It’s almost time.
WWE and the Saudi General Entertainment Authority will be holding its next mega-event, WWE Crown Jewel, at the Mohammed Abdo Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia tomorrow, Thursday, October 21 at 7.00 pm Riyadh time.
The event, which marks WWE’s return to the Kingdom after a number of historic moments, will feature a packed card, including Drew McIntyre vs. Big E for the WWE Championship, as well as Universal Champion Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar, and Becky Lynch, Sasha Banks and Bianca Belair in a Triple Threat match for the SmackDown Women’s Championship.
Ahead of the biggest event in the region in the last two years, Esquire Middle East spoke to Drew McIntyre himself, the two-time WWE Champion and current number one contender about the match against Big E, how far he’s come in his career from his lowest moments, what’s driving him now, and how he thinks about the current competition in the wrestling world.
Read our full conversation here or watch it here:
How’s it going, Drew?
Amazing. How are you buddy?
I’m great, the last time I saw you, you had we were in Brooklyn. It was right after you won the NXT Championship and we shared an elevator up to our rooms. We didn’t speak, but you had the championship over your shoulder, and the look on your face, of joy, of satisfaction, is something I’ll never forget.
That’s really cool. Thank you for sharing that with me. That was a very special night just considering my journey to that point. All the ups and downs of returning to WWE, and returning to NXT, where I wanted to come back to become champion,n and everything going exactly according to plan meant the world to me. Probably my wife was probably an elevator with me, and she was such a big part of my comeback, that that night was special for both of us. Thank you for sharing that.
Oh My pleasure. And The Miz was in the elevator with us too, by the way.
Oh that’s nice. I’m sure he was probably talking about himself.
For once, he was only congratulating you!
[Laughs] Well, he’s killing it with his show now, and he’s actually a very nice person, to be honest.
That brings us obviously to the fact that you’re challenging for the championship at WWE Crown Jewel this Friday in Riyadh. How different of a place are you in now compared to how you were back then?
It’s very different now. I am now a two-time WWE Champion at this point, going for my third title. It’s my last opportunity before I move to SmackDown since I’ve been officially drafted to SmackDown, so it’s maybe the last chance to get my hands on the WWE title.
On Monday, Big E told me he gets it now, he understands what it’s like being champion, an incredible feeling, an adrenaline rush—I’m saying the way I would say it, but he described it as juices flowing down his face and body or the way Big E would describe something—but he was saying he understands what it’s like to be champion. Now he can relate to me, knows why I want to be champion again and I had to remind him I don’t know what that feels like.
I was champion at a very different time from today. I don’t know the rush of the live fans I don’t know what it’s like to hear my voice over the fury, feel the eyeballs, sit next to the crowd and experience it live, because when I was champion, It was during difficult times for the world. But as I told him, it’s the proudest times of my career, proudest times in my life, when the world shut down and we pushed ahead to give the world some original content, give them an escape every single week and I got to be WWE Champion and even though I missed those live fan reactions for the biggest moments of my career, and I would never take it back and I’m so proud of that time.
At the same time, I’m still chasing that moment. And I’ve got the opportunity at Crown Jewel, to get that moment against Big E on such a big event, and as much as I admire and respect him, he’s earned the title, I want it back and it’s my last opportunity.
You’re both at the peak of your powers, so it’s exciting you’re bringing this to Saudi Arabia.
Oh, it’s going to be a heck of a match. I’m very excited about it. No matter what has happened between us the last few weeks, I respect Big E and everything he’s been through. He has had his own journey just like I’ve had my journey, he had to overcome a lot to get to the place where he’s a champion and a champion that everyone can point at and say, this guy’s earned it. He doesn’t just deserve it. He’s earned it. And he’s very good at what he does.
When we get in there, we’re going to be dropping bombs, throwing some hard strikes at each other. And that’s going to happen across the card. This is a very exciting show in all the matches. I’m personally excited about, as a fan, you look at Roman Reigns vs. Brock Lesnar. They’re going to be physical as hell. Sasha and Becky and Bianca will be incredible for several reasons. this is an incredible card from top to bottom and I’m very excited to be part of it and very excited to steal the show.
It’s amazing that us in the Middle East get this opportunity to see you guys not just doing a live event, but doing something that is really special, top caliber WrestleMania-level matches in front of a crowd that has always really loved this product and has always really cared about each one of the superstars including yourself.
Yeah, and the Saudi fans truly deserve it I was very pleasantly surprised the first time I went to Saudi and I had a meet and greet when we got to meet the fans in person and they were telling us about their fandom and it wasn’t just the case of like, hey, I saw your poster somewhere, or , hey, I know The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin and John Cena. They were like, hey, this is what happened to you, I know your whole career. They’re genuinely passionate and that makes me excited. We’re bringing such a big show to fans that truly, truly deserve it.
Besides championships, what’s driving you right now? What are you still chasing?
This is all I ever wanted to do for a start, so I don’t feel like I work, I feel like I’m very fortunate to what I’m doing. And I am very fortunate that I work for WWE and am able to do a lot of projects outside the ring and that’s something I’m very excited to be involved with. Any opportunity I get to work with any charitable cause and really make a difference.
Recently I was named the champion ambassador for Special Olympics and have been working with them directly for the past couple of years and my goodness, the perspective you get, inspiration you get, working with those athletes.
In September, for pediatric cancer awareness month, we were doing currently virtual hospital visits, visiting the and no matter what they’re going through a they’re just so upbeat and positive you can’t help going away from it thinking about it. There’s absolutely nothing that really lifts your spirit, gives you perspective and makes you feel like you’re making a difference and it’s bigger than titles, so that’s the stuff that I want to do more of.
When it comes to the wrestling aspect, we have some big events across the world. The UK needs a big event. I will not stop talking about it till the end of time. It’s been 30 years next yar since we had a significant pay per view in the UK, since SummerSlam 92, and hopefully that can happen just like Crown Jewel.
Well, dirt sheets were saying that you were in a meeting last week about this.
I heard that too. Hey, if I’m a spark that ignites a fire then I’m all about it but I’m not going to stop talking about it.
I can’t wait. What went through your head when you were drafted to SmackDown?
In my initial interview right after I got drafted, I was kind of thinking out loud on camera and it wasn’t just the case of I’m coming for Roman. Yes, that’s inevitable, The fans are looking forward to somebody to step up to Roman finally and the Bloodline. But at the same time for me personally that’s where all began for Drew McIntyre. It’s like everything’s coming full circle, back to when I first got to America, I was 22 years old. I was on the show for maybe three weeks to realize that I wasn’t quite ready for television, I got the chance to go to Florida Championship Wrestling, the WWE is developmental at the time, I got to learn what I needed to learn, then I returned to SmackDown, and I spent three years of my career of the lofty expectations the future of the company, ‘this is the guy that’s going lead us to the promised land’, and then everything went wrong.
It was on SmackDown that I had the highs I had in my early 20s, but it was also home to some big downfalls. I’ve always had that in the back of my mind what never worked out. It was my home in my early 20s.
I feel proud to have been the face of Raw for the past couple of years, but being part Raw for three years it does feel like home, but at the same time it will never fully be. Beating someone like a Roman Reigns would really take out of my mind that negative part of my career, negative part of my life, and I would truly be coming full circle if I was able to get that success on Smackdown.
The wrestling world has been talking a lot about competition outside of WWE as of late with other companies. How much is that on your mind?
They should be part of your mind, but I see competition with everybody. If I’m on Raw, I don’t just see other companies as competition, I see SmackDown as competition. I want to produce the best show possible and keep my eyes on the ratings, etc. It doesn’t matter where I am. if the show I’m on.
In my mind, everybody should be thinking we’re competing with literally everyone including the other brands, including NXT, including other companies. And if you’ve got that competitive spirit, it’s going to be better for yourself as a brand and better for the fans.
I’m excited wrestling is healthy once again. When I started. Independent wrestling was non-existent. We had to start a Scottish wrestling scene when I was a kid I helped build up the UK scene, which is amazing now because of NXT UK, but it wasn’t then. I travelled the world and I saw what it was like back then, and independent wrestling was still miniscule. And to see how far it’s evolved to see how big the talent is, and to see so many superstars and wrestlers across the world have a full-time living in wrestling. It’s just unbelievable. And that’s what it comes down to for me is that wrestling is healthy and a lot of my friends have full time jobs now.
No, absolutely. I mean that’s the thing. It’s always about the wrestlers, not just about the company. So I’m glad you guys are doing well. I can’t wait to see what you do next personally.
Thank you, I appreciate that and hopefully you can head to the show in Saudi Arabia because it’s oing to be frickin’ awesome. I can’t wait.
