Bully Ray Wants To See Some Vulnerability From This WWE NXT Star
WWE legend Bully Ray has pointed out a few issues from the recent segment involving Trick Williams and Ethan Page on "WWE NXT," ahead of their match at Halloween Havoc.
On the recent "NXT," Page questioned if his opponent was capable of withstanding pain when the two face each other in a Devil's Playground match. Bully Ray, while analyzing the segment on "Busted Open," urged Williams to show more vulnerability on screen.
"Not everybody needs to look strong all the time. A great babyface will show vulnerability," Ray said.
He then gave the example of his friend and fellow "Busted Open" panelist Tommy Dreamer as someone who knew how to be vulnerable despite being a babyface. Ray believes that fans will react positively to a wrestler if they show their vulnerability.
"When you endear yourself to others, they want to help you, they want to like you, they want to love you. If I see Trick Williams just standing there, and basically [stating], 'I'm rubber, you're glue whatever you say bounces off of me and sticks to you.' Like, there's no reaction."
The tag team legend bemoaned the lack of reaction in present-day pro wrestling, pointing out recent instances involving Britt Baker and Kamille, Queen Aminata, as well as Jakara Jackson and Lash Legend as examples of wrestlers not reacting in the ring.
Ray on Williams using his words in a better way
Bully Ray further delved into the Trick Williams promo, asserting that wrestlers need not always have to physically intimidate their opponents, and just their words could send out a message.
"When you're cutting a promo, I want you to be able to verbally backdown your opponent. Use your words to make them take a step backwards. You don't have to ball up your fists, you don't have to get physical. Just your words alone make them take a step backwards, either out of pure fear or self-doubt," said Ray.
He stated that a great example of a character growing in the eyes of fans was the "Rocky" movie, where the lead character admitted he was afraid, which he feels Williams could have tapped into. Ray added that he wanted Williams to question himself heading into his match with Ethan Page at Halloween Havoc on October 27.
"I wanted to see a little bit of self-doubt. I wanted Ethan to be in Trick's head. I want Trick going into Halloween Havoc, like, 'You know what, I'm not physically behind the 8 ball, but I'm mentally, damn, you put me behind one with that promo."
Ray and Tommy Dreamer also felt that the segment was long and drawn out, with the latter adding that Page — the heel — should have bloodied Williams during the segment.