The New Day On Dealing With Backstage Politics, How They Decide Who Wrestles A Match
Recently on The New Day: Feel The Power, WWE Superstars Big E, Kofi Kingston, and Xavier Woods welcomed The USOs to the show. Aside from once again putting over Cesaro, Woods talked about dealing with backstage politics in WWE.
Woods, who recently recalled his first experience with alcohol on the podcast, claimed that a lot of backstage politics is the office seeing who has the moxie and verbal skills to snap back.
"I feel like when you really look at [backstage politics], a lot of it is getting that tough skin, so you know you can bite back because cutting promos is how we sell [pro] wrestling." Woods explained, "so if you can't do it in the back, then they don't think that you can do it out there."
According to Kingston, the trio had a difficult time figuring out who would be in the Hell In A Cell match versus The Usos because all three members of The New Day wanted to be in the match.
"We had to figure it out, like, and I feel like we were putting it off," Kingston said. "Like, we talked about it in the car. We joked about it. We're in this Hell In A Cell match. We had to figure out which two were going to wrestle [Usos] and we had this rivalry going and all of us wanted to be in the match. This is Hell In A Cell, dude."
Apparently, Kingston volunteered to sit the match out because The USOs, Woods, and Big E all came up together.
"I always thought it would be really cool to, like, be on the main roster with the people who [I] came up with. Do you know what I'm saying? Like, that's the ultimate. You sweated in the gym together. You were shooting in the gym together and you went through the ranks together. And you came to the big leagues and now you're wrestling in this big match. Do you know what I'm saying? And you all appreciate the journey and the struggle because you've been on that same journey." Kingston continued, "so for me, it was like, 'y'all need to be the ones in this match because – do you know what I mean – you guys grinded. Do you know what I'm saying? And I was just happy to be out there and watch. It's always a selfless thing with us anyways."
Also during the podcast, Woods explained The New Day's usual process for deciding who is in a given match. The brains of The New Day went on to share that the faction has names for each of their two-man tag team combinations.
"When we have a situation like that, we always say, 'okay, first, everybody put in your reasons – selfish reasons – for why you want to be in the match. And then, we talk about those reasons. And then, we talk about why everyone else should be in the match. And then, we all have a big discussion about that." Woods divulged, "so a lot of times, the rotation is, whoever wasn't in gets rotated out, so like if it's E and Kof, next it will be me and E, and then, it'll be me and Kof. And then, Kof and E. Yeah, me and Kof are Speed Force. And then, Kof and E is Pops & Powers. And then, me and E are Muscle Bomb. Yes, E's the muscle, Kof is the speed, and I'm the hybrid, so I'll kind of adjust to whoever."
Click here to check out the podcast or listen to it via the embedded player below. If you use any of the quotes from this article, please credit Talk Is Jericho with an H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
width="100%">