Drew McIntyre is getting set to challenge Seth Rollins on Saturday, November 4th at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia for his coveted WWE World Heavyweight Championship. He called us today to chat about that match and WWE Royal Rumble tickets going on sale. Those tickets are on sale now by the way at RoyalRumble.com. The Royal Rumble takes place on Saturday, January 27, 2024 in Tampa, Florida. Drew says of the event, “it’s the Royal Rumble, it’s Wrestlemanis season, it’s WWE. If you’re a lapsed fan get back into it. It’s 30 men, 30 women, everybody trying to chuck each other over the top rope for the opportunity to main event Wrestlemanis so bloody check it out!”

Drew McIntyre famously won his first world championship during the pandemic in a match against Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania 36 in front of zero live fans so he’s still looking for his big moment in front of fans and he’s hoping that happens at Crown Jewel in Saudi Arabia.

Drew was a great guy to talk to. He answered all sorts of random questions for us while wolfing down a “salmon cream cheese bagel delight” that he had just been handed by his mother-in-law pre-interview. We asked him, among other things, which wrestling personalities make him laugh the most, are last in the gym, are most apt to crush fast food on the road, and (most interesting perhaps) who he sees as the next big thing in professional wrestling, a term that has been thrown around a ton since Brock Lesnar was given the moniker by Paul Heyman back in 2002 on an episode of Monday Night RAW.

We thank Drew McIntyre for his time and for being so kind to us throughout the interview. At 6 foot 5 and 280 pounds, we’re really glad he seemed to like us. Phew. Thanks Drew!

• A lot of people talk about the "Pandemic Era" and how you were the "Pandemic Era" champion where you had to win the belt from Brock Lesnar at Wrestlemania in front of nobody. Do people make a bigger deal of that then you make a big deal of that in your own mind?

  “Yes, they certainly do. People are always so apologetic. Yeah, I guess people do make a bigger deal about it but at the same time it never went down the way I imagined as a kid. My first solo title win, you imagine winning the Royal Rumble which I did, and then going to main event Wrestlemania which I did. You also expect 80,000 people there not zero people there but you couldn’t predict what was going to happen. So I’m very proud of the way I accomplished during that time to help people get through it. But at the same time I’m still looking for that World Title moment in front of live fans because I was champion for over 300 days and nobody was there.”

• People are calling this the next Golden Age of Wrestling. What do you think of that?

  “I know it’s red hot because we keep selling out everywhere we’re going right now, setting new heights for the company with all these gigantic deals that are being made. So it’s very nice to see the industry so hot, to see other companies exist and getting my friends and colleagues full time work. It’s 100% the healthiest I’ve seen wrestling my entire career.”

• What do you think of the signing of Jade Cargill?

  “Jade, man, she’s very new but I’ve also seen her work before and I’ve gotten to see her in person and that’s somebody who has such star power and that’s something you need to catch people’s attention, have that it factor which clearly she has in spades.”

  

• Who's most likely to be last at the gym?

  “Chad Gable. He’s an absolute animal in the gym.”

• Who's most likely to crush a bunch of fast food out on the road?

  “I don’t want to throw Otis under the bus but the man can put away a lot of food.”

• Who's most likely to bust you up laughing?

  “Otis is two-for-two. Otis is one of the funniest people in the world, sometimes unintentionally. You’ve seen a little of it on television where he’s very Chris Farley-like. But backstage he’s an absolute riot. He’s got that huge personality but he’s also so talented in the ring for such a huge guy.”

• Finally, who do you think is going to be the "Next Big Thing?" Someone just getting started or way further down the card?

  “There’s a few that just need that opportunity. I’ll say Trick Williams just because I had a chance to meet him the past couple of weeks at TV. You know he’s younger, still in his twenties. He’s a tall guy, he’s in shape, good looking guy but very talented. Clearly he has natural charisma about him so I could see a big future for him.”

• Oh yeah, I snuck in one more question as our time ran out...

  Me: Are you a part of Judgement Day?

  Drew: Not that I know of. *laugh*

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2HNXmmFdzVE

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