Matt Riddle Warns MMA Fighters That Coming to WWE Won’t Be Easy
In an interview with CBS Sports, Matt Riddle spoke about MMA fighters hinting at a possible transition to WWE, warning them that wrestling is not as easy as they may think. Colby Covington, Henry Cejudo, Amanda Nunes and Paige VanZant have all suggested possible moves to wrestling in the past. Here are highlights:
On MMA fighters wanting to make the jump to pro wrestling: “I think, if you’re a talented athlete and have charisma, you can totally make the jump to pro wrestling. At the same time, wrestling is one of those things that does not come easy. The fans, just like MMA fans, they can be brutal at times. If you don’t bring it or you mess up or you’re not doing things right, they’re going to be cold. Those guys all have a good amount of charisma, they have a good amount of star power, they’re amazing athletes and fighters. But it’s a process. When I started wrestling, I could do all the moves and was like, ‘This is going to be easy. I’m super athletic and I feel like I can talk.’ But when you’re out there wrestling, it’s a completely different animal. It’s hard. I wish I could say, ‘Yeah, if you’re an MMA fighter, hop in.’ But to be a good pro wrestler, you have to love pro wrestling. I’ve loved pro wrestling longer than I’ve loved mixed martial arts. It’s just that I wrestled in high school and I just went on that path before I got into pro wrestling. Tom Lawler is the same way. He’s a great example of a mixed martial artist who loved pro wrestling before he started wrestling and he’s had pretty good success, I think.”
On Cejudo and Covington: “Maybe their size might be an issue at first, especially Henry because he’s 135 pounds. Granted, the guy is a savage and knocks people out and is an amazing athlete. He’s charismatic, though, and maybe you put him in the ring with Big Show like Floyd Mayweather and, oh my goodness, you know? Time will tell. We’ll see how they go. But you also have to realize wrestling is a PG kind of show. A lot of these MMA fighters bring a lot of heat, but they’re not going to be able to bring that same heat in pro wrestling. You’d be crossing a line that you shouldn’t cross. Because there’s lines. Lines that you shouldn’t cross. I mean, you’re talking to me, I cross lines all the time, you know? But you shouldn’t cross [them].”
On being in a tag team: “Being in a team has some pros and cons. I like to be the center of attention; when you’re a team, you can’t be, though, and you have to rely on other people. I like it, though. When you’re working four days a week, it’s a lot easier tagging than it is wrestling 20 minute matches by yourself. So, teaming, it’s a little easier on the body. And having the dynamic with another person, it’s not so serious because usually when you’re a singles wrestler and it’s one-on-one, it’s a little more intense. When you’re in a tag, there’s a lot more dynamics you can play off of.”
