WWE Hall of Famer Shawn Michaels had high praise for Kay Lee Ray, as he told Inside The Ropes‘ Lead Writer Gary Cassidy the NXT UK Women’s Champion can emulate the success of two-time WWE Champion Drew McIntyre.
Speaking about the progression of Scotland as a professional wrestling powerhouse as part of a project for BBC The Social, Mr. WrestleMania – who is now a coach at WWE’s Performance Center and oversees the development of NXT and NXT UK talents – would talk about how he’s “very partial” to Gallus. Michaels then pin-pointed Kay Lee Ray as WWE’s “best kept secret” and says Ray can have similar success to WWE Champion Drew McIntyre – if she chooses to move to the United States.
“Kay Lee Ray. She, to me, is probably the greatest… I think, you know, NXT UK Women’s Champion, but she’s just now… She’s the best kept secret. If she ever chooses to come over and come to America, and be part of the WWE from a global standpoint, I see her having the exact same kind of success that Drew has had. She is very, very good and she has done unbelievable work for us over in the UK and I couldn’t be more proud of her because she is an absolutely fantastic young lady.”
Michaels also spoke very highly of The Scottish Warrior himself, reminiscing about McIntyre’s start to life in WWE, and determination to return to the company!
“Drew is a young man who was in the WWE before, at such a young age, went ahead and took a huge chance, a huge risk, bet on himself to go out and establish himself, get more experience and then come back. He came back not having to have to… I don’t know, come in and train and do skulls and things like that. He was on a separate deal and he said, ‘No, I want to come in and work with you as much as I can,’ which just speaks to the character of a young man, and the heart, and the desire that he wanted to grow and to learn and to honestly be the best that he could possibly be.”
WWE legend @ShawnMichaels picks out some of his favourite Scottish wrestlers and discusses Scotland's impact on the wresting world.
@WrestlingGary // @WWEUK // @thatKJGuypic.twitter.com/j6RLTHqQsA
— BBC The Social (@bbcthesocial) March 17, 2021
The Heartbreak Kid would reveal his pride at seeing McIntyre win the WWE Championship at the Show of Shows in 2020, and said he was one of the first to congratulate the Scotsman.
“He’s a man’s man. I used to always tell him, because his first experience didn’t go the way he expected it to. When he came back and we started working together and I watched his his growth and his ability and I said, “Man, you’re a six five, 245-pound Scottish stud, man. I said, ‘They are going to love you. You are going to get back there and you’re going to do well.’ And honestly, it was. I was one of the first guys to congratulate him after he won the championship. So proud of him and everything that he’s accomplished.”
You can read Gary Cassidy‘s full interview with Shawn Michaels here.
Thank you so much to Shawn Michaels for taking the time to chat, and to WWE UK and BBC The Social for facilitating the chat.
You can watch WrestleMania live on the WWE Network on April 10th and 11th, as the Show of Shows emanates from the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.