and he's learning from these guys. When you think of wrestling, you think of people like Ric Flair and guys like Triple H. It's an honor to be at their side and learning from them. He definitely has an advantage over the competition and that's a definite plus. Triple H added that Randy not only has the advantage of getting it from guys like Ric Flair but then he gets to go home and hear it from his father, Cowboy Bob Orton. He gets it 24/7 because another legend in the business is waiting at home to tell him all the things that he saw. Randy Orton is in a 24/7 learning environment and that's why Randy Orton is going to become a huge star in this business. Randy said that's true. When he goes home, his father is there and the first thing he asks him is what he did wrong and Randy does what he can to correct those things to improve.

 

Another caller called into the show and the caller asked what other wrestling legends from the past would he like to go toe to toe with? Randy said that his father tagged with Dick Slater and Don Muraco. These guys that he watched, his father worked and performed with. Roddy Piper, Tito Santana, Steamboat and all those guys he would like to work with for all kinds of reasons, not just because of who they are and what they've done in wrestling but because growing up, he was more on a personal level with them than anyone else. He remembers JYD chasing him down the hallway with a broom and he was freaking him out, but he has that memory. He wouldn't say it would be just one man or one legend; it would be everyone from his dad to Jake the Snake to everyone that he listed. The list would be endless and he would like to work with everyone. If he could work with just one person, it would definitely be his father.

 

Tom said he's certain everyone has heard the comparison; Evolution and the Four Horsemen. Tom asked for the difference between Evolution and the Horsemen? Randy said that he would first off say that the original Four Horsemen compared to Evolution right now is kind of a difference in time periods. Look back then, you have four guys running things, doing whatever they wanted and they took charge on anything they wanted and in 2004, you have Evolution. It's just kind of like the same group of guys but in this day and age. That's the best way he can explain it. Triple H said that for him, the ultimate compliment in his career and at any point of time is ... getting a cell phone call in the middle of Byte This!. Triple H opened his phone and answered it and it was Kevin Nash. Triple H told him that he'll call him back. Triple H plugged the movie Kevin Nash is in, the Punisher. But back to the question, anytime Triple H is compared to anyone from that era is the biggest thrill in his career. To have Evolution compared to the Horsemen is a huge accomplishment but when you form a group like this, they're compared to the Horsemen because they were the original and they've done it all. Evolution does a hell of a job and like Randy said, it's just a time difference but there's going to be differences between anything. Nothing is going to be exactly the same. Triple H likes to think they are on different pages but just as great.

 

They went to another caller and the caller asked if Triple H and Randy Orton are excited about coming to Ireland in May? Triple H said they are very excited about that. Triple H said he's personally very excited. He enjoys going overseas and to other countries and wrestling in front of the fans over there because they don't get to go there all the time. He enjoys other cultures and checking that out and usually the fans are so responsive. It's a thrill for them and he can't wait to get back to Ireland. Randy agreed and he said they're in Dublin, back to back and it's their first time there in 10 years. Randy talked about seeing the culture and how the fans are going to be so amped up over there.

 

Tom asked Randy Orton if he can keep up with Ric Flair when it comes to partying? Randy said that he can't and Triple H added that nobody can keep up with Ric Flair. He's like the Larry Flint of wrestling. They wrapped it up with Randy Orton and Josh wished him the best of luck at Backlash this Sunday night.

 

Tom brought up the character change of John Bradshaw Layfield and Triple H said that it's better than the drunken buffoon he was before. Triple H talked a little bit about the character and he said so far, so good.

 

Next week, Dr. Tom Prichard won't be on the show once again. Jim Ross will be here and it will be the announcer's edition of Byte This! and Michael Cole and Bill DeMott will be calling into the show. And that does it for this week's edition of Byte This!.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

A lot of people put Brock Lesnar over to get him to the top and before leaving, he never gave back, so that's where he went wrong

Pot, kettle...you finish the rest.

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

A lot of people put Brock Lesnar over to get him to the top and before leaving, he never gave back, so that's where he went wrong

Pot, kettle...you finish the rest.

Was Triple H pushed like God between 1995-1999? No. Rest my Case. End of Story. Brock was given everything the second he stepped foot in a WWE Ring. He never gave shit back. WOW! HE JOBBED TO EDDIE! Big deal, Eddie needed Goldberg and a title belt shot to the face.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

Brock had nowhere near the backstage pull as HHH (if any at all). Raw '03 consisted of HHH killing of every face challenger on the show, to the point they had to bring Benoit over from SD to face him.

 

Brock not giving back = blame bookers

 

HHH killing off faces in 2003 = HHH shouldering a good deal of blame

[Guest Man Of 1,004 Modes]

Brock had nowhere near the backstage pull as HHH (if any at all). Raw '03 consisted of HHH killing of every face challenger on the show, to the point they had to bring Benoit over from SD to face him.

 

Brock not giving back = blame bookers

 

HHH killing off faces in 2003 = HHH shouldering a good deal of blame

I won't disagree Trips was a tad bit too protective of his spot, but he's put people over before...OK, post 2000, I don't know, but he paid his dues for 4 years before becoming a main eventer, something that usually happens before a world title run or three is determined.

[Spaceman Spiff 0]

That's what I was getting at. Before becoming a ME'er, he had no pull whatsoever. Once he got "his spot", forget about it, which is where I saw the hypocrisy of that quote.

[Scroby 0]

Josh asked him how he feels to be back? Regal asked who the hell is that?

'

 

Gold