Drew McIntyre Speaks About How His Time Away From WWE Helped Him Become The Performer He Is Today

Drew has came a long way.

The once-dubbed “Chosen One” of WWE Drew McIntyre was looked upon to be the next big thing during his first stint with the company. Drew went on to capture the Intercontinental and Tag Team Titles in his first run but things did not pan out the way that he imagined and in June of 2014, he was released from his WWE contract. The Scottish big man decided to not let his career fade away after being released from WWE and he returned to the independent wrestling scene, developed a new physique and look and established himself as one of the biggest free agents on the pro wrestling market.

Just three years later Drew McIntyre returned to WWE under the NXT brand and almost immediately jumped to the front of the line by winning the NXT Championship and although he suffered a setback by having to undergo surgery, he would soon be called up to the main roster and is now a co-holder of the RAW Tag Team Titles. Along with other members of the WWE roster, Drew was doing press on behalf of the company in Australia for WWE Super Show-Down and among the many outlets he spoke with, Drew was interviewed by ESPN and was asked about his time away from the sports-entertainment company and how that time away benefited him.

“Totally. The time away was necessary to become the performer I am today.” Drew said confidently. “You know to grow as a franchise player. Somebody that’s able to carry a company and lead a company and also just to grow up. I went from University – signed straight to WWE at 21. I grew up in WWE so I was in my parents house, University were telling me what to do then WWE would tell me what to do. It was the first time I was ever on my own. I was in charge of everything. Every country is different, every audience is different, you have to learn how to adapt. You can’t just go out there with the same mindset and the same match or moves you do every single place because some people might like technical moves, some places might like a bit of entertainment, and you have to be able to adjust on the fly and that’s why our job is so special and not everybody understands that because we’re the craziest improv actors in the world but we’re also doing our own stunts – we also get one take and we also get to play with the crowds’ emotions if you know how to do it and it’s a very fun job, it’s my dream job and I’m literally living the dream and I still can’t believe… I can’t process the magnitude of this show” [WWE Super Show-Down].

The rivalry between the ‘Dogs Of War’ and The Shield seemingly came to an end at WWE Super Show-Down but the two trios could have more in store for one another during tonight’s RAW. Keep your eyes on the lookout for Fightful’s coverage article of tonight’s RAW to keep up with what transpires during the show.

If you are going to use the quote above, please credit ESPN with an H/T to Fightful for the transcription.