WWE Global Ambassador Titus O'Neil Details Start Of Pro Wrestling Journey

Titus O'Neil has long credited his good friend and former WWE Champion Dave "The Animal" Bautista as the spark that ignited his professional wrestling pursuit. During a recent interview with "The Pivot Podcast," O'Neil opened up about the events that followed Bautista's initial push, beginning with a peek inside the old FCW training center, which enclosed WWE's developmental talents.

Coming off a recent divorce, O'Neil initially set out for a new job as an assistant defensive line football coach in Florida in 2009. Two weeks before his meeting with the head coach, however, O'Neil noticed the FCW training center — which Bautista had previously told him about — across the street while he was out to buy a pair of dress shoes. From there, O'Neil finally built up the courage to walk in and approach promotion-runners Dusty Rhodes and Steve Keirn.

"I walk in this back door and it clearly says 'WWE and FCW Talent Only.' I'm like, I'm big, who gonna fight me? I can't wrestle, but I can fight. I go in the back door and guys are working out in the ring. I didn't know until after I spoke to Norman Smiley that they had a TV show that night. So I go home, I get my kids, ask them if they want to go to a wrestling show. They asked me at that point is Uncle Dave wrestling. I say 'No, this is kind of where Dave would go if he was getting rehab or people that are developmental.' They were two and four at the time.

"We go back. We watch the show," O'Neil continued. "I had a lot of reservations as to whether or not I wanted to do it, but I grew up watching it. I look over at Titus, who's my youngest, and I was like 'Do you like this?' He shook his head 'yes' and I looked over at TJ and I said 'Do you think daddy can do this?' He looked at me and he said 'Dad, you can do anything.'"

After receiving the approval of his sons, O'Neil later received a phone call from WWE's Executive Vice President of Talent Relations at the time, John Laurinaitis, on the ride home from the FCW event. On it, Laurinaitis informed O'Neil that he, Rhodes, and Keirn had collaboratively decided to offer him a three-day tryout, which included full pay.

"At this point, I ain't got no job, I just got divorced, and I'm going to Florida on that Monday," O'Neil recalled. "This happened on a Thursday. I'm going to Florida on that Monday to speak with the head coach about being an assistant defensive line coach. Laurinaitis said 'We're going to give you a tryout. We'll pay you X amount of three days, see if you like it, see if we like you, and go from there.' 

"I go in, he say 'You're in shape, right?' I said 'I've never wrestled before, but I work out.' I felt like I was in decent shape. That Friday, I work out in the morning, I'm driving home to go get my boys from daycare, and get a call 'Hey, [this is] John Laurinaitis calling you back. The guys say they love your work ethic, I think they see some potential there. We're going to sign you.'"

Along with O'Neil's WWE contract offer, Laurinaitis also assured that he'd be paid the sum of all three tryout days. In the days following, O'Neil flew out to Pittsburgh for his physical examination, which he passed, and subsequently signed his contract with the company. Finally, he reported back to Florida Championship Wrestling to begin his official in-ring training.

In November 2009, O'Neil made his in-ring debut against Lennox McEnroe. Fast forward 15 years, he is now a Global Ambassador for WWE, with a tag team title reign and a WWE Hall of Fame Warrior Award to his name.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Pivot Podcast with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.