[MUSIC]
After spending quality time with my fellow WWE superstars and
my brand new ZR2, it's time to head home, for
Orlando and chill with the fastest, the strongest,
the baddest WWE superstar of all time.
>> And don't forget about the prettiest.
>> That's right, who also happens to be my beautiful wife, Bianca Belair and
today, I'm gonna be talking about her passionate journey of hard work and
determination that has made her stand out in the WWE today.
>> I'm ready.
>> Well on that note, welcome to WWE Grit & Glory presented by Chevy Silverado.
[MUSIC]
I remember the first Mania presale, we were both from the performance centre.
You were recruited strictly from your athletic background.
>> I have played almost every sport in the book but
I was able to pull from all of that with every sport that I did but
when I got to WWE, I really couldn't pull anything because I had no idea what I was
doing so I was a little bit overwhelmed and scared a little bit.
>> Just like with everything that's a transition, there's always
a struggle period so what's one of your early main things you struggled on?
>> I think the main thing for me was just the culture,
I had a very difficult time with starting from zero.
I remember the first time I ran and I hit the ropes at my tryout,
I was black and blue, bruise caught my hair from this bump I took.
It knocked the wind out of me, I felt like every time I went left, I was like no,
I'm supposed to go right and every time I zig, I was supposed to zag and
it was just like I can't figure out how to do this the correct way.
>> By you having the mentality of always wanted to be the EST of everything,
that's what made you push through to a lot of things.
That level of determination that you have is motivating and
is that something that you had to learn or it was just instil within you?
>> Growing up, my parents instilled that in me, like my daddy was the first person
that was just like hard work, hard work, everything you do, you have to work hard.
I love the feeling of going to the journey and the hard work and
having that accomplishment.
Coming into WWE, I felt like I had something to prove because I didn't
come from the Indies, I didn't grow up watching wrestling and for a minute,
I felt like I was still in somebody else's dream.
And I'm, I understood how lucky I was so I was even going even harder like that's
always been a, I'm a person that's like I don't do the bare minimum.
>> Right. >> That's right, that's right,
that's what we always say, we do not do the bare minimum.
>> Always extra.
>> Be extra.
>> Surplus.
>> [LAUGH] >> More, more and more.
>> More, more, more.
>> More, more.
>> When you transition from NXT to main roster, no one's holding your hand,
nobody's telling you that you need to go to the gym,
nobody's telling you to study and watch film.
Your success is solely up to you, do you wanna succeed?
So you're grinding and you're hungry to get to that top spot but
then when you get to that spot, it's even harder staying at the top.
>> And why is it harder staying at the top you feel like?
>> Because I feel like everybody thinks that once you get the title,
your work is done.
>> Right.
>> No, it starts all the way over cuz now you're proving why you're supposed to
be champion and also now you have a target on your back.
So you have to work even harder because now you have multiple people coming after
you and tough is rough on the body, it's rough mentally, it's rough physically.
And I've been able to pull a lot from my past as an athlete,
it has helped me succeed in WWE.
>> I can't even go down a list of all the stuff you accomplished cuz even in our
house, we running out of space on the wall for all these plaques.
How does one that is the EST prepare for such a big moment?
[MUSIC]
>> I think it's all about.
[MUSIC] You stay ready so
you don't have to get ready and that's really what I just live by,
I prepare, prepare,
prepare all year long because of you never know when the opportunity is gonna come.
And then in WWE, the opportunity can come and you can get Main Event WrestleMania
and then next thing you know, you're losing 20 seconds at SummerSlam.
>> A lot of people don't know how that feels, to be on top of the world and
literally have it like you said, snatched right underneath you.
>> SummerSlam was tough.
>> I was there witnessing it, that's a very hard thing to recover from,
bounce back from so I talked one through something like that happened to them,
how do they bounce back?
>> That title run was about so much more than just me, it was bigger than me so
when to have it snatched away essentially in 26 seconds,
I felt like I didn't just let myself down but I let so many people down.
Looking back on that moment, I have to look and say hey,
SummerSlam was one of the most viewed events in that year and
guess who was a part of the most talked about moment that year?
Bianca Belair, that was my perspective.
I was like okay, I'm just gonna go back to the drawing board, I'm gonna work hard and
I wanna be an example for people that yeah, you can do everything right but
in life, bad stuff is still gonna happen and you can't just give up.
>> You got a long, long, long road of redemption and
this past April in WrestleMania, you got your redemption.
>> I got redemption.
>> You won the Raw Women's Championship from Big Time Becky Lynch.
[APPLAUSE] In fact, give yourself a round of applause,
I got some catching up to do man.
I got a little surprise for you, I know you like my surprises.
>> You give the best surprises.
>> You wanna go?
>> I'm always down for the adventure with you.
>> Right.
[MUSIC]
[LAUGH] You like, you like, you like, you like.
>> I love it.
>> I know for the longest time,
it has been on the bucket list that you wanted to do a picnic so there you are.
>> Always wanted a picnic.
>> Try to keep it healthy.
>> Even the picnic basket, that's a picnic basket that I've always wanted so.
>> Picnic basket, the d'oeuvres.
>> This makes me so happy.
>> The fruits, the meat.
>> The quiche d'oeuvres [LAUGH] >> Here you go,
now you're ready to chop down these healthy hors d'oeuvres?
>> I love it, I love it.
>> Can I have some?
So tell me because you have a lot of young individuals,
including our little ones, Selena that looks up to you so
how do you motivate them, be yourself to overcome obstacles?
>> I mean, we talk about this all the time.
For me the key is is trying, don't be afraid to try,
don't be afraid to try and fail and
sometimes when you try something, you're not gonna be good at it the first time so
don't be, be okay with trying something and not being good at it initially.
The key is consistency and then just waking up the next morning and
starting over.
In perspective, we get so attached to things emotionally and sometimes,
we're in that moment where we are feeling so down and
I think it's good to have someone to vent to like I have you that I vent to and
you validate my feelings, but then there's a point where you're like okay that's it.
Now let's figure out where you're at, let's check your perspective and let's
figure out how to get you out of that rot and where, how are we gonna move forward.
You don't realize how tough you are,
how strong you are until you are in that situation.
You can't say you're tougher, you're stronger till you get to that situation
and you realize how tough and strong you are afterwards and
then you can just rely on it every single time you get to a new obstacle.
>> You figure it out. >> You figure it out.
>> It's what's around you.
>> And what's currently around us is fuel so if you don't mind, thank you for
taking time out, spending time with me, telling me more of your journey,
more elaborate pieces and I'm enjoying myself and I hope you have too.
>> I have enjoyed myself.
>> Okay, we still got some more food left so.
>> Can you catch it?
[MUSIC]
Wow, I can't do that.
>> Really?
>> [LAUGH] No, I can't do it.
>> You wanna try?
>> Okay.
>> Ready?
>> Aah, [APPLAUSE] suarve.
>> I've never done that before.
>> Suarve, suarve, wait we still got some more d'oeuvres so.