Former AEW star Aleister Black recently looked back on his “WWE NXT” debut, following his return to “WWE SmackDown” last month after WrestleMania 41.
In an appearance on the Wrestling the Rap Game Podcast, Black opened up about his first match in “NXT” against Andrade, explaining that it didn’t go as planned due to a lack of preparation, battling illness, and overwhelming fear of performing under the WWE banner.
“First and foremost, I did not like that match,” Black admitted. “The production of how we went into it was wrong and because of that, the match didn’t come out the way it should have come out.
Andrade at AEWI was physically ill at the time, that’s also why when I look back, I’m just not in shape … anxiety is the word, I was terrified, absolutely petrified and it’s crazy because I’ve already wrestled at this point in front of 5,000 people, 6,000 people, 8,000 people in France … but because it was WWE I was like, ‘Oh god, oh god, oh god, oh god’ … that was one of those things that I always kind of look back and was like, man I wish I was would have been better. It was nerve-wracking, it was an incredible experience, it was humbling.”
Along with reflecting on the Andrade match, Black also spoke about how “NXT” initially felt like a confusing environment. He described how the coaches there would work to re-train talent and strip away any bad habits developed elsewhere, which he admitted ultimately helped him evolve into a sharper in-ring performer.
He went on to praise the brand’s golden era, stating that from 2015 to 2020, “NXT” delivered the best pro wrestling in the world, unmatched by any other promotion.