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WWE stars Shotzi Blackheart and Tegan Nox thought SmackDown debut was one-off match
The team are making a charge for the gold (Photo: WWE)
WWE superstars Shotzi and Nox admitted they didn’t realise they were being called up to SmackDown until after their first match.
The duo, who have already picked up two wins over Women’s Tag Team Champions Natalya and Tamina since debuting on the blue brand, thought their first appearance was a one-off to build to something with NXT at SummerSlam.
Speaking exclusively to Metro.co.uk, Tegan Nox said: ‘We pretty much found out the day of SmackDown, after the match, that we were getting called up.
‘We knew we were having a tag match on TV but we didn’t even think we were getting called up until after the match. John Laurinaitis was like, “Congratulations, welcome to SmackDown!” Like, oh – I guess we go here now!
‘I assumed it would be something like when we did the whole invasion angle with NXT attacking SmackDown and Raw. I just assumed it was something like that, maybe happening at SummerSlam. “No, you’re on SmackDown now!” Oh, ok – thank you!’
It’s been a whirlwind for the team – who previously battled Bayley and Sasha Banks for the tag team gold on NXT last year – but they’re happy to embrace whatever challenges come their way.
Shotzi, whose Blackheart surname didn’t make the jump to SmackDown with her, smiled: ‘I’m just used to the chaos now. Things change all the time, everything happens so quickly so you really have to be ready for anything being a WWE superstar!’
Tegan admitted she was worried the roster wouldn’t want to work with ‘the new girls’, but everyone has made them feel right at home on the blue brand.
‘Tamina’s been really really good. She’s a mother to the entire women’s lockerrom anyway, but she calls us babies because we’re the babies of SmackDown now,’ she gushed.
That entire women’s lockerrom – including the men’s – they’re so nice and supportive. They wanna help you succeed, which I didn’t thing was gonna be a situation. I thought us being the new girls, “Oh God, no one’s gonna want to wrestle us!” ‘
The roster has welcomed them with open arms (Photo: WWE)
Her tag team partner added that Cesaro has also been on hand to help out, while Nox is glad to have someone like Finn Balor around after he recently made a return to SmackDown following a two-year spell in NXT.
She added: ‘He’s been really, really helpful! Obviously, he’s been all over the world, he’s been on the main roster and NXT so he knows the difference.’
Of course, the pair are more than capable after spending years honing their craft and proving why the deserve to be on the biggest stages – and a big part of that comes from creating a unique style, which in turn means looking outside wresting for influences.
They’re already making waves (Photo: WWE)
‘I guess I haven’t really got a character as such – I’m just myself, which can be boring, can be weird, can be funny, it’s depends,’ she said.
‘But it comes to your gear, hairstyles, your moveset, how you move in the ring. You pick that from everything – from video games, movies, books, comics, everything!’
Shotzi agreed, adding: ‘Most of my image and the way I move and what inspires my character, I pull from horror movies and comic books. You don’t wanna be – I mean, I’m inspired by a lot of wrestlers. But I wanna be the first Shotzi! I don’t wanna be like anyone else.’
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They have both had their share of setbacks, including injuries, along the way but a love for wrestling has kept them going.
‘Wrestling is just so much fun and so exciting all the time. I think because we love it so much, there’s never a dull moment. Fighting through injuries or anything really, it’s worth it for us,’ Shotzi beamed.
Nox agreed, although she’s got one key goal keeping her motivated as she rises up the ranks in WWE.
‘Honestly, I’m just trying to be my nephew’s favourite wrestler, ’cause it’s not me! I’m just trying really, really hard,’ she laughed. ‘It’s Candice [LeRae], and they moved me before I could [beat her].’
*WWE SmackDown airs Friday nights at 1am on BT Sport 1.
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