WWE Taking New Approach To Signing Wrestlers
A new report has given insight into what WWE is looking for when scouting new wrestlers.
According to Fightful Select, WWE plans to hold tryouts during the week of SummerSlam.
Having wrestlers try out to join the WWE roster is nothing new, as it’s something the company does several times a year. There is also a website that WWE has, where interested parties can apply to join the roster.
The report from Fightful noted that multiple experienced independent pro wrestlers have been contacted to attend the upcoming WWE tryouts.
Additionally, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter’s Dave Meltzer reports that the upcoming WWE tryouts “will be a mix of Division I athletes, models, independent wrestlers and they are inviting some people in their early 30s.”
That’s a shift from what WWE has done in the past because while they will always focus on Division 1 college athletes in their early to mid-20s, they are now looking at a wider range of candidates. By looking at experienced independent wrestlers and older athletes in their 30s, it shows that WWE is more open-minded about who they might sign.
Considering that WWE is producing the Evolve streaming show featuring independent wrestlers and WWE ID talents, in addition to their talent on Raw, SmackDown and NXT, it’s no surprise that is going to continue adding talent to its rich roster.
Triple H Makes WWE Talent Feel Important
As WWE’s Chief Content Officer, Hall of Famer Paul “Triple H” Levesque oversees the talent roster while also leading the creative team to come up with the best storylines possible for WWE programming.
AJ Styles is a future Hall of Famer who spoke in the past about the way Triple H runs WWE in a way that makes everybody feel important.
“I really believe that Triple H looks at our talent and goes, ‘Let’s get them better or let’s find ways to bring out the best in them rather than show them the worst.’ A lot of those guys and girls, when they get released from WWE, it crushes them. I never understood why we want to do something like that rather than just like, hey, let’s send them back to NXT. They just need a little bit more work or something like that, but being released, it’ll crush you.”
“I don’t want to see people’s lives ruined because of a job. At the end of the day, it’s just a job, but still, it’s something they’ve worked for their whole life and then when you’re told you’re not good enough, man, it sucks. It’s not the way it is these days. Now with Triple H in charge, I think he’s doing a great job of making everyone feel important.”
WWE SummerSlam takes place on Saturday, August 2nd, and Sunday, August 3rd, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and it will be one of the biggest events of the year.