Riley Escobar
GOAT
With Vince McMahon stepping back and sitting out, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon took the reins and hosted a media gathering for the grand opening of the new WWE Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. The structure seemed modest from the outside, but once I stepped through the doors, it was clear that the idea was to create an "all in one" fortress of training, conditioning and medical care. Because, make no mistake, this top of the line facility was Triple H's "baby." His big initiative; with wife Stephanie in full support mode.
And save for guys like Cena, Punk and Del Rio, the WWE Superstars and legends were out in full force for this event. As I walked inside, The Big Show, Mark Henry, Tons of Funk and the Bellas, all dressed to the nines, were there to greet the press. Sheamus, Paul Heyman, The Shield, Dolph Ziggler, AJ and Big E. were also about. Looking around, you could see seven rings (two being used for a stage and production zone at the time), with all the current guys and gals in WWE developmental running drills with their trainers - Bill DeMott, Billy Gunn and Norman Smiley. I could see the newly hired Sami Callihan taking falls in what I deemed (presumedly) to be a "new to development" ring. On the other side of the 2,000 square-foot hanger-like area was a ring that contained guys like indie stars Chris Hero and El Generico - now Kassius Ohno and Sami Zayn. Over in the Divas ring, Paige, who everyone (including myself) wants to see break out onto WWE TV as soon as humanly possible, was doing a series of rolls.
Icons from yesteryear also walked and talked. Guys like Dusty Rhodes, Sgt. Slaughter, Larry Zbyszko, Michael Hayes and Steve Keirn.
I spoke with DeMott briefly about the place and he marveled at it, saying "You don't know you can go to the moon until you do it." He also said that about 20 or more new talents joined the developmental program just that week.
But only Triple H could properly explain Triple H's latest endeavor. "I think the biggest thing for me, when I first started thinking of this, was that it be all-inclusive," Triple H told me. "It wasn't one thing. It was all of it. Our business is not one thing. Our business is like a giant puzzle with many pieces. And the more pieces you have, the more success you have and the better it is."
Triple H and Stephanie McMahon preside.
"And I think to be able to train our talent on every aspect of their life, not just what they do in the ring or on the microphone, but every aspect of who they are is crucial," he continued. "Their health, their wellness, their in-ring, their verbal skills, their life management skills, their finances, everything. I wanted this place to include all of that so you don't have the issues of the past. So you can move forward into the future and make the most successful, productive and well-rounded athletes the WWE, or anybody else, has ever seen."
Triple H - aka Paul Levesque - now only a part time WWE performer, had been looking to make his mark as full-time WWE COO. "I started in a warehouse in a boxing ring," he said. "Which was about half the size of these rings with no give to it. No AC, no heat. It was as bare bones as you could get. But you did it for the love of the business. But from that time until now, the WWE has gone from high schools to stadiums. From local to TV to global TV and Pay-Per-Views. This center now catches that learning process up with where the business is today. This is the future. Every talent that you see in the future in the WWE roster will come through this system."
"I think it really takes the leadership of somebody like Paul who is one of our greatest Superstars of all time, Triple H," Stephanie McMahon, Executive Vice President, Creative, added. "He's lived it. He's experienced it. He's learned it. And he's able to now take all of that and apply it to making things so much better for future Superstars and Divas."
The seven-ring training area, complete with a cushioned ring for top rope bump training, is armed to the teeth with closed circuit cameras that create real time connectivity between the Performance Center and WWEs headquarters in Stamford - allowing WWE executives to give instant feedback regarding what they see in the rings. There's also a Promo Room - a small, private studio that allows talent to practice on-camera techniques and work individually on character development; all self-operated through an iPad interface.
Dusty Rhodes helps a Wyatt Family member with his on-camera work.
But it's not just wrestlers and refs who get trained in the WWE Performance Center. There's also a VO booth designed for announcers-in-training to work with seasoned professionals, like Jim Ross and Michael Cole, in order to hone their live action announcing and play-by-play skills.
Jim Ross (back, right) participates in a trainee recording session.
In addition, the Performance Center holds a 5,500 square-foot strength and conditioning room featuring world-renowned strength coach Joe DeFranco serving as a consultant and on-site medical care headed up by Dr. Michael Sampson, who holds regular office hours within the facility.
"Florida is such a great location for the WWE," Triple H explained. "We have so many fans here. We've been here for WrestleMania. We'd love to be here for more WrestleManias. Orlando and this region is already such a massive attraction for the world, and so adding WWE to that makes it that much bigger."
IGN Tours New WWE Performance Center - IGN
Thank you Paul
Didn't know that 
