Pat McAfee has come into NXT like a wrecking ball, and though he didn’t come out on top in his very first match against Adam Cole, he’s since upped the ante, forming a team of his own that to this point has given the Undisputed ERA more than they can handle. Now Team McAfee is set to take on the group at TakeOver WarGames, and the match has a big fight feel thanks to an impressive build between the groups as well as McAfee’s skills on the microphone. ComicBook.com had the chance to speak to McAfee ahead of the big match, and during the conversation we talked about how he came into NXT, the creative freedom he’s had since coming in, if he wants a title shot down the line, and more, including if he still wants to play Captain American in the MCU.
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First though we wanted to see what the most enjoyable aspect of his time on the black and gold brand is currently, and it’s undoubtedly finally getting to get out from behind the commentator’s desk and in the ring.
“I think the most enjoyable process has been just getting a chance to be a part of it,” McAfee said. “As a lifelong fan of professional wrestling, when I got the opportunity to do the kickoff shows, Michael Cole extended me an opportunity to do a kickoff show three years ago for them, I saw it as an opportunity to get into the business a little bit. And every time, when I was doing those kickoff shows, I would always talk to Cole and Cole was like, ‘What do you want to do here? It feels like you understand our business. You want to do it?’ I’m like, ‘Hey, listen, I love the kickoff show. I’m a big fan of it. I respect everybody’s work here, but I think I’m supposed to be in a god**** ring.’”
“I think, ever since I was a kid, and I think anybody you talk to in my past, whether it was junior high, high school, college, even when I got into the NFL, I’ve always said that I think that I was supposed to be a professional wrestler,” McAfee said. “I’m athletic, I’m not the best athlete on planet earth but I’m rather athletic. I’ve always been able to share my opinions and thoughts and be able to speak, and I’ve always enjoyed having a little personality and whether people loved you or hated me, I didn’t really mind. I got police escorted out of a soccer game whenever I was in high school, and I enjoyed it because the fans on the other team were threatening my life or whatever. So I just always thought I was supposed to be in this business.”
“And then whenever I got the opportunity in the kickoff show, and then now getting an opportunity to experience what it’s like, it’s been really cool obviously. I think the hardest thing is obviously, wherever you’re kicking and punting or whatever, which I did in the NFL, I don’t have to have triathlon lungs or cardio or be in that great of shape. There were some years where I looked like an absolute slob, but I could kick the hell out of the ball, so it didn’t matter. So I think that has been the thing, just maintaining shape, the diet, for if anything pops off, I’m ready and prepared. Whenever you get in there, you’ve got to be able to do the work. So I think that’s probably the lifestyle change, I think, that is the most noticeable for me. But aside from that, I’ve just been enjoying the hell out of the entire process.”
McAfee feels like a natural on the microphone, and that’s because between his show and his personality, in general, this is second nature to him. That experience is also why NXT trusted him to just run with things as he saw fit right from the beginning.
” Yeah, I think when I first did that kickoff show, because I had heard the horror stories about how every word is scripted and they’re going to tell you this, this, this, and this. When I got that first kickoff show, they did a rehearsal for the lighting and for the camera to make sure everything was good and tech-wise, and during the rehearsal, they were like, ‘All right, let’s run through this. And then this will happen.’ Nobody really did any talking. And I asked Michael Cole, I was like, ‘What do you guys want me to say? Because I thought like you guys… What am I allowed to say? What am I not allowed to say?’ And Michael Cole looked at me and he said, ‘I’m not going to tell you how to be Pat McAfee.’ And I was like, ‘All right, okay. I appreciate that.’”
“So that’s how it was during the kickoff show, and then whenever Mr. H and I got to this point of me doing a run there with Adam Cole before TakeOver 30 and all that, there was a couple of times where I was going to talk and do that whole thing, and I was like, ‘Is there anything you don’t want me to say?’ He was like, ‘I’m not going to tell you how to be Pat McAfee.’ So it’s been, the amount of trust I think, that Mr. H and Cole and all the incredible people behind the scenes at NXT have put in me is one that I view as a great honor. And with that, I can’t f*** it up. You know what I mean? I’ve been bestowed an incredible honor here to have a little bit of freedom and stuff like that.”
“I’ll ask them some help on things. It’s not like I’m above getting help and they would definitely do that because they’re the best in the business in all facets of it, but it’s been a lot of freedom and a lot of like, ‘We don’t want to tell you how to be Pat McAfee. You can do that yourself.’ It’s been really, really cool and I am eternally grateful to Paul and to everybody for that trust,” McAfee said. “And it’s just my job to go out there and deliver, and whenever I don’t, I’m assuming I’ll get kicked out of here and that’s kind of how I view everything basically is when I do my job, let’s do it. And when I don’t, see you later.”
McAfee has succeeded in building the hype for their WarGames match, but we had to ask what he wants next (assuming they win), and if he has any title aspirations as a solo star.
“We’re going to win WarGames. I have three badasses alongside me,” McAfee said. “The team that I pieced together here, that was expensive to put together. It’s an incredibly badass group, and I literally see no possible chance for any other outcome than a victory, which is good because then I can continue to say that I am an undefeated professional wrestler if you just don’t count that that one match against Adam Cole at TakeOver 30. Aside from that, I’m still an undefeated wrestler.
When it comes to the titles, I don’t know. As a lifelong fan of the business, I’m going into my second match ever. I think if you were to give me a title, I’m not a hundred percent sure that that’s doing anybody any favors or justice, but if I get to the point where I think I deserve it or I’ve earned it, you’ll probably hear from me if I had to guess.”
“So obviously, every kid that grew up watching WWE or every human that’s a fan of WWE has dreams and aspirations of becoming a champion, but I think when the time is right, the time is right,” McAfee said. “It’s not like I’m going out and just being like, ‘Whatever, if we win WarGames, which is definitely going to happen, I want to be NXT champion.’ Because I think there’s probably a lot of work that I still have to put into to get to that point. But if it ever comes to that point, I will make sure that I’m the best representative of the brand I could possibly be.”
McAfee had his first match at TakeOver 30 but then didn’t show up on television for a bit until his surprise return and faction formation later on. There wasn’t a concrete plan in place on how long he would be with the brand at that point, and while there still isn’t, McAfee is down for as long as it lasts.
“The first run there for TakeOver 30, I think I was viewing it as I’m never going to get an opportunity to do this again, just because of how many times I asked to get into the wrestling part of the business,” McAfee said. “It was always like, ‘Ah, maybe later, maybe later, maybe later, maybe later.’ I viewed it as if it was my only opportunity I was ever going to get in my entire life. That’s kind of how I viewed it. So I wanted to go all in and then whenever we were done with it, obviously the loss is a little bit disheartening, but the longest-running NXT champion will never forget the time that he had to take me on my first ever match. I gave him everything he could handle, made a couple of rookie mistakes.”
“And then afterward, I don’t think there were any plans by anybody to continue it. Let’s see how it goes, almost type thing,” McAfee said. “And whenever my family and I, my boys and I, we talked it over, it was like, why wouldn’t I? I enjoyed the hell out of it. I loved it. I thought my entire life that I was supposed to be in the business but it was kind of a dream and I don’t know much about the business though at this point. I have a lot to learn. I thought it was like, yeah, I think I was right. I think I’m supposed to be in this business. So then when the opportunity arose yet again, it was like, yeah, I have to go do this.”
“So I don’t know if there’s anything contract-wise, set in stone or whatever, but I’m very grateful for the opportunities that Triple H has given me for this lifelong dream,” McAfee said. “I enjoy the hell out of it. I think I’m really good at it, and I would assume this is going to be something that sticks around in my life, but I have my show, I run a business. I have a lot of other things that go on. So it will be interesting to see that balancing act, but it is something I’ve really, really loved doing now.”
McAfee wants to be part of what lifts NXT higher, and that includes against competition from the other brands. When we brought up maybe crossing over with Raw or SmackDown, it’s team NXT all the way.
“I’m assuming there’s a lot of guys that would want a chance to potentially help me earn my stripes in this business, in RAW and SmackDown, but to be completely transparent, I want NXT to get better ratings than both of those shows. That’s how I feel. So I don’t have any aspirations to do anything like that. I’m very grateful for the NXT folks. I love that the roster is so incredibly talented. The people behind the scenes are awesome. Adam Cole is obviously a scumbag and so is his group of friends in the Undisputed ERA, but I have not even thought about that particular thing, and I’m not sure if I ever will.”
While he’s not interested at the moment to jumping to Raw or SmackDown, it turns out he still is interested in taking over for Chris Evans as Captain America in the MCU, something he brought up previously on social media. We gave him the choice of any hero, but it was Cap hands down.
“I think Captain America would be it, and when you were asking about titles earlier, the only one I remember truly dreaming about as a kid is the United States Championship,” McAfee said. “So I almost said that, but then I’m like, well, I’m nowhere near the point where… and that’s not even on our brand. So it’s like, that would be a tough one. I don’t know. I think Captain America is, for me especially, and I’ve always said this, if you want to learn exactly how a country feels about America, go ahead and drop me right in the middle of the country, because I am basically the stereotypical American. Obviously, people see me in my jorts and my tank top, but you can just see me and you just know like, ‘Okay, that dude is a Yankee.’ It’s been said to me, by the way, in numerous different countries. So I think Captain America would be the dream role if I was to get into that particular world. And I think I’m still with that.”
We’ll have even more from our interview with McAfee soon, but you can see him leading his team when they hit the ring for NXT TakeOver WarGames tonight at 6 PM EST and you can see him in action on NXT every Wednesday starting at 8 EST on the USA Network.
Will Team McAfee take the win tonight, and do you want to see him as Cap? Let us know in the comments or as always you can talk all things NXT with me on Twitter @MattAguilarCB!
