Insight with Chris Van Vliet - Trick Williams: WHOOP THAT TRICK, Being NXT Champion, Pete Dunne Diss Track, Booker T, Ethan Page

Episode Date: October 1, 2024

Trick Williams (@_trickwilliams) is a professional wrestler currently signed to WWE. He sits down with Chris Van Vliet at the WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida to discuss his meteoric rise to the top of NXT, giving up on his first dream of playing in the NFL, winning the NXT Championship and the response from the fans that made the cameras shake, the first time he heard 'Whoop That Trick', Booker T's ad-libs to his entrance song, his diss track on Pete Dunne and more! Quote I'm thinking about: "No amount of regret changes the past. No amount of anxiety changes the future. But any amount of gratitude changes the present." Complete this survey for your chance to win $500: https://bluewirepods.com/survey 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 MANSCAPED: Get 20% off plus free shipping when you use the code CHRISVAN at http://manscaped.com HELLO FRESH: Get free breakfast for life at http://hellofresh.com/freeinsight ZOCDOC: Instantly book a top-rated doctor today at http://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 http://bluechew.com ROCKET MONEY: Join Rocket Money today and experience financial freedom: https://rocketmoney.com/cvv 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 http://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

How are you, my friends? Welcome back to another one. Here on Insight, I'm CVV, Chris Fam Fleet. Thanks for being with us on this episode. And thank you for making insight the number one wrestling podcast on the planet. If you're one of the Jibronis who only listens to the show but doesn't follow the show, yeah, I said it. Debronies.

If you're one of those people, hit a superplex on that follow button on Spotify, Apple, or whatever the podcast platform. of your listening pleasure is. Whop! That trick! Yes, Trick Williams, on the show today for the very first time.

It's been amazing seeing his rise in NXT, you know, especially when you consider that he hadn't even stepped foot into a wrestling ring until three years ago. Now he's a former

North American champion, a former NXT champion, and I know based on this conversation that he wants to win that title back from Ethan Page. Also, we talk about it here, but he feels like someone who could definitely be a surprise entrant during the Royal Rumble in just a few months in Indianapolis.

I'm going to be there, by the way. I hope to see you guys there. He has all the tools to be a massive star on the main roster. And I'm just so glad we were able to sit down with him at this point of his career just to see how far he's come and also look ahead to what's next for him. This is one of the interviews that I did at the performance. Norman Center in Orlando. What a spot. Also, if you haven't checked them out yet, the interviews from last week, Sean Spears and Ethan Page, were also recorded at the same time as this one. If you're

listening to this on the day that the episode goes live, then NXT officially debuts on the CW tonight, Tuesday, October 1st. If you're listening anytime after that, I mean, you already know where you can watch it. It's on the CW. Snap a screen shot and tag us so we can share it. He's at Trick Williams underscore WWE on Instagram. He's at underscore Trick Williams on Twitter.

I'm at Chris Van Fleet on all platforms, except for TikTok. If you're looking for me on TikTok, Chris dot Van Fleet on TikTok. Let's do it.

Ladies and gentlemen, please enjoy this conversation with Trick Williams. You are a fashionable man. Let's talk about it. Look at this. Let's talk about it. I'm making a statement,

Chris. I don't know if I've had anyone do a full interview not wearing a shirt. It's great. And look, I find every reason in the world to not wear a shirt. Well, and as well, you should. Yeah, I appreciate it. When you came out as a special guest referee, we're like, oh, that trick's pretty stylish.

What's he going to wear? Well, yep, no, went over and above. Didn't that look like Trick Williams, though? Yes. You know, one million percent. How much thought went into that? Oh, it's simple. Just cut sleeves off, cut it down the middle.

And that's it. Put on some Jordas. Yeah, it's perfect. Yeah, easy. Look at this. Yeah, man. And Valabasis, you know what I mean? They have good material.

What's your closet look like? Man, honestly, only have two full shirts. Everything goes splish right down the middle. I got 13 buttons. I don't use none of them. Amazing. Congrats on everything that you've been doing. Okay.

Appreciate it, man. Appreciate it. You've been on a heck of a run. Yeah. How does it feel? Man, I'm enjoying all of this. You know what I mean? It's Cloud 9.

Like, this is why I wanted to do this to build a rush that I get from the fans. You know what I mean? To win the titles and make a difference. Seeing the kids go crazy is awesome. Where did this journey begin for you? When did you first fall in love with pro wrestling? Man, to be honest with you, I opened a can of whoop ass at three years old. First cuss word.

So Stone Cold was probably my first favorite. At least that's what my people tell me. And then, of course, that whole attitude error, you know, Stone Cold, the Rock. Child Michaels, Triple H, Booker T, you know, that's when I really fell in love with wrestling. But of course, you know, my pops, he actually played football, so I took that route. I played football my whole life from probably four years old to 24, 25, and then made it to Philadelphia Eagles, got cut, and then didn't know what I was going to do with my life, honestly, because up to that point, I only saw myself being a football player. And I had an agent at the time. he said, yeah, we're going to get you to another camp.

It's no problem. Nothing happened. Then he said he's going to send my film to the XFL, which was owned by somebody who was connected with WWE at the time. And next day, I got an email from WWE. Say, hey, if you're interested, we love to have you in for a tryout. And up to that point, like, of course, I knew what WWE was. I watched it, you know, for a long time.

I never once thought about what it took to actually become a WWE superstar. So I looked down like, yo, this is crazy. My pa's like, man, you better do it. You ain't making no money on the couch. So I went to the tryout, man. And I loved it. Like the whole idea of promos, being an athlete, I felt like I was right at home.

But they didn't sign me. They say, look, you got a good look. You know, you're charismatic, but you never wrestle before. So go learn how to wrestle, and maybe we bring you back for another trial. So where'd you go from there? I went back to Philly. I went to CZW.

I trained there, had my first match. I had a character named Sweet Daddy Trick. And I just say I've come a long way since then. But yeah, that's where I started, man. But is there not a part of that where you've now got to admit to yourself, you're giving up on the original dream, playing the NFL to play pro football? You've got to give up on that to chase this other thing that you hope works out. But that's got to be difficult.

Man, it was because it was foreign to me. Like I didn't, you know, for 20 years playing football, I learned how to stay on my feet and be an athlete. my first day of training to be a WWE superstar, I learned how to fall and hit the ground. Like, mine completely, you know, just, you know, it was just foreign to me. And, but the crazy thing is, you know, it's funny.

Like, football, I love football. I played for a very long time. I played at a high level. But I felt like I was working extremely hard. Like, the amount of hours I was putting in to be good at the game and, you know, to receive the attention and the notoriety I wanted from the game, it just wasn't, it wasn't feeding me back, you know what I mean? Like, you ever loved a girl, but she didn't really love you back?

You know, that was football for me. And I was good at it, but, you know, with wrestling, I feel at home. Did you ever feel like you weren't good enough? I mean, you know, when you did the trial for the Eagles. Yeah. And you didn't get a spot on the team, was it like, I've worked so hard to get here. Right. And I still can't get on the team.

Still can't live that dream. You know, the crazy thing is, that camp. I was ball-ling. Like, literally, player of the day, like, broke it down on my catches. It was insane. I knew for a fact. If they don't keep me on this team, it wasn't meant to be. And, man, the story how I got there is a long story in itself.

I don't know how much time we got. But, um, Duke Staley. He's from South Carolina. He played at South Carolina. He was running back there. He played running back for the Philadelphia Eagles. And at the time, he was coaching for the Philadelphia Eagles. So, you know, I'm a hometown kid, Columbia, South Carolina.

And, you know, I go to him and I ask him, I say, what can I do to make this team? He said, honestly, there's nothing you can do to make the team. Just try not to mess it up. I was like, okay, you know, well, you know, he's being honest with me. And I think I learned a valuable lesson that day, you know, about life. You know, sometimes you can only control what you can control. And I did the best I could. I bawled.

Man, the footage is on YouTube somewhere. You know what I mean? Like, there's no doubt in my mind I was good enough. But honestly, I feel like this is where I'm meant to be. I'm much happier here. But not everybody gets a second WWI tryout. Right. The fact that they said, go get better, go learn,

and then they'll take another look at you. I mean, the reason you're sitting here right now is because you actually took their advice. Yeah, I'm blessed. I'm blessed. I mean, I think a lot of people, you know, I think action speaks louder than words, man. Like, you know, they asked me to go take that step and take a chance on myself.

And I'm not sure how many people who aren't familiar with the crafts would be willing to do that. You know what I mean? Like, now we have the whole NIL deal and everything like that. And athletes, they almost, you know, they come into it expecting, you know, to be on the roster and have a chance. But, you know, that's why I have mad respect for everybody who comes from the Indies. because they truly know the craft, they put the time in. You know, they're driving from city to city. You know what I mean?

They're working for nothing. They're working for 20 bucks. You know what I mean? They're hoping to get booked. And like, I feel like the bridge. I see it from both sides now because I had to do both sides, you know. Like, yeah, I'm an athlete, news of the world. And I've also, you know, I wasn't spending a bunch of time on the Indies,

but I learned to appreciate how good of a vehicle this WWE is, you know, and I can't take this for granted. Do you remember taking your first bump? Crazy. Crazy. Concussion. It's like, no, I guess it. But people just don't realize how much it knocks the wind out of you or how much it just hurts.

Right, right. Yeah, man, it's nothing like it, man. Yeah, it's just, you know, being a WWE superstar is very unique. It's special. It takes a special person to be great at this. Well, not just to be a WWE superstar, but to be anxed champion. to be NIC champ. Let's talk about it. Let's talk about it.

Yeah. What was that day like for you? Man, unreal. I just remember, my first thing, first shot to Ilyraggenov, who I would say really took my career to the next level, especially at that time, all three to four of our matches, you know, showed people that had that next level in me. And the day I did take the title from Ilya Dragonoff,

it was a beautiful moment, man. I'm not sure if you saw, but the whole arena, was shaking from the wolf that trick chance people stomping people screaming people crying it was unreal man and the emotion that I felt in that ring at that time it's gonna be hard to duplicate because it was just 100% everybody was behind and that's a special moment man that's why I wanted to do this what do you think it was about him that brought out the best in you because he demands that you come out here and you fight and you bring everything that you have he doesn't hold back anything.

So, man, whatever nerves he thought you had, you know, whatever, you know, he's going to demand that you become the best version of yourself. And he's going to push you to a level that you might not even know that you had inside yourself. So, I mean, I remember my first time this story. I don't think I've ever shared this. I told Ia Dragon off before we went out there. I said, you better bring the best you got. because I ain't holding back. He didn't look at me.

Is that right? That's what I knew. He was crazy. He was throwing off. And no lie, man. We went out there. That's exactly what he did. He challenged me, man.

And I brought it right back. I don't hold back. Prize Picks is America's number one Daily Fantasy Sports app with over 5 million active users. It's the easiest and most exciting way to play daily fantasy sports because unlike other apps,

on prize picks, it's just you against the numbers. All you do is pick more or less on two to six player stat projections and watch the winnings roll in. One Caleb Williams passing yard will get you one win on prize picks every week in September. That's right. Only one yard gets you an automatic win

every football weekend in September. Four free weeks, a free Ws. Don't miss this deal on prize picks because it's gone when September ends. You can also now win up to 100 times your money on prize picks with as little as four correct picks. Download the prize picks app today and use the code Insight and get $50 instantly when you play $5. That's code Insight of prize picks to get $50 instantly when you play $5. You don't even need to win to receive that $50 bonus.

It's guaranteed. Prize Picks, run your game. Hey, guys. hope you're enjoying this podcast, but if you're a podcast fan, you don't want to stop now, do you? You want another podcast to listen to. Well, I am Sam Roberts, and my podcast is called Not Sam Wrestling. If you want to over-analyze and look into everything that's happening on every professional wrestling show, every single week, look no further than Not Sam Wrestling for the best analysis anywhere. Every now and then, we throw in an interview as well. We have emergency podcast going on

all the time. We hit you with a new episode every single Monday morning. And then after that, who knows throughout the week where you'll be able to find us. Uh, but check my show out, not sam wrestling at YouTube.com slash not sam wrestling air and wherever you got this podcast. Just search not sam wrestling. Apple, Spotify, you'll find it. Thanks. Do you remember the first time you heard the Whop That Trick Champ? I do, man. It was, uh, I was actually rocking with mellow at the time and used to come out to his music and people's chain whoop that trick, whoop that trick. I didn't know exactly what that meant, you know what I mean?

With his heels at the time and I was like, are they with? I looked at Melo. I said, yo, they with us or they against us? I don't know. And then, you know, I hit a move or something, got a body slam and whooped that trick. I said, okay, I think they liked this, you know what I mean? And then those whooped that trick chance it was started by the crowd. It just continued to grow and grow and grow.

Totally organic. It was totally organic, you know what I mean? But I think it really took off when they changed my entrance music. This is something else. I'm not sure if people know. But, you know, I said, I went to, you know, production team and said, hey, I would like to change my music. I want to go with family ties, Kendrick Lamar. You know, I want heavy horns in the beginning.

I need, you know, 808 drums, you know, and heavy bass. Heavy bass, you know what I mean? And it came back to me with this instrumental that I have now. I thought, yeah, that's the one right there. And was the intention that people could chant, whoop that trick over your theme? Never. Like, you know, that just, that was a beautiful, organic moment.

The day, it was, I believe was heat wave against Ilya Draganoff, if I'm not mistaken. I came out, it was a heated few. And when the beat dropped, the people's right there on beat with it, whoop that trick. And if you look at my face a little bit, you see a little smirk.

I'm like, oh, shoot, we just started something. And then we went out there and had a banger match. And I think that's the day. Whop, that trip went to a whole other level. And shout out to the NXT crowd, man. There's nothing like them. Well, they all look forward to your entrance now. Because it's a moment for obviously you to shine,

but also for them to be interactive in it. For sure, for sure. I mean, that's what it's all about. I mean, me just being, when I was a fan, I used to just watch the product, the interests always meant so much to me. Like, I used to love that stone cold glass spray. and I'll hear the pop from the crowd.

To me, like, I was engaged 100% right from there, you know, the rock. If you smell what the rock is cooking, and he'd come out on his walk, and he'd be spitting and he'd be talking to the crowd, and he'd be doing this, and all that, like, I'm like, man, like, that entrance means so much. So I always had an idea of what I wanted the reception to be to my entrance, and it just organically fell into place. That entrance would be a really good one to hear at the Royal Rumble. Oh, man. Hey, look, I think we all want that.

But I mean, imagine that. Everybody would know it too. Then you'd have the entire, man, that's going to be what, 50, 60, 70,000 people in Indianapolis. 70, 80, how many we can get in there. Right. Yeah, we're going to fill it out. Whop that trick. Woop that trick.

Man. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. And also why we talk about whoop that trick. Chris, you've seen a movie Hustling Flow. Yeah, you know, way back in day, probably 20 years ago. Yeah. No, based out of Memphis.

And I believe that's where the chant really started from. But before then, there's a rapper. His name's Al Capone. And he wrote the original song, Whoop That Trick. And once he saw it was blowing up with WWE, he reached out to me. And he said, hey, man, I love what you're doing with the Whoop That Trick, Man. Just so you know, I'm 100% behind you. And, you know, he even sent me merch and everything like that.

So I just want to take this moment to say, Thank you, Al Capone. You're a real one. And Whop That Trick, Dog. Man, maybe you guys could collaborate on a song. Man, look, I'm a rapper now. I know. I'm gonna do it.

There's a lot of disc tracks that are just, like, comical and funny and, like, you know, poking shots at the other person. This is, like, a real song. It's a real song. And it's good. Man, man, I didn't know I could rap this good. You sound like you've been doing it all your life. Well, I have, but, like, you know, other people's raps, you know what I mean?

In your car? In my car, like, to be honest with you, like, as a kid, you know, you write raps and, like, you know, but like actually getting in the studio and like, okay, I'm going to do this for real. This is new to me. And I just had the idea in my mind. I was like, man, what can I do with this PD thing? He's a butch. That sounds good.

You know what I mean? I thought about one of my favorite beats, you know what I mean? And just it took me about an hour to write. I called my little brother. I said, yo, let me perform this for you. He said, yo, trip, that's tight. Like, you know what I mean? Put that down.

So I did. So I wrote it, had it recorded in two days. had the music video shot less than a week. Man. Shipped it out. So is this going to be a reoccurring thing? And special occasions, you know, if my opponent's worth it, you know what I mean?

I'm like, you know. If your opponent's worth it. If you're worth it, you know what I mean? You know, so, you know, special occasions. Yeah, yeah, it's a big deal. There were some moments in that last man standing match with Pete Dunn where I was like, whoa. Like that side rush and leg sweep where you're dropping down,

you really don't know how, you know, what you're landing on, how far down you're going. Right. What's your thought process going into that? Trit Willie don't like heights. If you see, I'm rarely ever on the top road. Because the thing is jumping is easy. Falling is the hard part.

You know what I mean? Hitting the ground, that's the hard part. And we was up there, I was like, man, it is what it is at this point. You know what I mean? I'm going to be the last man standing. But, yeah, I mean, Pete, I guess he's another one of those guys

who take you to the next level. because, you know, you never seen Trick Williams up there that high ever. Who knows if you see me again up there? But, you know, we went there. And you so effortlessly flipped Ethan Page. He lands on the announce table. Like, it looked like you didn't even, like, I don't know, space out where he was going to be. It's just like, yeah, there you go.

He's a bitch. He's a bitch. No, I'm trying to Ethan Page, man, but he already knows what's coming to him. I mean. He didn't, I don't, just between you and me. I love, Ethan. I've been friends with him forever. I don't know if he won the title from me. I feel like he stole it from you.

He stole the title, man. He conned his way into WWE. He conned his way into the title pitcher. He conned the title off of me. He better con his way into CW. Now, when we stop this, Chris? Enough is enough. You know what I'm saying?

Yeah, what happens when NXT goes to the CW? Man, look, we're about to bring the best two-hour show to CW. I mean, I'll put our show against anybody's. I mean, like, NXT's on 5. fire right now. And shout out Sean Michaels. We're just clicking on all cylinders. We're ready to put on the show, man. I mean, I'm glad about the CW. We in every single household now. It means everybody gets to see us, you know, do I think. And look who you've got showing up at some of these shows. Like, yeah. CM Punk's going to be on NXT.

See, punk. Coming to Chicago. Yeah, I mean, I've never been to Chicago. Oh, okay. So, you know, I'm looking forward to the deep dish pizza. You know what I mean? If y'all know some good places, you know, tag us below. Giorondas? Yeah. That's the spot. Giordanas. Did I say it wrong?

We have all the world's information in front of us here, so let's see. That's the famous spot, though, I think. G.R. I think that Gerdano, Gordano's, there it is. That's where you're going to want to go. Okay, Gerdonnos. Okay. We check it out.

I'm saying that right. People in Chicago are going to be like, what are talking about? Right, right, right. But it's leveling up in a big way when it goes to the CW. Oh, yeah, for sure. I mean, we're hitting the road, which I think is dope. Like you said, we're going to Chicago. We're going to St. Louis.

We're going to Hershey, Pennsylvania, coming up soon after that. I mean, NXT's on the road. We're on fire, man. We're just clicking, man. It's just a good time to be an NST fan. I heard Sean Michaels talking about how you're a big man or doesn't work like a big man. And then he made a comparison to Scott Hall.

Uh-huh. What a comparison. That's awesome, right? Yeah. He's one of my favorites, to be honest with you. But, yeah, I guess, I just feel like, got so much to offer as far as athleticism, you know, and football, I play wide receiver. It's kind of similar. I was a big wide receiver. The wide receivers are, you know, usually the

most athletic guys on the field. So, you know, I've been training like that my whole life. So, you know, it's cool to, you know, it's nothing to run, jump, fly, but the heights, you know, I just stayed away from the heights. How big were you when you played in the NFL, or when you were playing football versus now? Yeah, I'll say my last snap with the Eagles, I was probably around 220. Now I'm 245. Yeah. That's usually the opposite, right? Yeah, it's usually the opposite. You know, a lot of linemen will be like, oh, I was close to 300 now I'm 250 or something. Right, right, right. So you put on size. I put on size. Man. Yeah. I played in college probably like 209. Man. And then, yeah, so I'm like 30, 35 pounds bigger than what I was used to playing at.

Yeah. I feel great, man. What do those workouts look like now? Yeah, all the time. Six days a week, usually. You know what I mean? But like, just the training we do here in the Performance Center, we in the ring three to four days a week. We got at least, we got a Tuesday show. We work Fridays and Saturdays every week, every other week, something like that. So, I mean, we're getting after it.

And even with that being said, that's the bare minimum. You know, if you're the guy, if you want to be the NST champion, if you want to be the face of the company, you can't just do the bare minimum. You know what I mean? You got to put in the work. You got to eat clean. you got to do what you got to do, you know? What do you think of the work Mello is doing now?

Man, I'm happy for Mello. You know, we had our odds about the whole situation. But I feel like sometimes, man, you got two alpha males, two guys who want to be the greatest, two guys who want to be the face of a brand, like, what do you expect to happen? You know, we saw this happen with EZE and Ice Cube, you know what I mean?

What a reference. For real. That's, yeah. I'm talking about distracts. I love it. No Vaseline, Mello. You know what I mean? Like, that's what happens.

You know what I mean? But I have respect for Mello because the truth is, I learned a lot from Mello. You know, when I first got positioned to be here on TV here at Nxte, you know, I was comfortable talking, but there's a lot of things about the industry that I just wasn't exposed to, you know, the main event feel. Like, Mello was working those main events. I was watching, and I got to be able to be out there and feel it and learn and watch up close and learn what it took. Like, Mello grinded. He worked hard while he was here at Nxt.

Man, he carried the brand for a long time. Me and him, Brian, Ilya, a lot of us, you know what I mean? So I learned a lot from Mello. And the thing is Mello knew from the jump, I'm not a number two guy by any means. Like, that was never the plan. It just happened that, you know, he was ready before I was. So it just organically, you know, the better I got,

you know, this is what's supposed to happen. So with those people you named Mello and Ilya and Braun, Dave all made the jump to the main roster. Sure. Do you think about when you'd be ready to make that jump to the main roster? I think about it all the time, but I'm happy where my feet are. You know what I mean,

NXT is on fire right now. Arguably one of the better times the NXT has ever seen. So with that, I mean, I'm proud to be here. I'm proud to be the face of NXT. Why are we going to CW? Where we got the biggest CW deal, you know, TV deal, NSTs ever gotten? Why are we doing this traveling and stuff now?

Like, you know, I'm part of it. And it feels good to say, hey, you know, we're part of something special here. How badly do you want that championship back? Oh, with everything. I want it better than I want that deep dish pizza. I'm very curious to hear where you think about deep dish pizza. Man, you've been to one side or the other on that one. I've been to UNOs, but I don't know if that's the offensive, you know, the real deal.

You know what I mean? I mean, yeah, is it really Chicago deep dish pizza if you're not in Chicago? Right. Have you met Punk before? I met punk. Okay. Yeah, punk's a great dude. Is there anyone you haven't met yet?

I haven't met the Rock. Okay. Haven't met Diesel. Okay. Like that you call him Diesel. Diesel. Not Kevin Nash. Diesel.

McFoly. These all seem very attainable. Yeah. They're all within the system. I mean, the Rock is, you know, technically, your boss in some sort of way. Right. The final boss.

That's right. Oh, yeah. Right. So there's definitely something there. Yeah. In what ways do you feel like you've improved from when we first saw you in NXT? And every way possible. Way more comfortable, way more smooth.

Because it's a real swagger now. Yeah. Not that there wasn't before, but it's leveled up. I'm going to tell you what my God-given skill, my best skill, that God bless me. me with confidence. Because even when I wasn't ready, I thought I was ready. You know?

And I think that's honestly, man, confidence is something that's better than, I wouldn't say almost skill because you could be skilled with no confidence and you won't perform well. But, man, if you believe in what you're doing, you know, it's going to be received. You know what I mean?

And that's not just wrestling. That's everything. Like football, that's a lot of things. Yes, you do need skill. I'm not taking away from the fact you need to work and put the work in. But confidence is just as important as the skill is. And, man, I wish I would have learned that a long time ago. You think confidence is a skill that can be learned?

Definitely. Definitely. Man, just affirmations, telling yourself who you are, telling yourself who you want to be. Yeah. Man, skill, I'm sorry, confidence can definitely be learned. Man, I'm going to tell you, growing up who I also used to just admire, you know what I mean? Muhammad Ali. And the way he spoke, the way he made his confidence, you know,

what he believed, nobody could deter him from that. And I always just watched that. I was like, man, I would love to be that confident about something that I'm willing to die for. And Muhammad Ali always stuck out to me. So, I mean, I put no one on the pedestal, but Muhammad Ali is one of my favorite, you know, people. He cuts some all-time great promos. Yes. Yeah.

All-time great. 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 cell, chomping up the old damaged mitochondria that makes you feel old and tired and recycling it into new healthy ones. Taking two soft gels a day for two months and you can see significant improvements in your cellular energy, muscle strength, and endurance. After four months of taking mitochondria, you'll feel yourself getting stronger, recovering faster after a workout, and experiencing less inflammation.

This is all part of your healthier aging routine. Check it out for yourself at Timeline.com. slash insight. They're giving you 10% off your first order of mitopear when you go there. So that's timeline.com slash insight for 10% off. Timeline.com slash insight. I love that when you come out now, Booker T is like viving to your entrance. For sure, for sure. Like, oh, yeah.

It's hilarious. And Booker's unc, man. He's another guy who's been just, you know, so helpful to me. Like, yeah, we see the ad lives and everything. with the entrance. But behind the scenes, like, we break down film. You know, he says, see that step right there? Like, get rid of that. You know what I mean? Like, we start talking about skill and why I'm getting better. It's people like Bougatis, people like Sean Michaels, people like Matt Bloom, and of course Terry Taylor, who I train with every day. But these guys

definitely, yeah. I don't know if everybody realizes this. It's not just seeing the show on Tuesday. No. What's the rest of the week look like here, the PC? Man, we train in, training three to four days a week. So in the ring? In the ring. And then is there also weight training that goes longer? Here?

Here, three to four days a week. We have promo classes. We have, we break down film, study film. We have extra ring opportunities, extra time to get in the gym. And then we have our shows, you know, on the weekends and on Tuesday. So, and this is a full-time commitment. Yeah, I don't know if everybody realizes that. Yeah, man, it's way more into it than what everybody sees.

It's competitive. But it's also, going back to what you were just talking about, why you're that much better now than when you first debuted. Man, this factory that we have here at the Performance Center is, man, it's almost impossible to not get better and not get an opportunity. If you take it seriously, then, man, you know, you'll be all right. Does it also push you a lot because you're surrounded by people that are so hungry.

Yes. You're in a spot that a lot of people want. Right. And you're surrounded by people here all the time that want that spot. Absolutely. So that's, they're hungry,

which also now in turn makes you super hungry to keep that. For sure. Like I said before, I feel like somewhat of a bridge. You know, someone from the Indies might think, oh, trick's not really from the Indies.

Okay, cool. But, you know, I see the athletes coming in. And I can, you know, their perspective of the business is totally different than what somebody who's from the indie's perspective of the business is. Or in some ways, I could harm them. In some ways, it's very helpful to have a clean slate and say, hey, this is what my idea of entertainment is and should be. So these guys who are coming in from football, track, or the ladies from volleyball and, you know, WNBA track and track and field, you know, they bring in fresh perspectives a lot of the time.

You know what I mean? And same thing from the opposite side. These guys, from the Indies, we've been working 15, 20 years, these guys can go. These ladies can go. I mean, they know the game. They know the politics of everything, and they know how to structure magic.

You know, they can work, you know what I mean? So, yeah, everybody wants to top seat, and that's why I got to stay on top of my game. Yeah. Dream match. Who's the dream match? Roman ranks. It's quick.

Yeah. I mean, he's the top guy in the business right now. I mean, shout to Cody Rhodes, who is amazing. I'm glad that he finished and starting his new story. But Roman, you know, he's the guy who's been, you know, the cornerstone of the business for a while now. So if you don't want to match with him, then you don't really want to be here.

I don't know if people realize that Trick is your real name. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, well, my birth name, funny story. My mom's name is Monica. my dad's name is Patrick. So they just threw it together, you know what I mean, stirred it up a little bit and got Matrix. And most people don't, you know, understand that.

Like when I used to go to the doctor's office, you know, they would always say, Matrix or Patrick, matrices, you know what I mean, whatever the case was. So I'm like, yo, this can't be life, man. So I used to tell him, call me Matt, but, you know, Trick just kind of organically happened, you know, throughout the football team and different stuff like that.

Trick Daddy, you know, trick was cool, so, so Trick was just always there. That's a great wrestling name, too. It's a great wrestling name. And then, whoop that trick.

Whop that trick. Right. Comes a great chant. For sure, for sure. Yeah. How much do you plan out, like, are you thinking ahead six months from now,

a year from now, with your goals, with your aspirations? Are you just focused on what's next? I'm focused on what's next, man. I got to get my title back off even. Like,

this is in what's best interest for the company. You know, I need to save the brand at this point because Ethan does not know what he's doing. He needs help, man, and I'm going to help him. And so I'm going to whop that trick for the debut of CW. That's all I need to focus on right now. Man, so good to be able to spend some time with you. Oh, man, thanks for having me, man.

Yeah, we've been talking about this since I ran into you. That was so cool. He's ran into you. I'm like, we need to make this happen. For sure, for sure. It's an honor to be here, man, and you're blowing up. And I'm glad to be part of it. I mean, thank you for the kind words.

You're blowing up, my friend. Yes, sir. Yeah, I will finish just with a question I ask everybody at the end because gratitude is a cornerstone of my life. What are three things, Tric, that you're grateful for right now? Man, health and strength. I'm going to put that in one category, but I thank God for that every day. Just being able to, you know, be healthy. You ever just stubbed your toe real bad and say, man, my toe was just fine.

Like, if I wouldn't have just kicked that wall, I would be okay right now. So, like, when I do feel perfectly okay, you know, I'm just so grateful for that. I'm thankful for, I mean, all the support, all the love I get from my family, my friends, you know, my fans out there. Like, it's unreal to get support in what you do and what you love to do. So I'm eternally grateful for that. And, um, let's see, my third one. And I'm grateful that, uh, I get to do this, man. I get to live my dream.

this is what I've always I've always wanted to be great and I chased football for a long time and I didn't really know exactly what it looked like. I thought it was football. But my whole life is where I was supposed to be

and I get to do it every day. So I'm grateful for that. Appreciate you, man. Appreciate you. Thanks, man. Yes, sir. All right, big thank you to Tric Williams for joining us on this one.

Big thank you to you for listening and listening all the way until the ending. Still being here, right now. What's next for Trick Williams? That is a big question here. I'm thinking at least one more NXT championship run before he finds his way to the main roster, but there's still a lot more stories for him to tell in NXT. But like we mentioned here, it'd be such a vibe. It'd be such a moment if his music hit during the Royal Rumble in Indianapolis. Could you imagine that? Although would it be the same?

hearing his music without Booker T on commentary. He just, he adds so much. He adds so much to that. Snap a screenshot. Tag us so we can share it. He's at Trick Williams underscore WWE on Instagram. He's at underscore Trick Williams on Twitter. I'm at Chris Van Fleet.

And this is a quote I've shared before, but it's been a while. So let's share it again here. No amount of regret changes the past. No amount of anxiety changes the future, but any amount of gratitude changes the present. Be great. Be grateful, my friends. We'll see you on the next one for some more insight

when Eric Young joins us on Thursday. We'll see you then. A Hammer Alley podcast, an 80s flashback mockumentary. Back in the 80s, there were a thousand bands trying to make it in the world of rock, But there was one band that had it all. Hammer Alley. Whatever happened to Hammer Alley?

How did they go from top of the rock? I'm looking for a music video. They're a band from 1987. Hammer Alley. Ever heard of then? To Rock Bottom. Dude, I was born in 1987. I can't believe he's doing this.

Hammer Alley. Follow and listen on your favorite platform.