If any of the quotes from this article are used, please credit the Gorilla Position podcast with an H/T to POST Wrestling for the transcription[s].
MVP made his return to WWE at the 2020 Royal Rumble pay-per-view in Houston, Texas. The following night on RAW, he competed in a one-on-one match against Rey Mysterio and those appearances led to MVP becoming a backstage producer with the company. He then began to transition to an on-screen character and fast forward to present day, he is the current WWE United States Champion and managed Bobby Lashley to a WWE Title match at Backlash in June.
MVP spoke about his new journey in WWE while on the Gorilla Position podcast and revealed that he and WWE are working on a new deal to extend his time in the company.
“It went so well that I was invited to San Antonio the night next for Monday Night RAW and I was given an opportunity to wrestle Rey Mysterio who’s my son’s favorite wrestler and then I was offered a job as a producer which I accepted because I had the intention of retiring anyway, and I was working as a producer and then I was asked to do an on-screen V.I.P. Lounge and then I was asked to do a short match and another on-screen segment and another and another and another and before I knew it, my producer — my responsibilities as a producer became less and less as I was asked to do more and more as talent, and now I can say that the WWE and myself are in negotiations for a long-term deal.”
Elsewhere during the interview, MVP praised some of the talents on the RAW roster that he’s had the opportunity to work with. He spotlighted Apollo, Ricochet, Cedric Alexander, The Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins), Aleister Black and The Viking Raiders (Erik & Ivar).
“Oh man, I’ve had such a blast working with Apollo. He’s so coachable, so hungry. He’s got a great attitude. I’ve been lucky recently to work with Ricochet and Cedric Alexander and again, two tremendously talented individuals who just need reps, they need opportunities and hopefully I’ll be able to continue working with them more. The Street Profits (Montez Ford & Angelo Dawkins), just blow me away. They’re so entertaining, so cool. I think they’re great. I had a chance to wrestle the Viking Raiders in a tag match not too long ago and from the first time I saw those guys, I was just impressed by the athleticism and I was aware of them when working in Japan as well. So I never thought I’d have an opportunity to wrestle them and it was great so, the talent that I’ve been able to work with, I’ve been so impressed by these guys. Aleister Black is another guy who’s just impressed me in and out of the ring. There’s no shortage of tremendously talented guys and they all receive me very well and it’s also very humbling when some of those guys will come to me and ask for advice and ask me for my opinion on things and I’m also willing to share with them because when I came in, so many years ago, the veteran guys who were there in place had no hesitation or qualms about sharing their experience and knowledge with me so, that’s just the way the game goes.”
In regards to what’s next for him in the WWE seeing as how he and the company are working on a new deal, MVP sees himself transitioning into a Paul Heyman-esque role. He feels that he has about three years left in the ring and on top of that, he wants to see Bobby Lashley as WWE Champion and for him, he also wants to continue being an on-screen manager.
“That’s interesting because, I really see myself moving into a Heyman-esque role as I get older, but I still have a good two-to-three years of bumping left in this body. I can still go, and… I’ve done just about everything that I’ve wanted to do and I think maybe winning the tag titles with Lashley, send Lashley to a WWE Championship run. Those are some of the things I’d like to see. For now, for the immediate future, I would like to continue to be involved in the ring and have singles matches and tag matches. But over the next couple of years, I imagine I’ll be doing less of that and more of just the managerial responsibilities and I’m enjoying that a great deal.”
MVP was crowned United States Champion this past Sunday at Extreme Rules after Apollo Crews was not able to compete in their title match. To get a recap of the latest installment of RAW, head over to the “podcasts” section of the site for the newest Rewind-A-RAW episode.
