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In an interaction with News18 Sports, Bronson Reed talks about his upcoming clash with Seth Rollins at Crown Jewel, his WWE journey and Australia’s new wave of pro wrestlers.
Bronson Reed will take on Seth Rollins at Crown Jewel 2024. (Image: WWE)
With WWE’s annual premium live-event (PLE) Crown Jewel just a few days away, one of the highly anticipated matchups includes one of the company’s up-and-coming stars Bronson Reed taking on the former champion Seth Rollins.
In an interaction with News18 Sports, Reed talks about his upcoming clash against Rollins at the Crown Jewel, his wrestling inspirations, his journey outside WWE, and how he turned it around to make an entry into the main roster.
Reed, whose real name is Jermaine Haley, has received a massive push to be amongst the next line of superstars to take WWE forward as it marches into a new era of pro-wrestling entertainment. He has gained traction as the big intimidating heel, coming in at six feet tall and weighing over 300 lbs (136 kg), who is ruthless towards his opponents. Now against Rollins, Reed has the opportunity of a lifetime where he hopes to put on a show in the PLE to be held in Saudi Arabia.
It has not been an easy road to the main-event scene for ‘Big’ Bronson Reed. The company had decided to release the superstar back in 2021 along with several other talents from the NXT. However, after brief stints in the independent scene, he regained his confidence and returned to WWE the next year, and has since experienced a significant rise in his career.
Reed is among the new wave of Australian pro-wrestlers like Rhea Ripley, Grayson Waller and others that have gained traction under the Triple H regime and the 36-year-old hopes to be a ‘gatekeeper’, to bring in more Aussie talents through to the WWE.
Excerpts
Being up against Seth at Crown Jewel, it is a massive opportunity for you to showcase your talents with some of the best in the business. How big of an opportunity is the upcoming PLE for you?
It’s a huge opportunity. Since returning to WWE, I said that I needed to be in the midst of the main event scene and try and go against these big names in WWE. And Seth Rollins is definitely, if not the biggest name in WWE. There are not many others apart from him that I want to get in the ring with and prove myself against. It is a big deal coming to Crown Jewel, but it’s also something that I am well prepared for.
Looking back at your NXT days, you were babyface at the time and now you really seem to have found your element as the big bad heel in the main roster. How did that switch come about?
I think for me, I have always sort of been more comfortable being that big bad guy. But I always tell people Bronson Reed is a babyface. He always will be. I still see him as a babyface in my everyday life. I come home, I’m a loving husband. I’m a father. It just happens to be if I step through those curtains and go to that ring, I have to be the bad guy to win. So that’s the way I see Bronson Reed. And yeah, I’ll do anything by any means to make sure I get that win.
Having been let go earlier, what has gone right for you in this second WWE stint which has seen you get into this position? Has Triple H helped and are there any others who offer advice?
Yeah, I feel like being away from WWE, I got to have some pretty important matches that sort of gave me my confidence back that when I was going to be in WWE, nothing was going to faze me. And I have sort of been like that since I have returned and I’ve just been waiting for my moment. But I’ve had some mentoring from Triple H himself. He’s the greatest mind in wrestling. So, whenever I get to speak with him, it’s always good. But I’ve had a lot of guidance with Paul Heyman as well backstage, who has helped keep that confidence while I’ve been here in the WWE and then helped me get through to these bigger moments.
There seems to be a lot of mobility combined with strength when watching you in the ring. Not many giants have a finisher where they go on the top rope. Is that something you had in mind to help yourself stand out?
Yeah, one 100 per cent. I started wrestling when I was 18 so I wasn’t as big as I am now. So, I used to do a lot more high-flying moves and different base moves. I made sure as I got bigger that I still wanted to be able to do those things to you know, it does stand out when you get to see a 340-pound man climb to the top rope and jump onto someone whether you’re watching out on television, which is great but seeing it in person is insane. So, I wanted to make sure I could do things that some of the cruiserweights can do, but then bring it into a new light by being a super heavyweight.
Will we see more of those high-flying moves at Crown Jewel?
I am sure you will. Yeah, I am going to, especially when it comes time for these premium live events. I think a lot of the superstars are always going to bust out some special things to make those moments for people to remember.
Coming from Australia, who were some of the biggest local and non-Australian influences that made you want to get into this business? Also, do you see yourself being the face of Australian pro-wrestling like how Khali was for India, Drew McIntyre for Scotland or Bret Hart for Canada?
Yeah, so for me, I was trained by a man named Hartley Jackson, who still wrestles now in Japan. He was the biggest influence on me because I used to go and watch him live as a teenager and then he opened up a training school in my hometown of Adelaide. And that’s how I started wrestling.
As for inspiration growing up, I have been watching wrestling my whole life. So, all of your classics. I watched all of the original WrestleMania and stuff like that. I was a big Ultimate Warrior fan, a big Terry Funk fan, Andre the Giant. And then growing up in the 90s, I was like a Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels kid. They are my inspirations for sure.
Even in my independent days in Australia, I used to coach people. When I went overseas and went to places like PWG, which is a big independent scene here in America, I tried to open doors for other Australians to come in and do what they do. So that’s sort of what I want to do with WWE is hopefully, be a bit of a gatekeeper that can let more Australians in. And you’re seeing it with obviously Grayson Waller and Indi Hartwell, Zaria just debut on NXT. Rhea Ripley is one of the biggest things in wrestling and we are all from Australia so I am hoping to see more of that.
The likes of Rhea Ripley and yourself are some of the Australia-based superstars that have been getting some solid momentum. Is there some chatter behind the scenes or even a group chat where you all help each other?
We don’t have a group chat. We should do that though. I think that I might have to start that. But we’re all obviously very nice to each other. We knew each other before WWE. Even if we didn’t like it, I would be very welcoming to the other Australians because it’s obviously a different way of living. It’s a different type of humour and stuff in Australia to America, so it’s nice to see other Australians and get to joke around.
Can you give us some of the dream matchups you have envisioned for yourself in the WWE (past or present)?
I would have liked that. I always say Shawn Michaels is one of them. One of my dream matches for sure is he’s retired now and stuff. So, I’m not sure if you’d if he would want to do it. But I always thought he had great matches against the big guys. You saw him against Vader, and you saw him against Yokozuna, which was always very entertaining. You saw him against Sid and Diesel. So that’s one of them.
For current people in WWE would like to get in the ring. I got Seth coming up with his old former Shield mate, Roman Reigns. I think if you are in WWE and you don’t want to wrestle the top guy, and that’s what Roman Reigns is, even without a championship, he is the top guy to me. So, he’s the one I would want to get in the ring with.
Watch WWE Crown Jewel on November 2, 2024 LIVE on Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi), Sony Sports Ten 4 SD & HD (Tamil & Telugu) from 10:30 PM IST.
Sony Sports Network is the official broadcaster of WWE in India.
