Triple H interviews Steph before WWE Hall of Fame induction

24:55We didn't know what to do. So the British bulldog inadvertently hit me with a trash can in England somewhere. Amnesia. And then I got amnesia. So I couldn't remember who Test was. No, no, I remember they just did that. I just did that because they had the storyline.

25:15Paul Levesque:uh, of the wedding coming up and had no idea, like, how do we get out of this thing? Like, what does it become? And no one had any clue. Part of the writing team had left and like the, if there was a plan, nobody knew what it was. Uh, and he hits you with the can to get out of it, which is mostly the most ridiculous soap opera thing of all time. It was great. Um, so horrible. It was great. Yeah, which then led to I was in sort of an angle with your dad at that point in time where I couldn't, I don't remember the specifics of it even, but for some reason. You couldn't compete for the title again.

25:53Paul Levesque:Yeah, I had lost the opportunity to compete for a title. The only one that could change it would be him. So somehow, but that was kind of our story and we were trying to get to a match between he and I somehow. and then I threw the idea about the the wedding thing like what if I had this how crazy of a time that was well what if I had gone to the bachelorette party and mickeyed her drink and then I end up with her and like while she's out I I uh take her through one of those Vegas wedding chapel things and uh in order to get the wedding annulled like I have to fight you if if you win and I and L the wedding and she can go on and get married.

26:37And if I win, I get the shot back at the championship or whatever,

26:43Paul Levesque:which I had thrown at your dad at that point in time and he loved, but it was supposed to be like super just. Like a one-off. But one-off. Yeah. It's supposed to be like a one-off. We do this thing, you go about your business, I go do the stuff with Vince, which opens up a door for me to get back in the title picture and we just move on from there. and then it, you know, blew up into something else. Yeah. I was just telling you the story as I was writing my speech and reminiscing of being in Baltimore specifically in my dad's office and listening to the two of you talk about the angle and saying like, I don't know, it was you specifically.

27:22I don't know, Vince. I think this thing has legs. And he agreed with you. I meant you.

27:32and like i couldn't i couldn't sell it right but on the inside i was like

27:38Paul Levesque:i was very excited well and and the thing that was like i i very you know you remember bits and pieces of stuff i remember very specifically after we did the pay-per-view where i wrestled your dad and uh armageddon yeah and you turn and the whole thing and um is that the night like you guys wound up outside in the parking lot and he fell on my leg off the scaffold in the afternoon yeah oh absolutely that was that so what are you that oh it's a relevant point but like i'll get to the part with stuff but um you know that that whole thing was supposed to just be quick done easy and we got done that night and it went really well and was this huge moment storyline wise and all that stuff and then when you had to go oh no it was before that because i'm sorry before that it was the night after the stuff aired the tv after the stuff aired where i had drugged you and taken you to the wedding chapel can you do that voice again yeah and yes yes i do

28:52Paul Levesque:that next night when you came out on tv and the the crowd was brutal they were chanting oh my god and all this stuff and man you know the heat was so big and i just i remember standing at gorilla i don't remember i was doing something a little later in the show but i was at gorilla because i wanted to see the reaction and you went out there and they man you could barely get a word out and you were trying to yell over the crowd and i vince just like elbowed me and went like that like did the money you know what i mean and uh i was like yeah that's when i started thinking like holy shit there's way more to this than we'd like this could be a really big deal and then you know from there they sort of took it and ran with it yeah you know i've never felt anything like that ever it was amazing that that night that heat that night like i really and surprising you know and that's why when it happened for dom i was like oh my god i know exactly how he feels like he i know exactly how he feels it's the coolest thing in the world so but by far for you at that moment in time right like you're you've been a part of like the taker abduction i don't want to say kidnapping the taker abduction the austin stuff saving that all that stuff you've had some moments but by far that's like the most positive or negative sort of nuclear reaction right like that that level like what was that the turn that night was such a shock oh at armageddon yeah but But before that, even like when you didn't necessarily, like you were the victim here, right?

30:39Paul Levesque:So you didn't necessarily expect to go out and get like that level of negativity. So there was this one time shortly after the abduction, I think it was the first time you saw me and my dad in the ring to cut a promo about what happened. And I remember saying something about my drawers had been rifled through and I was trying to be like sympathetic yeah yeah and um he went through my personal things crowd pops and I remember being like you're not supposed to pop at that you know and I and my dad and I looked at each other he thought it was hilarious and he looked at me like because it was surprising you know it got both of us and so I just they've never wanted me to be a baby face ever they've always preferred me to be a heel and it works out because you never wanted to be a baby face yeah no what was that like so when they were when they booed you that night though what was your like were you thinking this is the coolest thing ever like hey what the hell no no coolest because it's it surprised me and that's what i loved about it like it caught me so off guard and then i was like oh this is fun you know like they and i and then when I realized what I said, I laughed too.

31:56I was like, yeah, of course they're going to pop at that, you know? And, but it was, it was kind of like a moment where you can just feel what you can do, you know? The control that you have. Yeah. They're like, and, and how powerful it was, you know? So I thought it was the coolest thing in the world. I really did. And the slut chance.

32:19Paul Levesque:Yeah. Like where'd they come up with that? Even who's the first person to say slut? I mean, in the arena at me. Like, who was that person? I don't know, but somebody brought it. Yeah, and then everybody was like, that's perfect. Yeah, the chants at the time were stout. Yeah, they were. They were stout, yeah. She's a crack whore was also. That was Chicago. Yeah. I still enjoy that. Which may or may not have been towards Steph. Could have been anybody in that time.

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33:54Paul Levesque:And so then at that point, like, at that point you turn at Armageddon and then we go on that heel run, which, you know, we had like nuclear heat at that point from fire and Foley to the stuff with rock and all of that. Everything. When, when, who's the first person you slapped? was it after that yeah right well yeah i mean the first person that i slapped in a mean evil way yeah i guess no deborah no that was later that was later yeah um i feel like it might have been mick foley at royal at the rumble right in that unsanctioned match i don't remember i think that's where it may have been because i remember um well and i hit him with the trash can lid so maybe that's what i'm remembering jericho was early on um i slapped my brother and you in a funny exchange but that was that Joey Abs.

35:14Oh, really? Oh, so you know this answer. Yeah. Okay. Do you want to show it? And then if you guys can find, it's this funny series. I'm in between Shane and Paul and they're, they are both giving me direction to slap each other. So Paul tells me to slap Shane first.

35:35Paul Levesque:So what's great about Steph at this time is, too, she's super green. Yeah, I'm so green. I'll do whatever you tell me to do. So if I say slap Shane, she's going to slap Shane. And I trust him more than anybody out there, right? Well, and so very quickly after Steph, the slap thing becomes a great heat tool for us, right? And it's such an easy gimme. And Foley was probably the one you did it with, like with that intent. early because that was almost the immediate program. Right? That's what I thought. And, you know, Mick would, like, anytime anybody gets that big of a reaction of something, like that's what you want to do, right?

36:18Paul Levesque:So Foley would always be the smart guy. If I was getting some heat on Mick and beating him up, you know, he would find his way to wherever Steph was and lean himself over the ropes and say, slap me. And, you know, Mick was falling off of cages and lighting himself on fire, so the slap wasn't that big of a deal. But for anybody else that took it. Well, his ear was already gone, so you didn't have to worry about his ear. It was literally gone. He doesn't even have an ear on one side. But it quickly became like this thing where, because, you know, we would tell Steph, like, the worst possible thing you could do is miss or whiff or have the slap look light or weak because then the person sells it and it's the worst thing you could do.

37:01Paul Levesque:You just got to haul off. Here's where you hit him. Here's how you do it safely. but you got to haul off and hit them. Cup? Yeah, you kind of cup it and, you know. For the sound effect. But this quickly becomes, like, the thing of legend of, like, people coming back. And, like, you know it was, like, when you're in there and you see her slap somebody, that was a good one. Same point in time. Like, none of the boys are going to come back and be like. Except Big Show. What the fuck? Steph slapped me. It hurt. You know what I mean? And they're not going to like, working with these big, huge guys, that you can't really complain that little Steph hit you and it was terrible and hurt you.

37:44Paul Levesque:And it became also the thing that we would do with each other, like moments in time. Like if you cringed before she hits you, Jericho, they would become comedy fodder for everybody in the locker room. I'll never forget because it was DX and they were holding Jericho. And he's. Steph wound up, but she kind of stayed there for a second to talk some trash before she hit him. And by the time she wound up, he thought she was coming and he went. And then Paul stops me. He's like, no, wait, wait, wait. And calls it out. And he's like, look at his face. Look at his face. And then let her go. So by the time he stopped and relaxed, she slapped the shit at him.

38:27And here I came. Yeah. But it became this thing. So then it was, you know, Steph, slap you.

38:35Paul Levesque:Or, you know, the time she's talking about with Shane, there was like this argument going on with all of us. And I don't remember who she was supposed to. I think she was supposed to slap Shane first or something. And then. No, I wasn't supposed to slap anybody. It was just, I remember specifically, because I was surprised when you told me to slap him. I was like, really? You want me to slap him? and you were like, slap Shane. And then I turn around and I slap Shane and Shane was pissed. I see him look at me like mad and then he goes, why'd you do that? And I said, Hunter told me. Hunter told me to do it.

39:13And he goes, well then you slap him then. And I turn around and I slap. Wait, wait. Just slapping everybody? I think this is where it happens. Yeah, slap Shane. She starts slapping everybody. so now it just becomes a series in the ring oh wait maybe this isn't the one now there's a much longer yeah there's one and we're on the side of the ring but closest to hard cam it just becomes a series of slap him again then him slap him again like she's just turning back and forth slapping us it was like a lucille ball kind of moment i had no idea what was going on but i'm slapping the shit out of everybody it's a funny thing that that time in the business too, I think was just slightly different.

40:00Paul Levesque:And it was so - It was wild. It was so wild west. And it was such uncharted territory. And everybody was having fun. And for most of the people that were in there, they had so much experience and been doing it - And we all trusted each other. Doing it for so long. Like, you know, just seeing that scene made me think of like the times when we would go off the air and Steve would hit, you know Steve would probably hit 30 stunners between all of us because we just keep feeding him for more and what kind of goofy bump we could take off it and having fun just having fun and even like that with the slapping stuff that was like live tv yeah you know and we were just like goofing around and doing it and and it it does make me think sometimes we're like the business has gotten so big and so there's so much sort of in a way on the line of it that you're like I feel like you can't take the same risks.

40:54Paul Levesque:You can't take the same risks. And also sometimes just don't know if we were doing it so much. At that time frame, you know, we was on the road 300 days a year-ish. Right, but also what started it was almost going out of business. Yeah. So, I mean, we were desperate. Right? All bets. Like, we were going for it. and there was no stopping us because we were either going to die or we were going to, you know, blaze a trail. And we were all on fire. Yeah, the stuff Steve was doing, the stuff Rock was doing, the stuff DX was doing. But it had to get there, and I think, you know, there's something interesting in where we were to be able to do it.

41:36Yeah.

41:36Paul Levesque:You know? That's when people talk about the scripted moments of them. Like, so much of that stuff wasn't scripted. Like even that turn you talked about at Armageddon with your dad, like we went over it, kind of went over the beats of it. But like what the exact, what exactly was going to happen was sort of, hey, at some point in time, I'll get the hammer from him. You'll ask me for it because you want to do it. I mean, sorry, your dad will get the hammer. You'll ask him for it because you want to do it. And at a certain point in time, I'll take it from you and then I'll get him and then we'll embrace.

42:12Paul Levesque:but like none of that was like and I'll be here and he'll be there and you'll be here right everything is so laid out and you would just tell me to listen to you yeah and so that's what I did and that's where like that that was one of the things that impressed me so much like even when and is part of the reason sort of how we spend so much time around each other because she was such a sponge for the business so once we did the thing where we were on the same page like our storyline was threaded through so much throughout the show and and you were on both like there was no uh separation of brands at that time so it was like we were on raw and we were on smackdown and it was and then um you'd sort of get the direction you wanted it to go in but then we had to figure out what it was and sort of put it all together and but steph was just such a sponge and she wanted to know like everything.

43:09Paul Levesque:Like even if it was a scene that I was in that she wasn't in, she wanted to be there because she would be like, well, why would you do that? Why would you say it like this? And why would they do that? Well, and he was, he took extra special time to explain everything to me, which I was very, very grateful for. Because you didn't have to do that. No, yeah. But like, and some of it, we were also figuring out the characters together. Yeah. Like what it was and what it could be. And like the, you know, also she would have these like great, she just had great instincts for stuff so even when you would put something out there or you know if i'd be going over something with rock or with foley or whoever it was like we'd be talking about something and then she might not speak up in the moment but she would say after like hey would it be wrong if this happened and like oh it's fucking great yeah like now i go back to them and like hey steph just had an eye what about this right and you could see also talent and very much starting to gravitate towards like, well, what do you think?

44:08And started asking her stuff because she was so good at it and so quickly, like she had that gift. No, seriously, she had that gift of the creative. You still have it and always will. Pat used to say it to me all the time, this business isn't this, it's this. And he would say it all the time, you either feel it or you don't. Most everybody doesn't feel it.

44:32Paul Levesque:They think they do. They feel it when it happens, but they don't feel it the same way they, before when they're talking about it, they don't know exactly what that's going to feel like when it gets there. Most people don't have that. You say that to me all the time. You for sure are one of those people that you just have a feel for it. And it's 99.9 % of the time, the right feel for it, in my opinion. Thanks, baby.

45:04Paul Levesque:but it's it's it's true but that that was a that was just such a crazy magic oh my god it was so much fun time it was magic i remember i don't know if you remember this or not when um description there was one moment and i don't remember like i guess because we were trying to like show that we were the bosses or whatever so we were like sitting on stage a lot or whatever yeah there was one time that we walked out there to go i believe we were going to like the big couch or whatever to sit to watch something it was a chair something and you always made me sit on your lap yeah because it was a chair he's a gentleman smart gentleman but do you remember somebody throwing a baseball oh yeah Yeah, that was Houston.

45:53Yeah. It was Houston. Like craziest. Yeah, people used to. When you know you have heat, did it hit you? Thank God it bounced first. Yeah. But it bounced first and then it hit me in the belly. Yeah. It was thrown from the upper rafters. It's terrifying. Yeah, it was pretty scary. Yeah, it was a crazy point. Because if it hit me in the head from up there, it would have done some more damage.

46:15Paul Levesque:Yeah. I just remember seeing it just out of the side corner of my eye, seeing something coming down and being like, oh shit. But at that time, we had to watch for fans, jump on the railing. All the time. We had, I told you about the dip spit. They would throw, not tax, what would they throw? They'd throw batteries. Yeah. Oh. And bottle caps. In the time before people had phones that could take photos, people had cameras in those cameras. Yeah, it's like, do they come with a pocket full of batteries? No, like double A batteries, right? Because I remember you taught me when I took a bump, I had to roll over face down in case somebody threw something.

46:54Because if I was laying face up selling and. You get hit in the back, you get hit in the head, it's bad. You get hit in the face. It's pretty bad. It's really bad. Yeah. That's why they take the caps off the waters now. Maybe. They're plastic anyway now.

47:07Paul Levesque:Probably. But like even, so I used to boggle my mind of the things that fans would think of. Like I remember we had a, this was Sean and I were in DX and we had a riot in Little Rock, Arkansas and couldn't go there for a long time. And they started by throwing batteries, but as we were walking, going towards the back, like a big fight broke out. We kind of had to fight our way to the back. And as we were getting back there, something hit me. I thought somebody punched me. Boom, hit me right in the face. And I remember thinking like, what the fuck? That was hard as shit. Like, what was that? And looking down and somebody had taken like a paper cup and drank all the drink out of it.

47:46and then like screwed it down.

47:49Paul Levesque:So it was like a big ball of ice inside this paper cup. And it just, I don't know where it came from, but it just boomed right in the eye. And I remember, you know, just thinking like, as we're going back through the curtain, thinking it's really creative. Like, you know what I mean? I wouldn't have thought of that. You know what I mean? And getting in the back, yeah. Well, and we've heard stories about in Puerto Rico, them pulling knives. Oh yeah. Yeah, like that's before, you know, that's a generation before us. But yeah, like, look, I remember as a kid going to the Boston Garden and always seeing this big net up and wondering why, like, why is this a big net?

48:28Paul Levesque:Like, I don't get what the net is for. Because they were trying to prevent people would throw stuff from the upper deck at the ring. And, you know, bottles and all this stuff. So you'd see the net, and there'd be all these bottles in there and all this stuff. Yeah, when we talk about the evolution of the brand, Like it's really come a long way. Our audience has evolved with us, you know? Yeah. Yeah. But anyways, that was the start of our working relationship would then would become more than that, which I've always said is why we have such a successful marriage because we had a dry run on TV. Married and divorced.

49:02Paul Levesque:Married and divorced on TV. We knew what it was like. We got it all out of our system. We all know the feeling. Hunger strikes and you're exhausted. Eating healthy isn't a willpower problem, it's a setup problem. With Factor, I'm hitting my nutrition goals this season without the planning, the grocery runs, or the cooking. Ready in two minutes. Factor shops, preps, cooks, and delivers straight to your door so you have more time for everything you love this spring. Fresh, never frozen, over 100 rotating weekly meals, including globally inspired flavors like Mediterranean and Asian. So there's always something new to look forward to.

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50:27Paul Levesque:and everything was divide in the middle and I want to believe that TV one time you had said and I want my car and I want my this and I want my that And I said, oh, yeah, I gave you half of it. They had taken a car and cut it straight down the middle. Everything 50-50. Yeah. And then Jericho accidentally ran over our dog that you loved that I didn't like, which is so funny because I love dogs so much. But I had to act like I didn't love this bulldog. What was the dog thing? Lucy. Lucy. Lucy. Here's what I remember about Lucy the dog is never worked with animals. But you and Jericho were cutting a promo, and the dog was supposed to have taken a shit.

51:05and uh i'm on the floor laid out like army crawling while they do this promo like this is all hands on deck right i'm army crawling under where they are to put the brownie things that we made in the dog shits yeah underneath the thing and the floor was uneven in the locker room and like i kept putting this one and it kept rolling i was like fuck fuck fuck i gotta hurry up because they're almost done and i'm like trying to get it to stay in like a little dog pile and it wouldn't stay there so funny yeah and then they wouldn't they i think chris put the dog down or something and i was thinking oh he's gonna eat the brownie

51:42yeah because little known fact brownies especially if they have nuts in them mash up to look like poop for anybody i mean we would ever like to try that party trick it's an educational show not just not yeah not just informative

52:01infotainment do either of you remember the exact moment that this chemistry turned and like from on screen to real life maybe stuff i want you to go first sorry

52:19Paul Levesque:so i don't remember an exact moment but it's funny because we've had this conversation a many times like her mom asking her like what's going on with you and triple h and she was like mom nothing he's a talent right yeah and my mom saying the same thing to me like something there more than what's on tv with you and and and vince's daughter and i'm like mom is vince's daughter absolutely not i remember my mom saying one time like because you're not that good of an actor like saying like i can see it and you're not that good of an actor and i was like one thank you two no don't be ridiculous you know what i mean um but i think that was sort of the first time of putting it in your head of like you know i often think it's like the movie scene where the the the movie where the the guy and the girl are into different things and they don't really like they're best friends or something and they don't realize that they're falling for each other, you know, in the movie.

53:20Paul Levesque:And then later on, it turns out they're the right people for each other or whatever. And it's been there the whole time. They were the only people that didn't see it. It's kind of what it seemed like to me is that it was this. Like, yeah, we were spending all this time together, but also I find my, I would find myself like, I gotta go find Steph, run that buyer. You know what I mean? Like clearly once that thing with my mom happened, I sort of think like, sorry, I don't need to go run it by her, but I kind of want to just go find where she is and spend time and sit and talk to her for a little while.

53:56And I would be oh so happy when he would. Oh, so what are we doing tonight? Okay. Yeah.

54:05Paul Levesque:Yeah, so it just became a thing, but I think it was probably a thing. Before we realized it was it. Yeah, before, you know, logically thinking to yourself, like, oh, she's interesting. Like, you're already there with it. I talk about it in my speech a little bit, so I don't want to say too, too much, but I think I'm just so grateful, and I feel like destiny's kind of a hell of a thing. and there was no denying our chemistry i mean i think that's one of the reasons why the angle works so well is because people could feel it right even before we could feel it and realize what was going on we just had this like intense chemistry right off the bat and there was nothing either one of us could do about it just was what it was and it only grew yeah when one of your friends asked you about it early too right so it was me so my mom made the first comment right actually yeah i don't remember with order but it was the night we shot the vegas wedding it was the bachelorette party and mandy was my best friend at the time and she was sitting next to me because she was a part of my real life bridal party that was about to happen yeah but because in our world like as weird as it is, it's like sort of this.

55:35Paul Levesque:It's a bridal bachelorette party, but it's like some of her actual friends. Like my real friends and family, yeah. Real people, and then like May and Moolah and like crazy shit. Which, if you really break down our wedding, was sort of the same thing. Kind of was. Yeah. Yeah, I just remember the food fight at my bridal shower with May and Moolah. Yeah. Cake everywhere. My poor mom, it was still shot at my house. It was shot at my parents' house. yeah yeah but so you know we were just sitting there all day right and then all of a sudden it's time you know Paul arrives you were coming in from a show or something like that and we had been there for a while and he just walked in the door and that was it and I guess I like sat up straight or I must have made a face or something and I'm like oh that that's triple bleach you know and she goes oh she's from Boston she's like oh my god you like him and I looked at her and I was like what no I don't like this we're doing a story and she's like you like him I can tell you like him it was so funny and and I had never really thought about it but that night it was cold out and I was in a short sleeve shirt and he offered me his jacket which I graciously accepted.

56:58No, it's just like being a gentleman, right? It gets cold in the desert. And I remember it smelled so good. I mean... Smelled like stale sweat in the locker room. It smelled like you. And Steve Austin's beer all over it. No, no. It smelled like you. And it was warm. Yeah, but you know, and it takes off from there, right? My new legacy title is an original fully custom designed from the ground up to commemorate my career inside and out of the WWE ring the belt features 907 crystals golden metallic prints a black velvet strap and the center and side plates contain artwork and reference to the McMahon family crest you can get my legacy belt now at WWE shop and fanatics feels like a lifetime ago but also feels like

57:56Paul Levesque:yesterday right yeah it does in some way and then you know you flip forward through all of that to to get to like where we are now and like on saturday night sorry on friday night so there's a lot of shit okay honey yeah it's big weekend we understand on you've got a lot going on on friday night like the girls will be there putting you in and it's like sometimes when i I think about it. Like if somebody was to say, oh, how long ago was that? Like I don't think it's that long ago, but then I go like, the road's going to be 20. 20. That's crazy. Yeah. And, you know, so you start thinking, well, it was way before that, right?

58:39And it's just goes quick. It does. Yeah.

58:45Paul Levesque:I say that the talent in this business all the time, it all seems so like never-ending and big and all this stuff, and it's like blink and it's done. Yeah. blink and you're on the other side going like what happened how did this you know and i say it's a talent all the time about don't don't get so caught up in the minutiae because you'll have these amazing great things happen that you don't think of as being amazing or great in the time and you just you're angry and you're this right more and you're all these things yeah the way i wanted it to you realize you're miserable through all of it and then you get to the end and hopefully you look back and like man that was amazing right yeah but you don't see it somebody said that to me the other day it's like i wish somebody could tell you it's the good old days right but you wouldn't believe it in that moment you wouldn't believe it at the time you know when people talk about the attitude era all the time like we knew business was good yeah but it was just thursday yeah this is the shit we were doing we didn't know you know i meant it was every now and then you'd be doing something really cool and you think wow this is kind of blow people's mind but it wasn't like when even like when we did the dx stuff and and went to wcw or like the stuff with you turned on your dad it wasn't like you thought about it like oh they're gonna this is gonna work you did think about it and go oh my god they're gonna lose your mind when you do this but you didn't think like oh like 25 years from now people are going to be talking about it right yeah you You know, talking about that time frame.

1:00:12You can't think 25 years from now anyway. No, it's not how people are wired to think that way, I don't think. But, you know, I try to say that to talent all the time to enjoy it. Yeah, enjoy the moment. And so that's, at least you asked me how I was feeling. And at first, I very much felt like I didn't deserve it. I mean, like really very much felt I didn't deserve it. I haven't done what our talent have done and endured and sacrificed. and in different ways maybe, but that's how I felt. And it's taken a while, but all these conversations with people remembering these moments, believe it or not, even Bill Apter sent me a Facebook link to an interview he recently did saying all the stuff that I used to do and how I grew up in the business and everything.

1:01:03And it's everybody's support and just not letting me not see it. And now I'm just so grateful and appreciative and accepting and trying, especially at this point in my life, to enjoy every minute, even this podcast, with you, Elise, with my husband, anything I get to do with you. I mean. So let's talk about that. Okay. Uh-oh. I'm going to head out. I'm going to watch. No, because I think. I'm going to watch. Can you dim the light? I want to watch. Sorry. I don't know. I thought I said. No, he appreciated that one. Sorry about that. I mean, this is. Yeah. Viewing audience.

1:02:03Paul Levesque:So, so far we've talked about like you're, you know, your sort of family life and the stuff of us getting together and becoming a character and all that stuff. Obviously, there's all the business side of it. But there's also what I don't think a lot of people give you credit for is the ability as an in-ring performer, bell to bell, like as an in-ring performer. And if you really break it down, especially at that period of time, um you're this is my opinion but you're one of the best female performers in that generation um but on and part of that is the reason why you saw then like all the women were pitching to do angles and storylines with you and it's why you still see it now like you know three quarters of our roster have probably asked me at various points in time, like, do you think Steph would be interested in doing something at WrestleMania or, you know what I mean?

1:03:12I'm like, I don't think so. You can ask her. I highly doubt it. Yeah. Talk about that. Like, what was the first, and I know there was, like, some tag things and stuff, but, like, what was the first big match match you remember? um the first really really big match was me versus Lita with Rock as the referee and that actually was the first women's main event on Raw um and it did like a 7.3 rating which can blow everybody's mind at this point of course Rock was our was our guest referee and of course you were involved and Kurt was involved and the Hardy Boys were involved but It was so much fun.

1:03:56But I remember putting that match together and really going back to learning how to take a bump because my dad and my brother did not want me to wrestle. And, you know, I kept saying to them, like, I have to learn how to take a bump because I have so much heat at some point. I've got to get bumped around. Like, I at least have to know how to take a punch or whatever, you know. and finally under that you know sort of logic I was allowed to train and it was Tom Pritchard who trained me and it was you know an incredible experience and it was it was hard right and it was not the same type of techniques that we have now and how we train our talent and how it's done.

1:04:46It was more the old school style of, okay, throw yourself down backwards and take a bump. Like, okay, wham. And what you don't realize is typically you hit your head when you do that. Yeah. This is the match with Lita. This is my first really big match where I actually wrestled. It was so much fun. Oh my God. This is so much fun.

1:05:19oh oh slap the shit out of lita okay oh did it again but see how i'm like tugging those those are my working slaps

1:05:34yeah she beat me for the title because of the rock i mean come on it's bullshit still bullshit pretty much how had you gotten the title i beat jacqueline oh yeah so jacqueline was was the champ but really because tory pock came in and gave her a ddt um i did nothing in that match but run away and then you guys told me to get in and what to do this was i remember that now I mean and I so appreciate the accolades but I think you are a bit biased in this regard so this is your first match ever yeah well like first singles full match I mean when you break that down

1:06:24Paul Levesque:to what's going on here and all of the things that are that are taking place in the moments

1:06:35this was the move that paul was the most scared of me taking yeah look at the bump leader took oh oh get over here hardy boys i mean it's so fun and exciting pure chaos it was chaos absolute chaos you what i remember i had that shirt too i liked that one someone gave it to me

1:07:05Paul Levesque:oh the one i had on yeah

1:07:15oh incoming hey rock you're the referee that's messed up

1:07:27yeah it's so fun

1:07:31oh no Kurt what did you do

1:07:38oh see again dirty ref

1:07:46oh I had to take a spine bust now he puts me in like come on now such cheating

1:08:02Oh. Nikki.

1:08:09So much fun. How can you be the bad guy there? So much cheating. Right? This is what I'm saying. Kurt and I were just trying to be helpful. Right? And then all these people run in, and the referee gets involved. The referee put his hands on me. I know. Yeah, you were just swinging the title trying to give it back to him. Right. Here you go. Here, take this. Take this, right? Someone else was attempting to cheat. But so like at that time, you wrestle Lita, then you have the big match with Trish, right? Yep, big angle with Trish. So much fun. Well, we relived this recently, which was so much fun.

1:08:49We watched our matches back, and we talked about how green we were, and we had the first big match. It was No Way Out, I think, in Vegas. And then, like, it was like the next night or something on Raw, we were in a mixed tag, and we thought we were pros now. And we knew exactly what to do because our match was successful, this highly orchestrated choreographed match that was, like, all of the bells and whistles were carefully added. So we now believe we can do this. and we stunk the joint out. I mean, it was bad, like really bad. Who was in the tag? I think, I don't think it was the one with my dad and Regal in the slot bucket, but it could have been.

1:09:38It could have been in Phoenix. I mean, you and Trish was at Thomas and Mac, right? Yeah, Trish and I were Thomas and Mac, so it might make sense then in Phoenix. The hay, the animals? No, no, that was Oak City. Kansas City Kansas City the barn so then you had some other and that's my thing and then yeah Sable was a big match big stuff with Sable oh yeah that's where it happened thank God for the payoff of the bucket

1:10:12Paul Levesque:well at least you had Vince to blame that there is this one we watched it back with yours there's this one woman my dad honestly starts to laugh like what are they even doing We had this horrible like missed spot. We tried to cover it up. It was so bad. It's really bad. And that was always my biggest fear is that I was going to embarrass the business. And that's why matches to me are like sacred pinnacle. And it's funny because a lot of our talent would say to me the opposite, right? Like the promos are what make them the most nervous and the physicality is what they're the most comfortable doing.

1:10:48And I'm the opposite.

1:10:49Paul Levesque:But you were doing the promos all the time. Yeah. You know, for the average talent, like I remember when I came here, when I very first got here, probably cut four promos in my life. Yeah. When I first came to this company, like a couple for WCW prior to that, you know, just working on the indies and cut promos. No one did promos then. You just. Yeah. You were just on the show and you just wrestled. And then, you know, that was it. And, you know, the talking was a completely different skill set. Skill set, yeah. And, you know, you had to get used to it. Practice makes perfect, right? Yeah. The more you do it, the better you get.

1:11:27Yeah. And then, you know, sometimes. But that was me with matches. I had what? Like 10 matches total, maybe? That's the thing. So the things you were experienced at were the things with promos and the things that you were inexperienced at were the actual matches and stuff, but you crushed them. You had the big one with Brie Bella. Yes, at SummerSlam. At SummerSlam, which I remember going really, really well. That was a good one. And then? And what was so cool, and I, sorry, Lisa and I told that, I told this story recently, I forget when, but during that match, it had been 11 years since I had been in the ring, and the audience started chanting, you still got it.

1:12:10and that was so cool and then even cooler was backstage here I am now kind of like you know just waiting and and I hear three little voices you still got it as they're walking towards me down the hallway and there were my baby girls and they got to see me perform like that's the It's so magical. It's just hard to put into words. Yeah, I think about that sometimes. When you were, and I were talking, this is last week, week before something, and you were talking about your speech and talking about growing up in the business and stuff, and it made me think about Aurora coming to the shows and sitting backstage.

1:12:56For every show. Playing patty cake with Big Show or something like that. before I would have to tell, okay, Mr. Big Show and I are going to go pretend to fight now. We're going to push each other down. Wasn't she the one who came up with that description? Who pushed you down? Daddy, who's going to push you down tonight? Isn't that cute? I thought that was the cutest thing. That's awesome. And I've told this story before, too, but I remember because the only way we could ever really be together was if I went on the road with you because you were a full-time talent at the time. and I'd often come on the road with Aurora like Friday, Saturday, Sunday.

1:13:32We'd do Raw Monday and then you'd fly home. I'd do SmackDown Tuesday and then I'd bring her home. But I remember it was a live event in Waco, Texas and Aurora was sitting on my shoulders and we were watching. It was you and Sean DX at that time, just the two of you against, I can't really remember who, and they were getting the heat on Sean and I could feel her like start to get like really, really nervous and excited. And then here he is, you know, making the slow crawl over to, you know, Triple H to save the day. And then, you know, the bad guys make the tag first and I can feel her getting nervous.

1:14:14And then in the last minute desperation, Sean gets the tag and then here comes daddy and she is going nuts on my shoulders. and she just like reacted in all the right places. She was young. She was two. I mean, she was a baby. And then you were so excited coming back from the ring and you just kind of, you know, forgot that we weren't going to show our kids off. And you take, you were so excited. He was so excited. And he comes over and he takes her off of my shoulders and parades her around the arena. and people were going nuts and they were cheering and it was amazing and i remember the look in aurora's eyes as you handed her back to me and i was like oh no she was just bit by the bug in that very moment yeah yeah road to gold is the latest WWE exclusive from Fanatics Casino, bringing WrestleMania thrills right to your fingertips.

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1:16:19With Club WWE, you get early access to tickets, exclusive merch drops, rewards, members-only content, and a community built for the WWE universe. Join the waitlist now at WWE.com slash Club WWE. that's wwe.com slash c-l-u-b-w-w-e for the opportunity to become a founding member and be the first to access everything club wwe get in early and join the wait list now so let's talk about ronda okay yeah we'll talk talk about that match um so that's that's a full right that's a full year or is it more it was more when she does wrestlemania years because it was levi's right um when we when we did the first angle and that was with rock and then he i slapped rock pretty good that was a really hard slap and it was one of my all-time hardest slaps i think and then he for a shoot and then he says well i'm not going to hit a woman but I know somebody who would.

1:17:32And the crowd knew she was coming. And I forget what they were chanting at me, like, you're going to die or something. Rhonda's going to kill you. Rhonda's going to kill you. Rhonda's going to kill you. Even before he looked over at her, it was so great. Yeah. And it was so fun to work with her and to get to work because I was a big fan of Rhonda, always have been, and used to love to watch her fight. and you know I read her book and it made a big impact on me what she's lived through and you know her her dad committed suicide when she was young um she didn't speak her first words till she was like four and ironically her first word was like an attempt at Hulk Hogan because she wanted this doll um and um then she kind of found herself in sports and jujitsu and her mom is a, I believe a gold medalist.

1:18:32She's in, she's a, um, in judo and she started to train Ronda and then Ronda was shipped off. And I mean, willingly, I don't mean to say that in a negative way because she wanted to train for the Olympics and that's a huge commitment. So here she is in, I think, Massachusetts and she's away from her family. She's lost her dad who meant everything in the world to her and she's alone training in judo really tough training you know to make it to the olympics and sort of everything that happens in between and you know my heart just always is with her because she's so strong in many many ways you know mentally and physically and then also i think she has broken pieces too as we all do right and um so I'm a big fan of hers and she was the one who requested the match so it was like a couple years later originally she was going to come in sooner but then there was a movie or I don't know something happened and then you sign her and Rhonda was the one who said we need to finish the story with Steph so she's the reason I ever had a WrestleMania match and you know, it was her first match.

1:19:46And so we had to really train and really put it together. And, um, and it was stiff,

1:19:57but stiff.

1:19:58Paul Levesque:You talk about like, so we just talked a few minutes ago about Steph having her first match with Lita TV, all that stuff and all the pressure of it. Rhonda is going to have her first match ever. WrestleMania, right? this woman is like legitimately one of the baddest women on the planet, if not the right, like she is physical on every single level. And one, we got to teach her kind of how to do this and then put this match together. And Steph is on the receiving end of 90 % of it. You know, I felt bad for her. She would come home. It would look like she was shot with a buckshot or something. She just bruises all over her from Rhonda just lighting her up, you know.

1:20:44I think I've told the story before. She's in the office sitting at the table and like rolls up her sleeve and her elbows are just like black and she's bruised. That's my own fault though because I take bumps like that. But like you're covered and like you're like, yeah, are there any ice packs in here? Like just to like take a meeting, like put your arms down. Paul would tease me. He told me I was like DDP. I said I would always be packed in ice.

1:21:04Paul Levesque:Oh, my God. She's like ice head to toe ice. Well, I mean, it was a lot, you know. And I was training like three a days because I'd never trained like that ever. You know, cardio, strength and conditioning, and in the ring. I was going to say, and then in the ring, and then additional to that, and then training with Rhonda in the ring. Yeah, yeah. You know, so like on the weekends, we would go to the warehouse or whatever to get with Rhonda or wherever we were to train with her. And, you know, we would bring in some other people to take bumps and do stuff. But at a certain point in time, they have to, like, do this stuff with each other.

1:21:43Yeah. You know, and it's physical enough.

1:21:46Paul Levesque:When you haven't done this in a while, it's physical enough trying to get back in there and hit the ropes and take bumps and do all this stuff. And you're making mistakes and trying not to get hurt. But then when you're doing it with somebody that will also as, you know, sort of zero idea what they're doing to some degree, it's really tough. Yeah. It was Dakota Kai and Lacey Evans. Yeah. They were primarily the ones who helped. They helped a lot. Yeah. And Sarah Amato. Yeah. And yeah, I remember because Rhonda threw her clotheslines high. one time I got I got busted in the mouth it was bleeding a little bit and we were trying to decide if we wanted to try to keep that in the match and I was like I will absolutely lose consciousness but so Dakota one day threw like what felt like a hundred clotheslines at me Rhonda wasn't there that day and she just kept throwing high clotheslines so I could learn how to take it and how to protect myself you know So, yeah, I wanted to mention them because they helped me so much.

1:22:57But, again, that match was, you know, you break down that WrestleMania.

1:23:06Paul Levesque:That was like an incredible match. That's, again, one of the ones that you put on your list of like all these incredible matches you did. And Ronda was phenomenal. You were phenomenal. Kurt was phenomenal. Everybody just did their thing. You were phenomenal. Well, but everybody did their thing and did their piece. You're ripped.

1:23:30I'm going to choke you out, Ronda Rousey.

1:23:37Oh, my God. Being the heel in this match was so fun. Like pie facing Ronda. And then the ref like, no, you can't do anything. And Ronda being like, what? What do you mean? I can't just go beat her up? Yeah.

1:23:53they were awesome well and they were ronda's talent was so surprising yeah no this is not quite the finish yet but i haven't seen this since we did it really i'm

1:24:06Paul Levesque:just remembering on this because i think i used kurt here to get i used kurt to get ronda off you here. Oh, that's right. Look at you, baby. Oh, poor Rhonda. Good thing she's tough. I'm pretty sure one of your girls just popped up standing there. Yeah, they're in the front row. Yeah, yelling.

1:24:32Oh.

1:24:42This is so much fun. Oh. Ads. Brought to you by Slim Jim.

1:24:57YouTube Premium. I gotta get it. I cannot believe you don't have YouTube Premium. I know.

1:25:06Like, Joe.

1:25:07Paul Levesque:I'm making money for the company, right? Oh, I like that. Oh, yeah. She's going to break it. Nope. No, Rhonda. Please, no, Rhonda. Don't break it. Don't break. Don't break my arm. I've seen what you do.

1:25:27Oh, no, no, no, no. I can hang on. I can hang on. Oh, shit. Don't. No. Please. Oh, my God. Don't do it. Oh.

1:25:46that's one of my favorite you know certain mania moments that stick out but that's that's one of my favorite nights because just because being able to do that with you in the entrance and you doing the water spit and the like just the whole thing was just so surreal cool like when you get to the end And at that point, I'm doing stuff like, what, once a year maybe or something like that, and it's brutal. But they're all just like these little moments that you savor. So to think that I would have that time that late in my career to like, oh, I get to go out there with you and do all that cool stuff and all that fun stuff.

1:26:29And for me, it's funny.

1:26:32Paul Levesque:I remember that day thinking at one point in time, I don't remember where we were in the ring, but you were in there doing something with Rhonda. And I remember thinking like, oh, shit, like I can't. Like I was watching from the floor or wherever I was, but I'm thinking like a big smile on my face watching this in the Toronto thing. Oh, shit, I can't. You know what I mean? I got to cut away to me, and I'm like over there like a fan enjoying the spot. you know what I mean uh because it was just so much fun and I was so I almost like my performance aspect I didn't even like think about it because it was just I was just so Kurt and I were both like yeah it's like it's not about us it's like about them so like let's just go like let's just make our parts be the glue a little bit so just hold the pieces together as long as we get that part done like everything else they do will be off the chart and it was like you know watching watching kids go out there and kill it you know it was so fun it was so fun again such an honor and a privilege yeah and you took an ass whipping to get there i did so the funniest thing is when i came back up to gorilla taker was there and he looked like he felt so sorry for me and and I was like hey how you doing and he's like he just hugged me yeah there was very little um not live round in the Ronda Rousey yeah not live rounds yeah yeah again safe but stiff yeah very safe it was she was easy to do stuff with and and amazing especially considering she had done it but like yeah but certainly was in there snug i learned what all those definitions took it like a chance otherwise i mean pretty much like trish and i were kicked the the crap out of each other actually um but that was really i think the only super physical match i had had you know until ronda like everybody else was pretty like talented workers and not that ronda wasn't but she was just learning we used to say to me all the time like it would be amazing like some of the the biggest strongest guys that the stuff looked the most intense yeah from like never touched you never touched me yeah yeah it was amazing up baldo crushed definitely squished me in the corner there's only there's only there's No way to do that running freight train in the corner without doing it.

1:29:22And I was told, put your arms out in front of you a little bit and it'll absorb the flow. And here comes A train, all what?

1:29:31Paul Levesque:He was probably like 350 at the time. Yeah, and he's what, 6 '7", 6 '8"? Yeah. Yeah. Here we go. I mean, in all fairness, if you took his head off, he'd probably only be like 302.

1:29:49but yeah I mean it's a it's physical yeah it's physical it is it's fun so fun it's the greatest business in the world how could anybody want to do anything different honestly well I don't know how to wrap it up so that's where we're going I guess yeah you get to the end but like to me i know we started off by saying you know you and the and the moment of going in the hall of fame like i can't i can't you know i mean obviously i could make a list of some people but like there's very few people that i could look at and say deserve it more like truly and i don't say that because you're my wife i don't say that because it's you.

1:30:36I say that because of your accomplishments and, and what we've done and, you know, the things you've accomplished and especially the stuff that you've accomplished that people don't even see the, the,

1:31:08people come along and participate in the business people come along and add to the business very few people change the business there's still

1:31:25Jesus Christ I can't get it through any Hall of Fame mine or yours without blubber gotta get my estrogen checked again

1:31:38you put the culture in what we do

1:31:43it didn't exist before that it was just a fucking wild west it's just what the business was and then you came in and sort of changed it all of a sudden there was a different take on it a different perspective of it it wasn't the it wasn't that wild west business anymore all of a sudden it was a family i don't know that it was a family before that. I think it was a business before that. You had people on the road that you worked with that were like your family, but it was very much a business treated that way, hard cutthroat, all those things. And then you changed it over time. You made the changes internally.

1:32:38You made the changes on the road. You were the person that listened. You were the person that knew everybody's families and kids and the crew. And, you know, how many times your dad and I joke with you leaving the building about, Jesus, we've got to wait for Steph for 45 minutes because she's got to talk to every single person on this crew and ask them about their families. And we'd be like, come on, we've got to go.

1:33:02Paul Levesque:We've got to be in a drive six hours or whatever it is, right? Like, or get on a plane and we've got to do this again tomorrow and you guys have to be up in the morning to write and, you know, all that stuff. but you changed that culture and you still see it today. There's a component of it that no matter what, you will hear people say it that we're here. And some of the people that are newer don't get it. But anybody that was here through that period of time, all the way through to when you left the office, that, man, Steph was the heart and soul. Steph was the heart and soul. Steph was the heart and soul.

1:33:40You hear it all the time. I still hear it. Everybody still asks. People light up when they see you, when you come to the buildings and you're at the arena and I see people later in the day and they just come over to me and they're like, oh my God, I saw Steph earlier. And they're just so excited and happy. And if none of the other things were there, but that was there, then you changed the business. So how could you not be in the Hall of Fame?

1:34:13I think you have a talent for wrapping things up in the biggest way possible. Thank you. Thank you. Well, and I'll just say. Don't ruin it now if that was good. That was solid. I don't know. I'm not trying to put it over. But if that was good, just call it a day. Let's get the fuck out of here. Because I got to pee really bad. One last thing. One last thing, because it takes everybody to make it happen. You know, it really, really does. It takes every single person and every single job. Well, I believe it to be true. Heart and soul. Thank you.

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