As the “Prodigy,” Perez recognizes that your days as a popular champion are numbered. However, she believes too many people, including fans and in-ring challengers, have overlooked her current reign, and the strides she’s made with it so far. With newcomers Giulia and now Stephanie Vaquer waiting in the wings for a title shot, Perez believes they pale in comparison to the blood, sweat, and tears she’s put into making “NXT” the hottest attraction in WWE.

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 “I feel like I’m the one that kind of built this brand up…I’m putting on a reign that isn’t like any other, I feel like,” Perez acknowledged. “Then, Giulia comes in, and everybody is excited… But keep in mind, I’m the reason why she came to the WWE… But I think once I beat her, everybody is going to realize that no one is on my level.”

Giulia debuted at WWE NXT No Mercy after reportedly signing with the company months ago. Her match with Perez will take place on a stacked show that’s also set to feature CM Punk and some guaranteed surprises, but it remains to be seen if she’ll have what it takes to overthrow Perez at the top of the women’s division.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Busted Open Radio” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

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Prior to coming aboard AEW in March 2022, Swerve Strickland spent over two years under the banner of WWE, beginning with a stint in “WWE NXT.” There, Strickland worked with the likes of Paul “Triple H” Levesque and then Vice President of Talent Development Shawn Michaels. During a recent interview with “The Breakfast Club,” Strickland specifically recalled how a tape-study session with Michaels helped better him as a performer.

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“I was like, Shawn, ‘Can I watch tape with you sometime, like an hour?’ He’s like, ‘Give me three matches, email them to me. I’ll pick one and we can watch it on Tuesday.’ Sure enough, he lived up to his word. We watched a match of me on the indies from like four years ago. He’s like, ‘I want to see the reason you got here. What’s the reason that we signed you to this contract to be here? I want to watch that.’ So we watched this stuff; he’s quiet just watching, watching. And guys like that, they’re not going to [have expressive reactions like] ‘Oh! Ah! Ah!’ No, they’re just going to watch. William Regal is very much like that too.”

According to Strickland, these respective matches gave Michaels a better idea of who he was as a performer and what he could offer inside the ring. A short time after that, Michaels emerged from “NXT” executive meetings with some additional advice for Strickland.

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“[Michaels] is texting me. He’s like, ‘Okay, they want to see you get a little more aggressive and stuff like that, so bring it next match,'” Strickland recalled. From there, Strickland wrestled Bronson Reed on “NXT,” and in doing so, earned post-match praise from Michaels. In the months following, Strickland also won the NXT North American Championship and earned more microphone time, the latter of which allowed him to showcase more of his personality while also becoming more comfortable on camera.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “The Breakfast Club” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.

It’s only been three weeks since Joe Tessitore joined the “WWE Raw” commentary desk, and this past Monday, he had his first opportunity to call a main event title match as Jey Uso defeated Bron Breakker for the Intercontinental Championship. During the show, Tessitore also gave a shoutout to “Busted Open Radio” during the show as he’s an avid fan and listens to the podcast daily. 

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Bully Ray has reacted to Tessitore mentioning “Busted Open” on WWE television and gave him credit for his enthusiasm during the main event. 

“Big shoutout, two thumbs up, yippee ki-yay mother trucker to our good friend at the announce table on ‘Monday Night Raw,’ Joe Tessitore. What a great job last night. I’m being serious, I think he did a really great job last night, and I noticed in the main event, he really caught my attention last night. It was a very exciting main event, Jey Uso and Bron Breakker tore it down. Tessitore brought something to the table last night in that match that I haven’t heard from him yet. He brought this level of excitement that made me turn my head. It made me tune in even more with my ears.” 

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Ray also credited fellow “Raw” commentator Wade Barrett for being able to guide Tessitore in the early stages of his WWE broadcasting career and thinks he is doing a great job. He also believes that Barrett has brought credibility to the announce table and his commentary work has shone brighter than his career as a wrestler.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Busted Open Radio” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.