Insight with Chris Van Vliet - Grayson Waller: Disrespecting Triple H, Austin Theory, John Cena Promo, Australian WrestleMania

Episode Date: November 12, 2024

https://cvvtix.com - Tickets for the first ever INSIGHT LIVE the day before the Royal Rumble on January 31, 2025 in Indianapolis are on sale now! Grayson Waller (@GraysonWWE) is a professional wrestler currently signed to WWE. He sits down with Chris Van Vliet in Brooklyn, NY to discuss how he went from being a school teacher to being a WWE Superstar, becoming a tag team with Austin Theory, winning the Tag Team Championships at WrestleMania 40 and disrespecting Triple H afterwards, his in-ring interaction with John Cena in London, why he doesn't want a UK WrestleMania, if an Australian WrestleMania could ever happen, his talk show segment appearance that went viral, what happened when the cameras stopped rolling and more! Quote I'm thinking about: "In a world where you can be anything — be kind." - Unknown Sponsors: VUORI: Get 20% off your first purchase! Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet at https://vuori.com/cvv ROCKET MONEY: Join Rocket Money today and experience financial freedom: https://rocketmoney.com/cvv ZOCDOC: Instantly book a top-rated doctor today at https://zocdoc.com/insight BONCHARGE: Use the code CVV to save 15% off your infrared sauna blanket at https://boncharge.com/cvv MAREK HEALTH: Get a 10% discount on Marek Health's Optimization Package with code CVV: https://marekhealth.com/cvv BLUECHEW: Use the code CVV to get your first month of BlueChew for FREE at https://bluechew.com MANSCAPED: Get 20% off plus free shipping when you use the code CHRISVAN at https://manscaped.com PURE PLANK: The future of core fitness! Use the code CVV to save 10% on Pure Plank which was designed by Adam Copeland & Christian: https://gopureplank.com/ PLUNGE: Get $150 off your Plunge with the coupon code CVV150 at https://plunge.com For more information about Chris and INSIGHT go to: https://podcast.chrisvanvliet.com If you have ever enjoyed any of these episodes, could I ask you to please consider leaving a short review on Apple Podcast or Spotify? It takes less than a minute and makes a huge difference in helping to spread the word about the show and also to convince some hard-to-get guests.  Follow CVV on social media:  Instagram: instagram.com/ChrisVanVliet Twitter: twitter.com/ChrisVanVliet Facebook: facebook.com/ChrisVanVliet YouTube: youtube.com/ChrisVanVliet TikTok: tiktok.com/@Chris.VanVliet Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oh yes, my friends. Welcome back to another one here on Insight. It is I, the three numbers in the back of your credit card, CVV, Chris Van Fleet. Thank you for being here with us on this one. And thank you for making Insight the number one wrestling podcast on the planet. Hit a leg drop on that follow button on Spotify or Apple Podcast.

So you don't miss out on what we have coming up. If it is Spotify, please leave a rating for the show. It takes, I said seven seconds last week. It really takes like three or four seconds. Please rate the show. We're at 5,400 ratings right now. Can we get to 7,500 before the end of the year?

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This is going down the day before the Royal Rumble, January 31st in Indianapolis. Tickets are on sale now at CVVTX.com. CVVTX.com and those VIP tickets are very close to being sold out. So take a look at the ticket options on there at CVVVTX.com and I will see you. in indie for that one. We had one half of Aetown Down Under as our last guest on the show with Austin Theory. And that was one of my favorite interviews of the last year for sure. There's just so much more to Austin Theory than what we see on TV. So we had Austin as our last guest on the show. It only makes sense that we have Grayson Waller with us today. And what I love about Grayson Waller is what you see is what you get. He is as authentic as they come. And he's done a lot in the WWE in a relatively

short period of time. I think people forget that he debuted on the main roster just a little over a year ago. And in that time, he's cut a promo with John Sina, like he interrupted John Sina when Sina was cutting that promo at Money in the Bank in London last year. He wrestled against Edge. He hosted the Grayson Waller effect in his home country of a Australia with Cody Rhodes and Seth Rawlins as a guest. He had a WrestleMania moment this past year, WrestleMania 40 when he and Austin Theory won the WWE tag team championships. And he's just getting started, man.

It's just getting started. They're a great tag team. But man, when they eventually split up, I feel like that's not only going to be a great feud, but it's also going to take both of those guys to a whole other level. And I can't wait for it. snap a screenshot and tag us so we can share it out. Let us know what you thought of this episode. He's at Grayson Waller, WWE on Instagram. He's at Grayson, WWE on Twitter. I'm at Chris Van Fleet,

and ladies and gentlemen, please welcome. Grayson Waller. How do you decide what shirt you're going to wear? Depends on the vibe of the day. Okay. You know, today are obviously very colorful. Yeah. So I'm feeling good today. You know, I'm here to help you out, give you the rug. I know. I've seen a lot of your clips online and I know you have some things you need to work on as an interviewer. So more than happy to come here and help you out. You know, that's the kind of guy. Grace and Waller is. I appreciate you. You're welcome. That's very kind, very thoughtful of you. What's the vibe then with this shirt? I just need to bring some color. Like you're so bland and boring with your outfit today that you needed to bring something to the interview. You know, when you're putting your stuff on social media, you need something to catch people's eye.

That's what I'm here for. So not only am I getting interview tips. I'm getting social media tips. And outfit tips as well. Oh my goodness. I know a lot of people say mean things about me online, but like I'm a really good person. Do you take those to heart? No, dude. I couldn't care less, man. I love it.

It's been happening for so long. Like some people get really upset about it. Like you can see, as soon as people are replying to random fans online, that's when you know someone's got them, they're never going to get me. I post and ghosts most times. I feel like you just lean into it. It's the best. I said it was when I started on Survivor years ago in Australia.

I got a little bit. And I was like, this is the best. This is so funny because like this is someone's putting all their energy into me and I'm enjoying it. So I've kept that same energy. But most of it I don't even see. I post my stuff and I disappear. So people are yelling at a brick wall. It's amazing that you were a heel before wrestling.

Like you were a heel basically on Survivor. I'm good at what I do. And I was wrestling at the time when I did Survivor, independent wrestling in Australia. But I'd watch enough wrestling and done enough that I knew what I was doing when I went on the show. I know how to get eyes on me and how to make sure that people are paying attention on the show to me. And it's always funny that people will make comments about like wrestling not being real. But the emotion is every time when you're really upset at me about something I've said or done, it means I've done my job pretty good.

What do you think is the best insult that you've delivered? There's so many. There's so many fun. I think also it kind of depends on the person too. Like the level of the person, like I can say really mean things to some random, fan that is what it is they still make me that still makes me really happy there's one guy there's a video online of us mean theory pulled up to a show in the snow in like a convertible with the top down and he was like hey grayson you call me fat and green bay and i looked up and i was

like and you got fatter since last time i saw you so it's just little little natural ones like that um there's none that really stick out but like when you get to say really mean things to like a john seen or a sean michaels like that hits a little bit different because it's a little bit harder to have to say that to someone's face who is, you know, someone that is very respected in the industry, but that's when I have the most fun. Like, there's cheap heat when you, like, make fun of the city. But then I feel like you just, you put a different spin on it. Like, you, to get over and get the crowd, like, really hate you.

Yeah, there's, I think there is a talent in what we do as, as performers, and especially being a dick. It's not easy. And I think it comes to me naturally because if anyone who knows me, this, Grace and Waller is, that's who I am. This ain't necessarily a character, man. and this is what I do. And I think it's a bit of the Australian in me too.

We call it banner. But I say horrible things to my friend's faces and nice things behind their back. So I think guys like me put effing in what we do. Yes, it comes natural. I can just think things off the top of my head. I have that type of talent. But I think about things too. Like, I know where I'm going.

I know the town I'm in. I think recently I had a lot of fun where I had the, what is it called? The Florida Panthers jersey in Edmonton. That's just like a little thing. But I know that town. I know that city, I know that sport. Like, I can go out and say your sport team sucks, but I didn't say a word. I just wore that out.

And I knew how passionate those fans are and how close they were to get into the Stanley Cup. And this team took it from them. And I knew the guy was in the front row. And it's like, you just put that little extra effort in. Yeah, that was like an ultra heel move. Yeah. And the best thing is I don't really watch much hockey, so I had no idea who the bloke was. But I saw a guy on the front row, very upset.

And Canadians, you know, they don't always have a huge sense of humor sometimes, especially when it comes to hockey. How dare you? And he was extremely upset. And he was Canadian. And even when, you know, he came backstage afterwards and walked past me and it wasn't supposed to be experienced. But it is what it is. That's part of the fun.

It's funny that you, there's a nuance to it, right? So are you thinking about this in advance? Like, are you looking at the schedule and you're going, oh, it's smackdowns in that city in three weeks. If I get the chance to cut up promo there, it's going to be about this. Yeah, sometimes not so forward thinking because sometimes like what we do, you don't know what you're doing on the show today of, day before. but I always pay attention when I get there. So there was one when I had Sena on the show, and Dionne Sanders is obviously the coach in Colorado,

and there was a thing where the Colorado State coach has said to him, like, you know, when I talk to adults, I tuck off my hat and then this kind of thing. And I was like, that's so disrespectful. And I was like, I have to say this to Sena, because he's going to come out wearing his cap like he's 14 years old. Like, this is such a perfect line. And it's a risk because maybe the crowd doesn't get it. Maybe the crowd isn't as tapped into sports stuff like I am,

but I like to take those risks and most times they pay off. If we take this way back, what's your first memory of pro wrestling? When I was a kid, we got what was called Optus in Australia. So I only got WCW. So most of my first memories of wrestling is like WCW. I remember Sting a lot just because I remember there used to be advertisements for like Starcade 97. That's what kind of got my interest. I have no idea what this is.

So a lot of my early memories of wrestling is like WCW. And at the time, having no idea how bad it was, I thought it was like the best thing I'd ever seen. No comparison. I have since revisited and then noticed there's some great and there's some not so great. But that was my first memories. Who were your guys at that time in WCW? I always loved the cruiser weights. So like I was big on like Ray and Hoovey, Billy Kidman, all those kind of guys were like what drew it to me.

And then when I did eventually watch like, you know, go to the video store, start seeing Sean Michaels and stuff. It was always like the smaller flippy guys, which is interesting because that's not me at all. That's not my style. But when I first got into wrestling, there was just something about that that got me in. And when WCW had that first hour of cruiser weights, like we're talking like near the end of WCWCW? Yeah, like all those random Blitzkrieg,

just all those random guys, like they'd have all the lucha guys come into. Like it was just so wild. And I guess for a kid, when you're just seeing so much movement, you have no idea what's going on. It's just very exciting. Yeah,

there would, like, I remember seeing three count. Yeah, dude, I loved three count too. Three count were great. Yeah. Because I was always,

and I guess I am now, I was always like a character guy. Like I love pure pro wrestling and all that flop stuff that people online, constantly talk about, but I love characters. I love the fun of wrestling, too. And I think things like three count, I remember when Tank Abbott joined three count two, just such a random pairing, like, but that's, that's, there's nowhere else in the world where you get that kind of stuff happening. And he was doing that really awkward dance, remember that? Yeah, it was, and, but it was

so bad that it was good. Yeah. But that's what's so great about wrestling. Yeah. And we actually got to see backstage, because Shane Helms obviously producing now. Yeah. And then Shannon Moore came backstage recently to kind of visit and say hello. We had two-thirds of three count. We had an Evan courageous. We almost would have had a... Could you imagine? I tried. I tried to imagine. It was just, it was too big. At what point did it feel like this is something I could actually do? I'm super late into wrestling because my life kind of like, I got into MMA really big when I was like 17, 18 and I kind of, I still watched wrestling, but I was more into MMA. I just loved it. I loved the UFC. So I started training in MMA and then my life took me in other directions. I got a degree.

I went traveling. And wrestling was always like, I was just a fan. And I got to 25, which in wrestling can be late. You know, you look at some of these guys like Javon Evans and stuff who were wrestling when they're 15, 16. I got to 25 and I was like, I don't want to look back and go, I wish I had done this. I would have been so good if I tried it. Like that thought like terrified me. So I was, I have to go for it. And thank God I did because it completely changed my life in a positive way. Did your background in boxing help in wrestling? Yeah, like extremely. Like my first day, like I trained at the PWA Academy in Sydney,

which is run by Rob Robbie Eagles from New Japan and Madison Eagles, who's probably the best women's wrest of all time, in my opinion. And all the roles and stuff, like I'd kind of done before, especially with the MMA and Jiu-Jitsu. So there was like elements of it that I already knew. So I kind of got a little bit of a head start. And I don't know if you've ever been to a wrestling school before. I trained.

The students are horrendously bad. that wrestling schools are known for horrendously bad students. Don't let the NXT Performance Center confuse you. Like a normal wrestling school is like, I've never seen someone who's like 27 and never been to a gym and goes, I can play in the NFL. I'm going to go just start playing football. It doesn't happen.

But for some reason with wrestling fans come in, they've never done anything physical, but like, I can do that. And I've seen them come in day one and they can barely do a push up and they're in pain and all those things. Luckily, I'd been athletic. I'd played sports. I'd done MMA. So I came in and I kind of had a little bit of a head start on pretty much everyone.

So like I said, I trained for a few months. I don't understand where the disconnect is between someone who loves wrestling, looks at it. Those are clearly athletes. They clearly work out. They clearly have great cardio. Well, I don't need a gym membership. I'm just going to go and learn how to do this.

And I think that's the difference between a hobby wrestler and a professional wrestler. There's nothing wrong with being a hobby wrestler. Like, if you just want to go out once a month in front of your friends and family and be like, I'm a wrestler, that's cool. But other people have goals and stuff that they want to achieve and they want to make it professionally. I see it all the time in Australia. We have the best talent in the world. As you can see right now, like WWE, anywhere else, you have Australians.

But then you also have other wrestling in Australia who just want to do it for fun. And that's cool. But you kind of have to separate the two. If this person wants to be professional and wants to work as hard as possible, let them go. You can't hold them back. I had this conversation with Bronson Reed when he was on the show, like a month or so ago. When you guys are growing up in Australia, there's no bleakable. there's no blueprint there, right?

You're not able to go, oh, this famous WWE wrestler, they're from Australia. Nathan Jones, dude. Nathan Jones fell over on WrestleMania. Like, that's who I want to be. But it's true. And I guess maybe that's a reason I didn't start training so early. I didn't really watch any Australian independent wrestling.

I didn't know what existed. I just saw WWE. Then I got into like Ring of Honor, CZW, Shikara, like real random American indie wrestling. And I was rarely saw Australians. There'd be one or two here or there. I was like, it didn't seem like a possibility. But then when I saw Peyton and Billy get on NXT, they're from the same school as me.

Then I was like, oh, wow. And they came back and like, did a little seminar. I'm like, it's possible. And I think Ria is the one who really cemented it. I'd met her just before she left. And then she was doing such big things. I think she showed the rest of Australia, hey, this is possible. And that opened the door.

And then you get Bronson. You got Indy there already. You had TMDK doing really good stuff before they left. There's so many people. And now I think the Australians are saying, hey, it's possible. Hey, there's people there. And now we're going to properly take over. And that's crazy that it takes until, I think, Toneil Dashwood was probably.

Yeah, she was up there first two. I don't think she gets enough credit for how early. Obviously, she was one of the first women who really was a star in NXT. And she was doing her thing. I just had never met her in Australia. So I'd never had that connection of like someone I'd met and seen doing such big things. But crazy that it took that long for a kid in Australia to be able to go, that it's possible for me because I've seen it. It's so frustrating too because anyone in

Australia can tell you we've had the best talent for a long time. Like there's so many guys I hear about even before me who are like, if this was 10 years later, he would have done so good. So I guess it's our job now as Australians to keep that door open and put eyes on the Australian scene. And Buddy Murphy doesn't get enough credit for that. No. And he's still killing it. Yeah. Yeah. And I think that's our job now is keep the door open, keep eyes on Australia, keep them coming in because we've had the talent there. We just haven't had the, we just haven't had the art. We're just too far away. You know, Americans aren't getting up at 5 a.m.

to watch Australian shows, you know? Well, we all watched Elimination Chamber. Yeah, most of them. But it's just a situation of when there's so many wrestlers here in America, it's just much easier to go, oh, we don't have to worry about a visa for them. Like, there's just so much that comes into it. Yeah. What kind of teacher were you?

Because you were a history teacher, right? So mostly, like, so I was basically like a substitute. but like a full-time substitute. So I went every day, but I wanted to stay subbing because if I had a show on a Friday or a Thursday, I wanted to just be able, hey, I'm not going to work today.

I have a wrestling show. But then I'd get a little bit of full-time gigs here or there, but I was a history teacher. I taught pretty much anything that needed me to do. Were you the fun teacher? Yeah, I would say so. Like, in some sense, like I enjoy teaching and especially like history.

Like, I love history. So I'll try and make it at least fun for the kids because I know how it is to sit in a classroom, have a teacher just like just talk to you for two hours and you don't care about anything they said so i did my best to at least make it fun try and tell them stories and i guess it got me ready for crowds because there's no one more brutal in a classroom than high school kids so there's no crowd in america than say worse things than those high school kids try to say to me we all know what it's like though when the substitute teacher comes in yeah has a day off for everybody it's day off for me too i

ain't stressed like if you guys want to mark up that's your fault you can do it at home like or we can get it done now like i i i the main thing is i always talk to them as adults Like, if you're going to go in there and talk to kids like their kids, when they're 15, 16, they're just going to run over the top of you. So I think I have the ability to at least connect with them on that level and just be like, hey, we're all just trying to get through this. What period of history are you most interested in? Originally back then, I really like any Greek history, Roman history, or ancient stuff.

But more recently, I'm getting more into like a little bit more modern stuff, like World War II, World War I, just like, especially moving to the states and like now delving into a bit of American history and things like that, like where I'm going to certain towns, like, you know, if I'm in Texas, oh, this is the Alamo. I don't really know much about the Alamo. We don't really teach that in Australia. So, like, while I'm on the road, I try my best to kind of learn something about where I'm going. Do they teach American history in Australia? Very little. Because they teach it in Canada. Like a little bit, but like, I know here, like you guys just learn about yourselves. Like the Americans just love themselves. So don't group me into,

I am not an American. It's like Australia, New Zealand, you know, America, Canada, so similar. How dare you. But I know. But I know. America is very like just learns about themselves. Australia is very like world history. So like straight away in like high school you're learning about all over the world, which I think is more fun. So you're saying that America lumps in Australia and New Zealand as one place? And UK and Britain.

If you talk to Bronbreaker, he has the one accent for all of them. If it doesn't matter if it's me, if it's Pete Dunn, if Dakota Kaiser, hello mate. It's always the same accent from that idiot. He doesn't know the difference. He still thinks I live in. When I came back from Australia, one time.

Bronbreaker asked me if I, how was my mud hut? He's an American train, you know, and he was a football guy. So, you know, he didn't have to pass or anything. They just gave him the peas because he was really good of football. But he used to think I lived in a mud hut. He has no knowledge of Australia. You'll find, you'll find ear, right? People don't know your accent.

No, it's usually British or Australian, sometimes New Zealand. But I guess it's, it is what it is. Like, our truth has no idea. He still thinks I'm British, too. Well, he might be right. I don't know. What does he know? The interesting thing is there's a lot of Americans that have never left America.

Yeah. But I get it now living here. Yeah. Because in Australia, I can go to Perth. I can go to Melbourne. Flats everywhere. It's all the same. There's little changes.

Like maybe Melbourne's a little bit cooler. They have a lot of coffee shops and stuff. America, you go two hours and it's like it's a completely different country. The music's different. The food is different. The culture is different. So as an American, like, I get it. Like, you don't have to travel.

to experience a different type of life. It's pretty wild to think you've got like mountains in Colorado. You've got the ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. Trash all over the floor in New York City. Rats everywhere. Yeah, rats everywhere. It's like just so beautiful to travel around and see these things. But then you've got the deserts of Arizona.

Like the amount of different climates that exist here, I understand. I get it. It's crazy that in January, you can have one part of this country where it's minus 15. We're talking Fahrenheit here for everybody that's listening. And then you can have another part that's 80. Yeah. And I don't know if that exists in any other country. No.

And it's rough for travel too because, you know, we're down in Florida. We're living the good life. Then I got to go to Nebraska. And then, like, I forget where I am and I rent a car. Like, last time I was in Nebraska, there was this beautiful, like, jaguar. I was like, why has no one rented that? So I drive to the hotel the next morning. I come down, carved in snow.

Everyone has their SUVs. Everyone's good to go to the show. I'm like, how am I going to get out in this thing? and I just slid my way to the venue. So now I'm starting to learn about snow. I lived in Florida for five years. Do you find that sometimes when you're packing for a trip, you forget to bring a coat?

Never, because I know how this place is now. Because one thing I hate about America is I'm fine. I love burying America. This is the best. I have to wear a hoodie even in summer. Because you go into a restaurant and the air conditioning is on so hard that like you're freezing. So it doesn't matter where I go, I always take a hoodie because these Americans can't survive. They're weak people.

They can't survive without air conditioning. Austin theory, weak man. We'll do stuff in summer. We're outside. We did one recently at SummerSlam. We were out of school doing this opening. It's too hot for him. You had to go sit inside and see these weak Americans in the air conditioning.

It blew me away when I left a restaurant in Florida and, you know, January or something. And I walked outside and it was way hot or outside than it was inside. It's the American way. I remember having to bring a jacket when you'd go see a Marlins game because it was overly air conditioned there. Yeah. It's terrible. And it's one of the main

townfalls of living in the state. But I'm getting used to it. You don't have to live in Florida. I don't have to, but it's a great place to live. It's the closest I found to Australia. Like climate-wise, and obviously there's a lot of the brothers and sisters

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I think we're just two incredibly good-looking, humble dudes and this is going to work. But like me in theory, we didn't really, we met each other a few times before I got called up. But we just got along really well straight away. We have similar mindsets when it comes to the business too. So we did a few little things together. And it was like, we're both here to be great. And we're not going to let anyone get in our way. And we're going to work hard for it too.

So when we started working together a bit, then we started traveling more. And like we had the same schedule. Hey, we've got to wake up early because we've got to get to the gym. Like all that type of thing. So we have similar mindsets and it just kind of worked. And I don't think it was a long term plan, but it's one of those things that just works so well that, it stuck.

So was it just like one day you showed up and they said, hey, we got something for you. I can't even remember that it's been so, like, it goes so fast now. It was something like I was just getting involved in something that he was involved with. And it was probably with Kevin Owens because that guy loved stunning us. But it was starting little where I was just helping him out for one week and then he kind of helped me out. And then it just kept happening. And then all of a sudden we were a team.

So it kind of went together real quick. Well, look at you guys. WrestleMania at 40. What a moment. Yeah. It was the best tag team in the world. I'm sure that made. a lot of people happy. It made me very happy. The absolute silence in that arena,

like I can't describe to you. Because even my mum, who was front row, didn't realize we won. Because obviously, there was the two championship belts. So we took down this one. And like, you're thinking you dream growing up, you're going to take down the belts. You're going to take down the belts. And the crowd was like, oh, is it over? Like, they didn't know what was going on. Because we, I learned from previous experience. I watch a lot of tape. People climb ladders very slow. my goal was I'm going to climb this ladder very fast and get the belts very quick. And that's what we did. But I think everyone thought the match was over.

They didn't realize that you got to get the other set of belts as well. Maybe you climbed it too fast. No, I think I could have got it faster. You're right. Wrestling fans are so used to the sloth crawl. The slow climb. Sloth crawl. Yeah.

And I was like, well, that just looks so stupid. Like, I felt pretty healthy. I only take a little bit of damage, I was ready to go. But I think me climb it so quick and then just getting it just confused everyone, which was almost more fun in some ways for me. What did that moment feel like? I always say it's wild like later on. Like at the time it's just like it just happens.

And it doesn't even seem real in a lot of ways, especially with that many people there and all those type of things, it just doesn't seem like a real situation. But now I look back on it and I go, that's wild. Like I got to be at WrestleMania, I got to win the championship of the wrestling with one of my best mates. And like in Lincoln Financial, I'm a Philly Eagles fan.

Like Jason Kelsey was there, Jordan Myelada was there. You know, there was just like a very surreal situation that I look back on, especially even the guys in the match. Like, you got DIY, you got Priest and Ballot, you got New Day. Like, you just have these guys who are so good at what they do, especially in the tag team division. And we were the ones that won that's a very proud moment.

When they revealed the new championships for you guys, Triple H is revealing it with Nick Aldus. What a moment. Yeah. And because we shoot didn't know what they look like either. No way. So, like, I had my acting skills ready. So if these suck, I'm going to be so happy to receive these sucky belts.

But then they showed it to us when we revealed it and they were, they were awesome. I think it's just, it's enough old school where you're looking at like those almost ruthless aggression, raw tag titles. Yeah, it's the same shape, right? Yeah. Mixed in with a little bit of new flair. Like, it's perfect. And like, we're the first ones to hold that. It doesn't matter who has it now. Like, we were the first ones and no one can take that from us.

Triple H goes to shake your hand. Yeah. Dude, I don't know. Maybe I have a problem. You've disrespected him. I think I have a problem with authority. You know, maybe I don't like DX in my former life. I don't know.

But there's just something so fun about such a serious moment and not taking it seriously, you know, and like I think everyone's just so respectful these days. Like, it kind of makes me sick in a way. Like, I think people are too respectful, especially of like legends and like people in the game who've done a lot of great things. Yeah, that's awesome. But like, this is my time now. Like, I'm not going to sit here and, oh, thank you, sir.

Thank you so much for the opportunity, especially on TV. I ain't going to do that. It made for a really memorable moment. Yeah, and then, you know, I'm sure Hannah had some thoughts, but it is what it is. And then Nick Aldous getting in your face? He's very grumpy Nick Aldous. I don't know what it is, man. I think it's because he looks a lot older than he is.

Theory once said, hey, maybe we should do something one day where you're like my dad. She's super disrespectful when you realize that Nick Aldous is not old at all. So I think he's still got that heat inside him for Austin Theory, and then I'm friends with him, so I'm just going to stick there. since you're Australian can you explain what a shooy is to everybody and why you do it so basically like in my eyes

like a shooey is just like the perfect example of an Australian like Lariken Lariken being like a fun lighthearted kind of guy and it's a celebration and like the first time I saw it was Taito Uvasa in the UFC you'll get up on the cage and do the shooey

and it's just like it's so ridiculous and silly but I think that's part of the Australian kind of fun and then obviously Danny Ricardo does it in the F1. So it kind of became a thing like, hey, when Australians were on big stages, like, this is how we celebrate. So first one I did in NXT, like, I have to ask Sean Michaels to do a shooey.

Like, how am I going to explain what a shooey is to Sean Michaels of all people? Because it just sounds ridiculous. And surprisingly, like, he thought it was a great idea. I don't really know how, I didn't really have to explain it that much. He was in. But I think it's a great example of, like, what our culture is. You know, like, even in our biggest moments of celebration, we're doing something. ridiculous. We're drinking beer from a shoe. We're not taking it seriously. But it's the idea that

you're drinking this from a smelly shoe. Yeah. And it's the funny thing is like it doesn't even phase me one bit. Like I don't even think twice. The thing is it's my shoe. You know, it is what it is. The other question I get is like, do you wear the shoe afterwards? And like if it's a night out or something, you have to. But like the first one I did in NXT, that was just out of the boot that I just had, you know, the 25 minute deadline match out of. But I think that's part of like the attrition. Like, you know, you're earning the beer. You're dealing with something disgusting. And And it's like, I don't know, it just, in my head, it's a very Australian thing. Does the beer taste that much worse?

You drink it so quick, you don't even know. Like, I think maybe that's a part of it is you've got to drink the beer really fast before you realize what you're actually doing. I'm going to have to try this at some point in time, but the idea of it sounds disgusting. It does until you do it. Indy Hartwell said the same thing. But then, you know, recently we went out in Orlando. She did the shoe in, you know what?

She had a great time. And it's been very difficult to get anyone else to get on board. When Ria did it at Elimination Chamber when we did the press conference, I didn't know that was happening. I was always going to do a shoe. When Ria did it too, I was like, yes. Was that her first one?

Look, I don't know, Ria's party passed. I'm sure at some stage, she was, you know, at a bar somewhere and probably partook, but this was her first public one, and I was proud to be there for her first one. Where did the idea for you to have a talk show with the Grayson Waller effect, where did that, have that all come together?

There was a writer in NXT who came to me with the idea of, hey, we want to do maybe a talk show, like, but then they kind of left it with me. So the idea was, hey, we want to have a talk show, which I thought was cool. Like, I think as good as I am in the ring, I know I'm best on the mic. And I think that's a perfect position for someone like me to get TV time, even when I'm not on the show wrestling. And think of everybody who's had a talk show, right? Like, what a great, um, compliment to the work that you do. Yeah, I thought so too. And so then I went back and like, my main thing is I don't want it to look like anything else.

Like, I don't want it to be so cookie cutter. So I really wanted to have like a, like a first take, Stephen A. Smith kind of vibe, like with a desk, kind of almost like the desk I have now, like have the desk there and the guests around it. I wanted to do the Instagram stuff. Like, just make it look as different as possible from anything any other talk show has done because I know people get, oh, another talk show in wrestling. And I get that, but this is completely different.

And I think even now we did one recently with Cody, where now we have it more like a late night talk show kind of set. I love that vibe too. So my main thing is like, I love the talk show and I just want to make sure it's different to what anyone else is doing. Especially, that's why like Instagram, living it. And for a while,

we couldn't do it because we were doing overseas shows. So it's on tape delay here in the States. I can't be on Instagram live, basically giving away the show. So luckily, since we've done one in America, I think the Instagram live just adds something different. Like, it's a second screen almost.

And it's like if you're in that chat, you feel like you're the only one's seeing this. And you're going to see angles and things that no one else is going to see. Yeah. If they're giving you a time, show, that means they're basically saying to you, like, you are a great promo guy. Because look at the list, right? Like, it's Piper's Pit, Ms. TV, Jericho. Like, the list goes on and on and on. These are all great promos. Yeah. They're basically saying, like, we believe in you that much

to carry this entire segment. I agree. And as they should, like, I'm good at what I do. And it's also a case of allowing me to be an element of storytelling with other people's stories. Like, it's not all about me. I'll make it all about me, but, you know, like, you'll have certain ones with other people who are going to have a fight on paperview, and it's my job to tell that story or cause chaos. That's my main thing is I love to cause chaos in these things. I like to say things and then drift off into the back and let them deal with what I've said.

If you could have a dream guest for the Grayson Waller effect, dead or alive, who is it? Prefer really alive. It would be a better segment. Maybe we can go back in time, you know, back to the future, DeLorean, we'll pull it up here. Yeah. I've had, like, all the, like, if I had to put this list two years ago

when I first got the Grace and Mawler effect and it's Sina, Cody, Sean, Logan, like the Mount Rushmore, basically. Like that would be great. I've always said the dream guest is Trish Stratus. And I've been saying it multiple times and unfortunately hasn't happened yet. You're saying it again now. I'm going to keep saying it. Trish, come on. Please be on my show.

Let me give you the Grace and Mawler rub. And I just really, I respect her as a performer and I've always liked it for so long. So that's always my answer. And until it happens, I can't really give another answer. So there's so many legends, you know, I feel like the legends are really coming backstage a lot more now recently. Like, I don't know if it was different in the past, but like every pay-per-view, there's just all the guys and girls from the past there, they're super excited. So hopefully I can get some of them involved as well. It would have been so incredible to see you do something with Piper.

Yeah, dude. He's one of the guys. I watch every Piper's Pit before my first Grayson-Waller effect. Because I think he is the blueprint for talk shows in wrestling. because it was always about him, but it also wasn't. He was using himself as a way to tell other people's stories, and just his energy and his vibe and how wild he was. Like, that's entertainment.

That's wrestling. So for these flops online who hate talk shows, that's what a talk show should be, what he does. Like, I think even if you're not a wrestling fan, you can watch Roddy Piper and have no idea who's involved, and that segment is going to have you paying attention. With the promos you cut and the way that you work in the ring, Do you think you could ever be a baby face?

Like, it's possible, but I don't really want to. Like, the one thing I hate about being a baby face is, like, I don't think I'd be honest because I think you have a lot of these baby faces that they have to pretend they love the fans. And I can't stand the fans. I think wrestling fans are the worst fans in the world. Not the fans who pay to come and have a good time on a Friday with the family and all that kind of stuff. That's fun. These flop fans online and these smart guys who think they know wrestling, they're the worst.

They will turn on people in an instant. It doesn't work on me. Like, you have no power over me because I don't care what you say. I can do whatever I want. You hate me? Good. Like, it doesn't affect me. So I feel bad for, like, the good guys.

You have to pretend they like these people and give them a hug and, you know, sign their stuff at the airport at 3 a.m. And all that type of things. I don't have to deal with that. So my main thing is, I don't want to be a baby face because I don't want to lie and pretend I like these people. I can't stand them. If you were a baby face, you would have to care about what those people think.

And I don't, like, I really don't. And it's just so much more fun. Like, I don't think being a baby faces me. And maybe there's a scenario, like, in Australia, when I was wrestling in Australia, it kind of naturally happened where people started cheering me. But I didn't change who I was. Like, they kind of just respected what I was doing at the time and got behind me. And even I went back to Australia two weeks ago and, you know, there was fans there who were cheering for me.

But that's not what I do this for. I do this for, like, a seven-year-old kid who it's his first time experienced wrestling. And he's so happy. And he brought his wrestling his good sign. And I get to hit that. sign as hard as I can and he starts crying. You know, I'm here to have grandma yelling at me as loud as she can because she hates what I'm doing. Like, I'm here to have the 30-year-old guy in the black shirt who's, you're trying to, trying to say you suck racing because he's got so many

chins, it's hard for him to breathe properly. I'm here to ruin his night. That's where I get glee from. And I think that's what sets me apart from a lot of people. The cheers you get in Australia, though, are like, that's our guy. Like, there's a respect, right? Like, even if you're saying terrible things about them. But it's the thing of like, I'm not fake. Like, I'm not the guy who's going to go back to Australia. And because I'm a bad guy, I'm going to go, I hate Australia. That's not me.

That's not real. Like, I love my country. I represent my country. So when I go back, whether you like me or not, I'm going to say, hey, I'm proud. I have my Australian flag on all my gear because I fight for you guys as well. So the one thing is I'm honest. Sometimes that's a good thing for people. Sometimes that's a bad thing for people.

But I'd rather be a real asshole than a fake nice guy. What was it like going back to Perth for Elimination Chamber? It was wild. It was just the whole week was a wild experience. Like, you know, I remember I went to MS, sorry, the MCG in Melbourne in 2018. It must have been. And I was wrestling at the time. I remember going, oh, man, imagine like being able to perform in this kind of stadium in Australia.

That's crazy. Like, when I was a kid, it never even seemed like that was a possibility. So getting to go out there and, you know, have Cody and Seth on the show, who were two of the biggest stars in wrestling. that's, that's, that's huge. And I had all my friends and family, like front row. It was just a really good night. Got a great reaction too. Yeah. And I think that's because, like, I think they know how much I love the country and how much I want to represent it. And they gave that back to me. And, you know, I had Taitui Vasa in the front row to do a shoo with a shooie with a showy with a showy with Taduio Wives. Like, it's a pretty good night. It was, that was just like I was having fun that night. Like, I didn't even feel like I was working. That wasn't work for me. Like, I get to go out, do a shooooie with Tai Tuvaa and say mean things to Cody Rhodes. Like, it's a pretty good night. You were on that morning talk show in Australia. Yeah.

What specifically sets you off? I hate when people would disrespect what we do and treat it as a joke. And sometimes, like, you know wrestling enough that we can sit here and have a conversation. You understand what I've gone through. You understand what you've gone through. It's a good conversation. Sometimes when you do these morning TV, they're doing 16 interviews a day. They don't know who anyone is.

Like, I understand why it happened. But it was when the sound guy or whatever came up and, like, I'll take a punch and did his little thing. And it's like, you don't realize what we do. And I was like, okay. And part of it was me being like, I'm going to have some fun with this. And it terrified them.

Like when they turn off the cameras, they were terrified about like, is everything okay? And I was like, yeah, I'm good. Like, I was having fun.

They didn't know that. But I think it's something that we need to protect what we do. And it's just like if someone's so disrespectful to your face, like you've got to do it. I'm not going to sit there and take it. I'm not going to hit him. You know, this isn't the 1980s where you prove a point that way.

I wish we could because then I think a lot of people would change their opinion on what we do when you feel what it is. Because, you know, when I'm in there and I'm wrestling Kevin Owens, he's giving me a swan ton, man. That sucks. That's not a fun move, you know? So, like, I just wanted him to respect what I did a little bit more. I don't know what they were, like, looking for. And they had John Sena's music playing.

Like, it was just... John Cena's music playing and Roman's belt in front of you guys. It was just they don't know what wrestling is. They're not fans. So they're just doing what they think. wrestling is. So I get, I get it. But like, I think we've come far enough. And I think it was also because I was in Australia. Like, I've flown home for two days. You know, this is like 30 hours of travel to come here and basically do this show. And I'm coming here to do this for you.

You're not doing anything for me. Like, I'm doing way bigger things over in the States. So I think it was just like a whole multitude of being tired from the flight and just getting off that flight and going sitting there and LA night sitting there just laughing to himself. He got out of it, Scott Free. could it have gotten like was there a point where you were like going to step up and no no no i'm a professional that's one thing like i can sit here and act all tough like oh yeah i would have choked him out no i wouldn't like that's that's not what we do yeah we're trained to be good to what we do and we're not going to do that on members of the public but i would have gotten his

face and told him what i thought of him um and i think that's as far as it goes because we just you just can't react the same way as people have in the past we've seen how that that went yeah didn't go great for Hogan. Didn't go great for David Schultz, so I don't want myself on that list. There was a moment you could see, like, you switched. Yeah, I did. And I think that's, I guess that's some of the, the Grace and Wall are coming into me. Like, who are you to come and say that to me? And I'm like, okay, well, like, I'm going to give you the same energy back. And I think he backed down pretty quick once that happened. I think wrestling fans either aren't aware or forget about your background. Like, you can actually fight. Yeah, I can. But, like,

that's so long ago now that that's, you know, what I do is I fight in the ring. I fight for money. I'm not going to go out and fight for free on some random TV show against some guy. Like, that's not what I do. But just even that whole situation aside, I think people don't realize that you can actually go. Yeah, I can go all right. But like, I don't, I think people just think that you run your mouth and that's it. But I don't need people to know. You know, I think the toughest guys in the world don't say anything, you know. I don't need, talk about my background. And I think that was so long in the past that like, I feel that's not me anymore. I feel I'm a professional wrestler now. I'm not an MMA fighter. I never did professional

fights, but I can handle myself when I need to, but I'm also smart enough to never be in a situation where I have to. When you list off the names of the people that you've been able to share the ring with, what's been the most surreal moment for you? I think the two, the first one was having AJ in NXT, because I went so quickly from being, the fourth best member of a war games team that no one cared about that everyone was saying, why is he even in it? Two in four weeks later, being the guy who took Gargano out of NXT and wrestling AJ Styles on NXT TV.

And this was back when main roster guys didn't come down to NXT. So I think that quick transition of being nobody to being somebody and wrestling one of the best of all time, that was extremely surreal. Like it just happened so quick where I was like, oh, I didn't really have time to think. So that was really cool. but then also I think Madison Square Garden last year against Edge, like, that's a life goal to even wrestling Madison Square Garden, but to do it in the main event against Edge and his second last match

and ended up being with us, which we didn't know at the time. Like, that was really surreal. Did you feel the pressure to perform there? Because it's the whole sink or swim thing, right? Yeah. And the weird thing is, and I've talked about before, is I was coming off breaking my leg against Mello. I got cleared maybe two weeks before,

but we were in London for a bit, and then we did something else, and I had maybe an hour in the ring. So I've been cleared, I had one hour. And then I was going to do the talk show with Edge, and all of a sudden I find out the night before that I'm wrestling him, that's stressful because I'm like, I don't even know if I can wrestle. Like, I haven't really done anything on my leg. And that's the first time I've really felt the pressure and felt nervous.

And usually I don't. But then I watched a bunch of clips of McGregor in MSG, fighting Eddie Alvarez, watched all the hype videos for it at the entrance, and just like his vibe like kind of, I watched the fight like three times. And all of a sudden I was feeling myself and I was like, what are you going to do, not do it? And then from that moment I felt completely comfortable.

And the match went great and I came backstage and like I could barely walk. Like my leg wasn't as good as it needed to be, but I got through it and now I'm very glad that I went in with that type of energy. And like to get in there with Edge, it was one of the best of all time. And to do it in that kind of venue is very cool.

And then he grabs the mic and puts you over at the end too. And that's not something he has to do. And like, as much as I'm the kind of guy who doesn't want to kiss ass to the legends, like my way is saying thank you to them is saying really horrible things and going at them. Like, I want to be on your level. And I'm like, I feel that's the biggest respect I can give you is coming at you like you everyone else. Like, I don't want to sit back. But little things like that, like at the time, it didn't mean as much as it does now.

Now I look back and go, that was pretty cool. This episode is brought to you by Timeline. Timeline is a Swiss-based life science company, and they're a global leader in urolithin-A research. So what's urolithin A? It's a powerful postbiotic that's nearly impossible to get from your diet alone. Mitopure is the first product to offer a precise dose of urolithin A to upgrade your mitochondria function, increase cellular energy, and improve muscle strength and endurance. One way to think of mitopure is that they're like the little pack men in your cells, chomping up the old damaged mitochondria that makes you feel old and tired and recycling it into new healthy ones.

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So it's such a lie, dude. No one wants WrestleMania in the UK. No one wants it. I'd love to know how much money he got from the UK. government to say that, dude. He doesn't want it in the UK. It's cold. It's miserable. That place sucks. Then your music hits. Yeah. Oh, just the collective. Oh, it wasn't even a boo. It was like a groan of just like disgust. That's the classic like UK Australia rivalry. Like, even if they didn't know me that night, they knew it was Australian and that's all it took.

And then you're just talking about how great Australia is and, you know, how terrible the UK is. And I was honest about everything. And it was like at the time the ashes were on, which for people who don't know is the big Australia versus England cricket game. And it was on in England at the time. And there was super controversial games. Like there was all this going back and forth. So it was just like perfect timing. What did it mean to be able to go back and forth with Sina?

Dude, that's the dream. And for anyone on the mic too, like obviously getting in the ring and wrestling Sina is a massive thing. But getting on the mic with him, like when you know what he's done in the past to people, I feel he is the ultimate litmus test of a person on the microphone in professional wrestling because he's not going to hold back he's going to he's going to go at you you never know what he's going to do you never know what he's going to say and i think it's him testing you to see hey can you can you hang and i felt that night i was i had full confidence i thought

about that moment a hundred times in my head if i'm in there with sena i'm not backing down and i'm i'm staying bar for bar with him it was great it was like pure it was a great heel moment yeah when you went back and forth with sean michaels yeah how different is the sean michaels that you work with in NXT versus Sean Michaels when he's in the ring on the mic and he's the performer. I'm going to say some stuff about Sean that he's going to hate because Sean, Sean doesn't look at himself the way we look at Sean anymore, which is wild to me. Like he doesn't realize he's the heartbreak kid. It's still in there, but he's such a humble, nice dude now and he just wants to help everyone in NXT. Like, he doesn't really want to be on camera.

Like, he's happy to be backstage and be running that show and doing so many good things for the guys and girls down there. He doesn't see himself. as heartbreak. But all of us who are big wrestling fans are like, you are the greatest of all time. So it was interesting when I did have the talk show with him to see that Sean come out. And there was a moment there where he takes the jacket off and like, I could feel it. I could see it in his eyes. Like, Sean, if this was, you know, five years earlier, maybe, maybe Sean's taken a swing and now it's me and him at Stan Deliver. But I really saw him change from like the human being that he is to the heartbreak kid, like, in that, in that ring that night.

And that was, that was a cool experience. Like, I don't even remember the crowd. I don't, it was just, I was just so zoned in on having this moment with Sean and being like, once again, trying to test myself against one of the best of all time. I wish that he saw himself the way we look at him, though. Does that happen every time you're in the ring, you shut the crowd out, you can't hear it, and you're just right here? It depends on who it is. Like, obviously, the situations where, like, you need to know what's going on with the crowd to, you know, react if they're booing me, maybe I'm going to enjoy that. But like, when I get in there with someone for the first time, especially,

and it's someone that's a big deal and someone that I respect and someone that I want to test myself and I want to go at, then I'm just locked in. Like, especially in certain situations, like getting there with Randy for the first time. Dude, he's like four times the size I thought he was. It's insane. And so I'm just looking at Randy like, I got to lock in because you're one of the best and this is an opportunity for me to show that I'm on that level. And I'm not going to drown.

I'm not letting anyone take my spot. Your Randy Orton impression was pretty good. Yeah. Yeah, it was decent. Looking back, though, there's a few screenshots of it that aren't great. I have to work on some of my form, but that's okay. No, it was good. Super disrespect.

But, like, I think that's part of me, like, I was a fan. I'm not a fan anymore. Like, I put in my fan card when I started wrestling. Yeah. But I know enough about the game that when I get into situations like that, I know what you do, Randy. And I'm going to do it to your face. I'm going to be super disrespectful right to you.

I think that's advantage that us as independent wrestlers and fans have over some of the NXT kids who don't know what's going on. We can really zone in on history of this business when we're wrestling, little things that they have no idea about. There's a whole compilation on YouTube of you doing other people's finishers. Yeah, but better. Like, I've never seen Austin do a forward roll in the ring through the ropes. Never once.

I never saw Marchoke. Could you imagine? Yeah. Maybe Kevin, the thing is, like, Kevin Owens could do it, so I'm not going to put him on the spot. But even with my elbow, like, I'm going through the leg. on it, like, I'm not just going to take a move. I'm going to take a move and make it my own. That's always been my thing. I'm not just going to watch old tape and go, that's mine now. I'm going to go, oh, I really like that. How can I make it my own, do it my own way and make it

grace and waller? So as much as it's like, oh, he's taking a move. It's like, they didn't do it like I do it. Do you set goals for yourself? Like, do you have goals that you want to accomplish within a year or within five years with your career? Yes and no. I'm more of a short-term goal guy where like I have goals and then I attain them and then I get more goals. So I like what's in the future, what's on the horizon that I can look at and I can take. That's my main thing. So are you talking like week to week?

That's what you're doing? It can be. It depends with what we're doing. You know, with me in theory right now, like I think I want to cement us as one of the best tag teams in the world. I already think we are. But furthering that and then when opportunities present itself, like I want to have a singles run too. There's so many things I want to do. But right now I've just got to focus on what's ahead of me.

Me in theory, a tag team, we're going to be the best tag team. we're going to be the best tag team in the world. Every tag team. Someone turns on the other person. Yeah. I feel like it's going to be you. Of the two of us, 100% would be. He is such a nice guy.

And I'm not saying you're not. No, no, no. You're 100% right. This is the thing. There was that big situation with like the promo he did with Sina. And they were like, people looked at a certain way. And I was like, Sina is 100% right. 100% right about Austin Theory.

Austin Theory is a good guy. He's super humble. He's super respectful. you've met him today. Makes me sick sometimes because I'm like, I love that you do that and you want to sign the photos, you want to be nice to all the kids and all that type of thing. But like,

we need to lock in. We've got to do whatever it takes to be the best here. And I think that's where we differ in opinion is he wants to do things the right way. He wants to be that company guy. He wants to sign all the autographs. And I think he's more like John Cena than he'd like to admit. Whereas I couldn't care less about any of that. I'm just here for me.

And right now we're a tag team, so I'm here for me in Austin Theory. I don't care who's in our way. So, Sina was right about Austin Theory. He's a good guy. But sometimes that gets us into trouble. So if a fan comes up to you at the airport and wants to take a phone? No way.

At the airport especially, no way. There's no way you get in a photo with me. Theory will do it. Theory is nice enough to do it. There's no way I would ever do it, especially when they come with like a bundle. Like they can barely carry how many action figures they have. Kiss my ass. So they want an autograph?

You just walk away? Yeah. I have my headphones on. I couldn't care less. Wow. Like, what are you doing? like it's 5am the morning, why you're here with your kids? Like, let them sleep in.

Like, these guys are sad. Will you ever take a photo with a fan? Like, if there's certain situations. Like at a meet and greet, sure, right? Of course, but that's because I'm contractually obligated to take part in the meet and greet. But there's certain situations where I will, you know, and it will differ depending on who the person is. But, like, at the airport where it's my time, like, I'm good. I need to take a photo with you.

Do you ever smile in a photo with a fan? It depends on hot sheets. What about a guy? You ever smile on a photo with a guy? You know, I might be feeling, I might be in a good mood. So if fans catch me in a good mood, they might get lucky and get a photo, but it's a rare occurrence. I want my autograph to be worth something one day.

I mean, I'm sure it is now, right? Yeah, it might be like 340, you know? Who knows? He's on a car. It's getting up there now. $3.40. I'm aiming for $5. One day I'm going to get the box.

Which currency, though? But. Could be Australian dollars. Australian dollar. That's not good. Yeah, same with Canadian dollar. Yeah. American dollars, maybe.

$3.40? Yeah, I'm trying. Hell yeah. That's amazing. Yeah, I'm trying. But I just feel too with like, I know the difference between a real fan and a fake fan. In one way? Do you actually want to meet me or do you just want to take the photo and do the type of situation?

Or are you genuinely here like, oh, I enjoy this guy. I want to meet him. You can tell straight away if you're, you know, if you're a real fan or a fake fan. What do you think led to your, you've gone that's fast track to success in NXT. And you outlined it a little bit there. But then from NXT onto the main roster. What do you attribute that to? I think there's a multitude of reasons.

One, I think I'm older. I'm more mature. I've lived life a little bit more. So with some of these NXT kids, they need time down there to find themselves and find out who they are. I know who I am. I went to NXT. I knew who I was day one. Like, I didn't have to find myself.

So I skipped that part of the process. And I'm super confident in my abilities. Like, you put me in any situation. Like, we talk about sync or swim. There was a lot of single swim moments for Grace and NXT and on the main roster. and I don't think I've drowned one time. Whatever they give me, I'm there for. I'm a company guy.

If they ask me to do anything, I'm going to do it. And my mindset is I want to be the best. So when I get into these situations, in my head, I'm the best. So there's no situation that's bigger than me. And I think sometimes the lights get too bright for some people. But that doesn't affect me. When you were on the Indies, who was Maddie Walberg? If you ask anyone who knew it, Maddie Warbeg was Grayson Waller.

Like there's no difference between those two people. people. Obviously, Grayson Wall is a little bit flashier, a little bit, you know, TV version of Maddie Warburg. Maddie Warburg was me. I liked wearing sport jerseys, so I always wore sport jerseys. I like talking trash. Like, I love Conner McGregor, Nate Diaz, Chow Sehn. So I said a bunch of wild things to try and get attention. I don't think there's much difference between me on the independence of me here, which is for the fans of me who knew me before WWI, I think that's cool for them to see. Were you a Walberg brother? Is that why the name? So his mark, when he was on tour in Australia in the early 90s spent spent a love the funky bunch

I actually don't know my mom hasn't told me but he spent a night with my mom um pardon me yeah well that's what she's told me I don't know who my dad is and so I assume it's mark Warburg I like to think that that's why I got my looks and my charisma from um she hates when I say that that's what I attribute to I think I think Mark Wahlberg's my father so then Donnie's your uncle yeah I just want some of that Warburger shares you know I'm trying to get in there. You need some of that new kids on the block, money. Yeah, please.

I know they're still on tour. Yeah. Yeah. But that was Maddie Warberg's character mindset. I don't know if you've ever watched, how I met your mother. Yeah. There's Barney thinks that,

what's his name? He's his dad. I've gone blank. Bob. Is it Bob Barker? If I remember. Well, Barney thinks there's a celebrity who's his father. And he kind of attributes all these things in his life to pretend,

thinking that this guy was his father. I was like, that's so funny. Like, I don't know who my dad is. Imagine if my dad was Mark Warberg in my head. I thought that was a great character. moment like he's just trying to... Did your mom actually spend a night with him? No. Oh, God.

It's too easy. I've just ruined the video too. Yeah, no. I actually said that one of my last, my big independent show that I got signed at, I told that story and the next day my mom was so angry. She was so upset. She was like, you can't tell people that. I was like, it could be so much worse. What a flattering story, though. That's what I thought.

Yeah, that was my character motivation in Australia. I thought that was a good idea. Imagine you have a kid one day and they're being like, oh, yeah, Grayson Waller spent a night with name of, it could be a few, so let's not get me in trouble here. But imagine that, you know, spent a night with some beautiful, A-less celebrity. Yeah, Shes, my mom didn't like that one, but that's okay.

I think your mom needs to rethink that. I think so, too. That is a compliment. And who knows? Who knows? Maybe one day I'll find out it was Marky Mark. But I just love these movies. He was sick.

You got a favorite Mark Wahlberg movie? I think the departed is number one. That's one of my favorite movies ever. He's such a badass in that too, dude. Yeah, I'm a big fan. I'm going to go the other guys. Yeah, other guys. That's the good thing.

He can do multiple. He can be a comedian. He can be a comedian. He can do soft. I haven't seen it yet. There's a new movie where he's just like him and a dog for a while. I think that's right down. Oh, that's good.

Yeah, that's right down my house. Dog movie and Mark Wahlberg movie. Speaking my language here. Yeah, I mean, that's the thing about Mark Wahlberg is he can do it all. Same thing with you. That's what I think is my biggest asset here in WWE is you can put me in any position I'm going to succeed. Like if you need someone to main event a show, I can prove that I can do that.

If you need someone to do the talk show, if you need someone to go out before the show and do a dark match, if you need someone to do backstage stuff, if you need someone to go do phoneers with news interviews, like I can do whatever you need, I can do it really well. And you can just tell me on the spot and I'll make it happen. And I think that separates me from a lot of people. Is there any chant that you've been on the receiving end of that has kind of thrown you off a little bit? Not. Like, to be honest, no.

Like, I don't know what it is, but if people are chanting at me, like, I love it. Like, that's good. Like, I know, like, I vibe with it. There's never been one that's really throwing me out. I remember in the UK, they were really strong on calling me a wanker. And I've, for years, I was like, there's going to be a time where the crowd is going to chant wanker at me. And it's just going to happen. And I had it in my back pocket.

And I was like, I don't need to. And it was such a good comeback and not everyone got it because not everyone knows what a wanker is and all those type of things. That's one of my proudest quick comebacks that I had. The crowd in the UK was also chanting at you. Who are you? Yep.

I mean, you're in there with one of the greatest of all time. I'm right. Actually, I'll give you an answer. Now that you've mentioned that, when we did war games against Team Black and Gold, the four of it, like Bronn had six matches combined. Tony D, that was his, I think, fourth match was War games. Mello obviously independent, but like had only had a few matches on TV.

I'd had maybe five or six matches on TV. We're super inexperienced. We're in war games. Like, what are we doing against the best NXT guys of all time? And we went in the cage and they were chanting, who are you at me the whole time? I'm just in that cage. And I was just, it was pissing me off. I'm not going to lie.

And I was like, just wait. Just wait. I can't like, let me get in that cage. Then we went in. We went to war with those guys. I jumped off the top of the cage. The next night, I took out Johnny Gargano. And I was like, that's who I am.

And then the next week I came out and they were booing me. And I was like, and it only took me two weeks. But like, I remember being really frustrated in that cage of like, oh, I'm going to show you. Like, I'm not stressed about this. Johnny Gargana was cutting such a heartfelt promo about why he's saying goodbye and how much NXT meant to him and how much he loved the fans. You hit him from behind. Yeah. And the best thing is I was under the ring for that.

So I could literally hear people crying in the front row. And I was just there just going, I can't. wait and I was going to, I'm going to wait till he says something about his kid. I know how much Johnny loves being a father. I know how important that is for him. And I was like, that as much as NXT means something to him, that's what really means something to him. I'm going to wait until he talks about that.

And I hit him in the back with a chair. And it was such a beautiful situation because I feel everyone knows everything in wrestling now. Like, everyone knows what's going to happen next. And it takes a bit of the fun away. But no one, even Johnny or me or Sean, knew what Johnny was doing next. So it was one of those nice moments in wrestling where there was no answer. And we kind of left it.

And then I'm glad we got to finish that story. I hate that term, but I've said it. But a year and a half later, I haven't been. It might be trademarked. I don't know. Yeah, that flop will probably soon me too. You might have to be. Classic American, American nightmare.

Yeah, but I'm glad we got to end that as well. Because I wanted that for such a long time. Just to like, because watching wrestling, I was a huge Gargano fan. can't stand him now, but I was a huge Gargano fan, and I know how much he did for NXT and how much he meant to NXT, and to take that away from those fans was just a beautiful moment. Who have you not been able to tell a story with yet? That could be tag team or it could be a singles match.

Yeah. We got to wrestle the guns last week, which for a TNA guy like myself, like, that was wild, like just getting to be in there with Shelley and Sabin was very cool. I'd love to do more there. And the thing is with the Smackdown Tag Division right now, it is. You didn't have the guns, DIY, street profits, A-Town down under, you got Legato, you got pretty deadly. That is a wild tag team division. But outside that, there's one guy that, like, I feel I could make magic with and that's Sampunk.

Because I think the way Sampunk does his business, the way he talks, like, I'd have so much fun with that. And I can just feel it. And, like, even the small interactions that we've had, you know, I threw a bit of trash talk at him before. he even got here just in case he ever did. And now that he's here, like, I feel me and punk would have a lot of fun. He'll like there might be some commonalities there, like, just the way that you guys approach different things. And sometimes that's where the biggest heat lies is when you're too similar.

I think me and punk definitely have our similarities. But he's a guy I definitely like to stand across from properly, especially like on the mic, like he's almost untouched, like just the way he carries himself, how confident he is. And he doesn't care, whether he's good or bad, like he doesn't care what people think he's going to say what he thinks and I love that energy. I love that he has that energy. But I want to give that back to him. I want to see how, because I want to see how he feels when someone does what he does

to people to him. That's how I felt with Sean a little bit. It's like, Sean, remember what you used to be like? Yeah. How's it feel? Now you're feeling what it's like to have you coming at you. And I feel that with punk. Like punk's ruling it right now, but like I want to be, you know, see him punk from 15 years

ago coming at him. See how he reacts and see how he feels about that. With WWE doing so many international shows now, do you think that we'll get a WrestleMania in Australia? Honestly, if I have to be honest, no, Australia. I'm sorry, it's not going to happen. What a hell. The time zone is rough, and I get that.

And WrestleMania is such a big show. Like, it's our showcase, and we want the most eyes on it. And I think in Australia, that would be a very difficult process to have, especially, like, flying everything down. Like, it's a big effort. But I think having, like, having elimination chamber there is massive. I don't think people realize how massive it was. That's the show that sets up WrestleMania.

All the things that happen on that show set up the biggest show of the year. So for me, I don't think WrestleMania is ever going to be in Australia. Would I love it to happen? Obviously, it would mean the world to me, but I'm realistic. And I think Australia has the opportunity to have way more big shows. And I've heard some whispers that, you know, we might be heading back somewhat soonish. And I think that I'd rather have a stand alone and be like, hey, this is Australia, and this is what we do.

and we have so many Aussies in WWE right now that like we could almost fill a show with Australians. We got Zaria just turned up now too with Ria, with Duke, with Bronson, with Indy with me. Like, that's almost a full cut. Is this just your way to get the Australian fans

that were cheering you to boo you again? Ah man, he says Australia, he says Australia has never been in WrestleMania. If they're being realistic, that's what the UK people should think too. And my thing is like, WrestleMania is such a spectacle. Like, there's something cool about it being in the US

because it feels like the Super Bowl. It really does. Like you're in this city for a week. Now they're trying to get the Super Bowl in London. Of course I are. The UK wants everything. Then you get to UK and go, oh, that's why we don't come here. It's like New York.

Every time I'm going to, I'm coming to Brooklyn. This will be fun. And then I get to New York and go, this place sucks. It's expensive. The room upstairs is so small for what we're paying. Like, so tiny. Like, I could get like a luxury apartment in Charlotte for what I'm paying for this stupid hotel tonight. I got off the elevator and I'm like, oh, there's a wall.

Yeah, welcome to New York. Right there. It's a terrible place. Hey, New York's not so bad. No, it is the worst place I've been in my life. life and I'm going to stick by that. I will say it is strange that it doesn't matter what day of the week it is. It doesn't matter what week of the year it is. There is always giant trash bags on the street. And that's just the people. There's actual trash there too. They're all miserable. Like,

and I get it, I'd be miserable if I lived here too. New York's not so bad. Disagree. Agree to disagree. Fair enough. Just cutting promos on literally every city. Yeah, it's part of the fun. I just can't help myself, you know. How do you feel about Toronto? I actually really like Toronto. Oh, okay. Great. Yeah, no, Toronto.

I feel Canada and Australia are actually super similar. I feel they're more similar than Australia and America. A little bit more laid back, like, huge into their sport culture. Like, I wish I could spend more time in Canada, especially like Toronto, especially. I've heard great things. Degrassi was filmed in Toronto, big degrassy guy. Same. Apparently there's a degrassi tour.

I need to take that tour. You didn't know that? You didn't know that? See? the sign and everything. But just like little things, I feel like Canada is a little bit more my vibe. The snow thing, maybe summer. I could do summer in Canada, not winter.

Are you talking original, DeGrassey? Or like the next generation. Like the Drake one? Yeah. You know, mostly before he got shot and was in the wheelchair. But during COVID, I had a few of my mates back in Australia. Like, we're stuck inside. It was all free on YouTube.

And we went through and we did a whole like Degrassi deep dive. We watched the whole seasons. And then when I got to be in Toronto for the first time, I got to wear my Jimmy Brooks, DeGrasy jersey. And that's one of my, like, I collect jerseys and that's one of my favorite. Like, how many people can say they have a Jimmy Brooks, DeGracy jersey? We watched DeGrasi in guidance class in like seventh grade. Yeah. So when we watched it back, the wildest thing about the grassy is like, it's full on. The first episode, the first episode of the next generation is Emma getting catfished by like a teacher from another school and going to a hotel

to meet him. And she's like 12. It's like, watching it back as an adult, I'm like, I can't believe I used to watch this when I was a kid. Like, this seems like it's too much. I felt like when the teacher didn't want to teach the kind of awkward lesson about whatever it was sex ed or something. But everybody, we're watching Negrassy today. I actually did watch an episode of DeGrasi with my students. I'm trying to remember what class it was.

It was definitely some type of, it was like cultural studies with history or something. And we're talking about the US. And they're asking about, like, gun control laws. And we're talking about gun control laws and that type of thing. And I was trying to explain to them because in Australia, we don't have guns. That doesn't exist. It is what it is. But then I ended up showing them the episode.

with the school shooting with Drake. And these are 17, 18 year old kids. And they didn't know that Drake had done anything before rapping. So they were like, they didn't even care about the lesson of the episode or anything like that. It's about bullying. It's like a really strong story. They couldn't.

They're like, that's Drake. Why? What is he doing? I was like, I'm glad you guys took something from this class. How much do you think your accent has changed since moving to the US? I hope none. I'd be so, I went home recently and no one said anything. Okay.

then you're good. I listen to a lot of Australian rap. I listen to a lot of Australian podcasts and watch Australian shows. Like I want to keep my accent. I can feel myself slowly becoming American and it's kind of sad. Even the way you said American. Yeah. When I went back recently, it was the first time I went to Australia and it didn't,

I felt like I was visiting. It didn't feel like I was home, which was super weird. And like, I went to the gym and I had kilos and I was like, I need to convert this back to pounds. And I was like, oh no. Who am I becoming? Like I'm becoming everything I hated. I bet you could do a great American accent, though.

I can mostly like Valley Girl. Like, I can do like a good Tiffany Stratton. Like, oh my God, no way. Naya, don't. Like, her accent is very easy. But anything else, when you start going mid, there's too many dialects. I can't keep up.

That was a perfect Tiffany Stratton. Yeah, I'm very good at my Tiffany Stratton. I feel like everyone who's not from America just goes right to Texas accent. Texas or like hillbilly. Yes, right to a southern accent. Extremely almost racist. variations of the American accent. But that's not what we see.

Australia is very Americanized. That's what we see on TV. That's what we see in the movies. So, like, we see the traditional classic American. And then you get to American, you realize that's not really what it is. There's just so many different slices of Americana here. Yeah, it is. Well, I'm so glad we were able to spend some time together.

Thank you for this. No, you're welcome. And I have some notes for you. We'll talk about off camera. I don't want to be, like, a disrespectful guy and give them to you. But I think he did really well. Like, I didn't even, couldn't even tell you were nervous. So I'm grateful.

you, man. Sweating, man. Yeah. Sweating. Appreciate you. Hold on. Got him. What an idiot.

Wow. I do need to ask you the question I ask everybody. Oh, oh, I don't watch. I just watch your Instagram clips. So you don't know. This is great. I'm putting you on the spot. Oh, no.

What are three things that you're grateful for? Oh, dude, this is so sappy. I hate this stuff. Ugh. Um, I don't even see it up as to why. Because gratitude is such an important part of my life. How could you possibly be? I can see it.

I could possibly be upset when you're grateful for things. No, I agree. And I'm very much on that David Goggins mentality, you know. So I guess I'm more hard-nosed in some ways about certain things like this. But it's good to be grateful sometimes. Stay hard. I would say, number one, I'd be grateful for my mates. You know, I got to go home recently and work for PWA in Australia.

And it was really cool to go back and, like, just be with the people who would be there with me since day one and celebrate with them a little bit. That was cool. I'm grateful for Austin Theory. that's a great tag partner. That's one of the most underrated performers in the industry. And I don't think people might understand that, but they will. Like, Austin Theory has everything it takes to be the biggest guy in the company.

And there's a reason that he's always in there with Randy Orton and Kevin Owens and Seth Rollins and John Sina. There's a reason. And the rock. And if you idiots don't get that, you will one day. He's the kind of guy that in five, ten years, people will look back and go, oh, wow, Austin Theory is really. really good. But right now they want to be, they don't understand. And then I'm grateful for having an Australian accent in America. It's a beautiful thing. A little shortcut. Thanks you again. Thank you. We won't do the handshake thing again because you've already

figured me out. Screwed me. All right, my friends. Thank you to Grayson Waller for joining us for this. Thank you to you for being a real, real one and for listening all the way until the end. didn't appreciate that Grayson Waller made fun of my clothes and refused to shake my hand. But still, a great conversation. What a heel. What a guy, but what a, what a heel. And I know he doesn't do a lot of these longer interviews. So it was great to see what he's really all about.

Like what makes him tick. And that story about feeling disrespected on the Australian TV show, when the host called it fake, that was so interesting. And I just feel like there is so much potential. for Grayson Waller. He's just such a natural when he's on the mic. I love it. So I can't wait to see what 2025 has in store for him. Snap a screenshot. Tag us. Let us know what was your favorite part of this interview. He's at Grayson Waller, WWE on Instagram. He's at Grayson, WWE on Twitter. I'm at Chris Famfleet. And I will leave you with this quote from an unknown source, but I love it so much.

in a world where you can be anything, be kind. I feel like that should apply to Grayson Waller. In a world where you can be anything, be kind. Be great, be grateful, my friends. We will see you on the next one for some more insights. Simon Miller joins us on Thursday. We will see you back here for that one. Jim Rome takes on sports.

Why? Because I have a job to do. With rapid fire takes. So I don't want to hear from you lava pigs on this notion today. No idea what you're talking about. You're complaining more than you like to breathe air. It's like you get up in the morning only to complain and cry and moan on social media about things that you don't even understand.

He's the spitfire of sports smack. Ticket banj of it. Get up in here. The Jim Rome Show podcast. What's your beef? Follow and listen on your favorite platform. You've been warned.