Mumbai: World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) superstar Matt Hardy, who is on a promotional tour to India, opined that the first-ever WWE trials, slated to be held in March next year, is a great opportunity for Indian athletes to break into the wrestling entertainment universe.
Speaking to ANI, the six-time Tag Team champion said, “It’s an amazing opportunity for aspiring WWE superstars in India for sure. If you’re an athlete, Olympians or other professional athletes, so many people can make that transition over to WWE, this is a great opportunity to take advantage of.”
Hardy further stated that he and his brother Jeff; who together formed the iconic ‘The Hardy Boyz’ tag team during the Attitude Era; never got a platform as such to catch the eye of the WWE.
“When my brother and I were trying to get into wrestling, we never got an opportunity like this. We had to drive all over the country, really struggle, and scratch and call to get in front of someone to hopefully get an eyeball from WWE on us. Now you have a chance here, where you can get on and get on the radar,” Hardy said.
He further emphasised on the need to create more Indian superstars in order to connect better with the viewers as the country ranks high on the franchise’s global priority.
“India is one of our top markets, right behind America. We need more Indian superstars because it is that important of a market. Wrestling fans consume tonnes of WWE product here. Maybe the population helps, but they are die-hard wrestling fans and they love the product, so they’re a very important market for us,” he said.
Talking about his partnership with Dilip Rana Singh, better known as The Great Khali, Hardy said: “We teamed for a little while, in the late 2000s, during 2007, 2008, and it’s funny as he would like to do the old Hardy Boyz song. I called him ‘The Great Homie’, that was his nickname because he was my partner.”
Hardy, who was last seen in a tag team match with Bray Wyatt in August, said he was forced to take a break as he is recuperating from injuries, but assured his fans that he will be back in action.
“I’ve been doing this for a while now, been a few minutes, but I will be back in the ring and working on TV. So stay patient, I promise I’ll return,” Hardy said, thereby dispelling rumours of an imminent retirement.
Hardy, during his four-day promotional tour from December 4 to 7, will visit the cities of Mumbai and Chennai.
[source_without_link]ANI[/source_without_link]