FKA Enzo Amore Reflects On The Beginnings Of WWE NXT

Enzo Amore has recalled his early days in "WWE NXT," and how the late Dusty Rhodes played a role in his debut.

Amore recently spoke to former WCW star Marcus Buff Bagwell about his first match on "NXT," which came against Mason Ryan.

"My first match was really a squash match for Mason Ryan on TV, 'NXT' TV taping," recalled Amore.

The former WWE star stated that John Cena appeared on "NXT" television to bring the audience in, as the show didn't have many big-name stars. He revealed that when he debuted for WWE, the promotion had recently signed stars like Pac, known as Neville in WWE, and Sami Zayn. At that time, the likes of Seth Rollins, Big E, Jon Moxley, and Roman Reigns were the prominent players on the brand but weren't household names, which is why they had brought stars like Cena to "NXT."

Amore stated that he was told that the late Dusty Rhodes, the brand's booker, had vouched for him to cut a promo ahead of the squash match.

"Dusty Rhodes apparently stood up [during the creative meeting] and said, 'Give him a microphone and let him be the guy to go out there and get you up.' Apparently, there was discussion as to whether or not I was ready 'cause I never had a match, and Dusty was like, 'Why does he need to be ready? He's going against Mason Ryan. Mason Ryan is 6-foot 8-inches, 300 pounds. If Enzo doesn't want to cooperate, what's he going to do? Mason's probably going to squash him anyway, right?'" he said.

Enzo Amore claimed that following his debut, he got an ovation from the locker room, explaining why his peers felt the need to cheer him on.

"John Cena was backstage. When I came out, all the boys stood up to clap for me 'cause I debuted, they were standing up to put me over," said Amore. "All the boys knew that I show up to work at 5 a.m. every day and I get kicked out of the building and I've never had a match and I'm getting this debut spot. So, the boys, in like a moment of like f**k you to the system, stood up, like, almost like a f**k you to the coach at the time, 'cause he didn't want me to wrestle. He never gave me a match."

Amore revealed that the coach in question was Bill DeMott, who later resigned from his coaching position in WWE. Despite the tough time he had under DeMott, the former WWE star says he holds no grudges against him as he believes that the hardship he faced made him the person he is today.

"I have nothing but good things to say about the hell I went through under Bill DeMott because it made me the man I am. I don't complain about that sh*t. So it should be tough. It should always be tough if you want to make it to the top," declared Amore.

Enzo was eventually called up to the main roster in 2016 but was let go by the promotion two years later.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit the original source with a H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.