Tom Phillips Talks Biggest Challenges In WWE, How Much He Was Produced

After nearly a decade in WWE, Tom Phillips was released by the company on May 27. 

Phillips provided commentary on every brand throughout his WWE tenure, most recently calling the action on Raw during the pandemic era. 

Following his release, Phillips appeared on the Sports Media podcast with Richard Deitsch and was asked about the toughest part of being in WWE. 

“I got hired at 23, which is a blessing and a curse. I had everything to learn about pro wrestling. I was a casual fan as a kid, but I had to learn everything from the ground up and no broadcaster at 23 is really that finely polished. Everyone at WWE did an amazing job getting me up to speed as a broadcaster like working in a studio and working with a teleprompter. Basics. They gave me so many opportunities to learn those things,” he said. “The toughest thing about WWE is, if you’re coming in, and there are plenty coming in who don’t know pro wrestling inside out, you have to get up to speed quickly. You find the right people who have your back and will support you and teach. I had so many people like that, but it took years for me to get comfortable, that’s how intricate the product is.”

Any announcer who comes through WWE always discusses having Vince McMahon in their ear and being produced by the boss. 

When asked about having producers in his ear, Phillips replied, “It happens regularly, but it also depends on who you are. My experience is different from everyone. The misconception about WWE is that you can just call it like a sport and it’s entertainment. It’s geared to be like the TV show you watch. We’re trying to tell stories and my micro-view can sometimes be very different than the macro-view. There were things that I could be told like, ‘try this, say this’ and it was because they were seeing macro and I was seeing micro. To have that over my shoulder, I found better, and then I’d learn the next time out. If the story gets told better is that great stories are what you remember. If I can be part of telling those stories, that’s my job.”

Elsewhere on the podcast, Phillips discussed Adnan Virk replacing him on WWE Raw. You can find his full comments by clicking here. 

Phillips also posted a statement on his release, which you can read by clicking here.

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