The World Wrestling Entertainment's (WWE) biggest spectacle ‘WrestleMania’ is back in 2023, with the greatest wrestlers in the world facing off on April 1 and 2 at the SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. The likes of John Cena, Roman Reigns, Brock Lesnar, Rey Mysterio and many others will headline Wrestlemania 39's extravaganza.
Just like the previous editions, Wrestlemania 39 promises to be a treat for fans with all the action, thrill and drama for which it is known. A marquee match between undisputed WWE universal champion Roman Reigns and Royal Rumble winner Cody Rhodes will headline the events from SoFi Stadium over two days.
But apart from this, all eyes will also be on the next generation of talents. The WWE NXT, which is the feeder system for the mega wrestling event, is run by former WWE star Star Shawn Michaels, who is currently the Senior Vice President of Talent Development Creative and oversees the creative aspects of the NXT brand.
Michaels spoke exclusively to Sports Tak about the upcoming WrestleMania, revealed details about the NXT programmes, his best memories from Wrestlemania, and also shared a special message for his fans in the country.
What do you look for in future talents? His athleticism or his camera presence as well?
It's a combination of all those things. It's hard to pin down what will make a WWE superstar. Everyone calls it the 'IT factor'. Somebody that has phenomenal athletic ability, but also has charisma and a personality. It's the aspect of being able to combine both of those things.
And the biggest thing when it comes down to it is connecting with the audience, and that doesn't always come down to athletic ability, it doesn't always come down to a personality. There are times when people connect for different reasons, different emotions or different cultural levels. We look at all those things in NXT and try to do our best to harness those.
Whatever it is that they might be lacking, we try to help them out with that to hopefully build the best WWE superstar we can.
You were involved in the greatest Wrestlemania bout with Undertaker, any memories from Wrestlemania?
It was a huge event for me. It was something that I always took seriously. But now honestly, what WrestleMania is to me is about our young men or women in NXT, and allowing them to go out there and start building the legacy that I had the opportunity to build.
I will say that when it comes to Los Angeles, two things stick out for me, which is my WWE championship in Anaheim. And then my match here with Kurt Angle from a personal standpoint. Now, the weekend has become about the superstars of tomorrow. We're very excited about the standard we deliver that's going to be here on Saturday, April 1, at 10 am.
It's going to be a huge weekend not just for NXT, but also for the WWE. And once again, WrestleMania is going to light up a city for a full weekend and have a good time doing it.
In India, WWE has a massive fan following. A message to my fellow Indians, because you were part of THE golden generation of wrestlers.
Obviously Thank you. Thank you for the support and not just for myself, but for the WWE as a whole. India has been a huge supporter of the WWE and also Shawn Michaels, so I just want them to know that it's very much appreciated, it's not forgotten, and the WWE is always very thankful for the support that we get from you and everyone else.
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