Karrion Kross Outlines Vital Lesson For Young Talent
Karrion Kross has important advice for wrestlers who aspire to make it to WWE.
Karrion Kross made his WWE debut in 2020 after spending over five years working on the independent scene. The star spent his time on the indies learning about al aspects of the wrestling business, with one lesson standing out above the others.
During an appearance on the DeFalco Files podcast, Kross explained that for young stars wanting to make it to a major promotion, it’s essential to learn how to work in front of TV cameras. While it might not be at the forefront of many, he says it’s a “whole other world.”
“They (independent talent) have no idea how to work TV or cameras. That’s a whole other world that never even occurs to people. You can go out there and learn how to wrestle, but learning how to work television so you know where your cameras are and you have an idea of where the truck is gonna be on the cuts. For me personally, when I’m out there in the ring in WWE, my mind is also in the truck.
“I know that sounds crazy, but I know in my mind how long a camera shot’s going to be held before they transition. So I know if I want them to catch something, I’m working towards those cameras. Some people have a different philosophy of like, ‘Well, they’ll just shoot me. I’ll go wherever I want.’ I don’t personally work that way. I’m working towards the cameras I know that are going to pick me up, and I know when they’re switching and changing.
“So that was what I wanted to learn before I even went to WWE. I remember Joe (DeFalco) actually told me this. I don’t know if you remember this, but I asked him frequently. I would check in with him every three to six months approximately. I would just ask him what he wants me to work on next because it’s a school and it’s a show. I really didn’t feel like I had any sort of business really asking for more. I saw how that went when other guys did that it was it was disastrous, like it was just a false sense of entitlement and so I knew that other people had to critique my work and I had to be open to that. I couldn’t be sensitive about it.”
As well as being able to wrestle in a TV-style, Kross also made sure he was prepared to do anything asked of him.
“He would always tell me what to work on. One of the things he said to me was , before you go to WWE, you need to feel like if they ask you to do literally anything, you should be able to confidently do it. So if they on the spot tell you to cut a 60-second promo on cabbage, you need to be able to do that. Or if they ask you, not likely, but if they ask you to work an Iron Man match, are you going to be able to do that? Are you going to be able to just get in the ring on the fly and be able to do that? Or a 60-second or a 30, are you going to be able to put your ego aside and get squashed? If you’re not going to be able to do that, I wouldn’t suggest going and getting a job like all these things are scenarios. But you should be you should have all of this in practice and you should be able to confidently be able to step into those positions. That was kind of how I just approached my training. It was around things like that.”
Karrion Kross Names Potential WWE WrestleMania 41 Opponent
Karrion Kross hopes to compete against Sami Zayn at WrestleMania 41. The star has been trying to get into Zayn’s head in recent months, and hopes that the pair are able to meet in the ring on The Grandest Stage Of Them All.
However, Sami Zayn is out of action indefinitely after suffering a brutal assault at the hands of Kevin Owens. While Kross wants him at WrestleMania, it seems Zayn will once again be going after his former best friend.
H/T to Fightful for the above transcription.