Ludwig Kaiser Reflects On Lucky WWE Break

WWE's Ludwig Kaiser has recalled his journey to WWE and how he was handpicked to be a part of the promotion.

Kaiser recently spoke on "Insight" about joining WWE and how his father, wrestler Axel Dieter, had a connection with William Regal that helped him. The "WWE Raw" star revealed he was signed by WWE despite being unable to participate in a tryout.

"The story I've heard is that WWE was looking for a German wrestler and scheduled a tour through Germany to scout talent, visiting various wrestling schools. Apparently, Mr. William Regal — whom I will always be grateful for — heard my name on the list. He knew my dad, saw my picture, and after reviewing everything, he pointed at me and said, 'Cancel the tour, we'll take him.' I was one of the guys who never had to do a tryout," he said. "I was supposed to, but two or three weeks before it, I blew my knee out. I'm not sure if I'm supposed to say that, or if I've ever said that before, but yeah, I got injured and had to cancel the tryout. So obviously, at that moment, I thought, 'Oh my god, this is over.'"

Kaiser added that his ultimate goal in pro wrestling was never to be a part of WWE but to make his father proud. However, after getting the chance to be a part of WWE, he was hellbent on making it work. He credited Paul "Triple H" Levesque for his WWE career, claiming that the WWE Chief Content Officer's vision of bringing in stars from Europe helped the likes of him, Gunther, and Pete Dunne eventually make their way to WWE.

"Without Hunter, without men like William Regal, Dave Taylor, Robbie Brookside, and Fit Finlay — all those guys who paved the way for European talent ... I'll always be grateful for that, definitely," he said.

The German star joined WWE in 2017, featuring in "NXT" and "NXT UK" before joining the main roster in 2022.