Taz was recently interviewed by CBS Sports Local and talked about Jinder Mahal, Shinsuke Nakamura, and more. Here are the highlights:
Whether Jinder Mahal’s is “too-much-too-fast” right now:
“I don’t think so at all. A lot of fans will say the guy wasn’t pushed, they weren’t doing much with him and he was losing a bunch of matches. To me it’s all about, and if Vince McMahon where here he’d agree, if a guy’s in-ring work is strong enough, if he can sell tickets on the microphone and get the proper reaction, has some size, looks believable, it’s ‘Hey, let’s give this guy a shot.’ I don’t have a problem with it at all. … To me, if a guy checks all of those boxes, I have no problem with it. Actually, Jinder Mahal, I’m a fan of his work and his promo style. He’s one of the few that have legitimate heat on the microphone in that company.”
If Mahal will fare better than The Great Khali:
“He’s better. He’s a better worker. He’s better on the microphone. He can get a connectivity, whether negative or positive, with the audience. No disrespect to Khali, but I don’t think he’s anywhere physically or verbally that Jinder is. It’s two different animals. I get your drift and the Indian market and all that. But as a performer and athlete, it’s apples and oranges. I’d take Jinder 10 times over to lead as a performer from that country.”
If he’s surprised Nakamura isn’t battling Randy Orton in the main event:
“No, I’m not at all. Vince McMahon might have a slight hesitation because of connectivity. The lack of an ability to speak strong English to draw people. Nakamura is a tremendous talent, loaded with athleticism, charisma and toughness. I’m a big fan of his, but you have to be able to talk people into the building. This is a good starter angle on the main roster for him, because Ziggler is doing the heavy lifting on the microphone.
I’m not surprised that Vince hasn’t put him in the title picture with Randy Orton. Actually, I’m surprised he’s getting this type of push already. I’m not saying he doesn’t deserve it. I’m just saying it’s a little tough sometimes, and this is the way WWE looks at it, if you can’t go out and cut a promo that people are going to gravitate to. That doesn’t mean that someone who doesn’t speak can’t get over. There are different guys with managers as mouthpieces or speak here or there, and it’s pretty obvious that’s what they’re doing with Nakamura. This is a good way for him to start getting pushed.”
For the full interview, check out CBS Sports Local.
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