Dominik Dijakovic Reflects On WWE Rejection, Keith Lee Feud

Although he has since become a popular Superstar amongst the NXT faithful, there was a time when Dominik Dijakovic struggled to join WWE. Appearing on WWE’s The Bump, Dijakovic reflected on being rejected by the company after his first tryout for FCW in 2013.

“It was an interesting experience,” Dijakovic said. “It was one of those experiences that it felt like it was a lifetime ago because everything was so different about the WWE and what’s now the Performance Center. The whole facility was as big as where I’m doing this interview now. It was a couple of rings and incredibly hot…”

He continued, “It was difficult for me to accept that I didn’t have what it took at the time to be in the WWE. It was kind of like a harsh reality. At the same time, you use that as motivation, an experience, a stepping stone to learn what it takes to get to the WWE level, especially the developmental level.”

Dominik Dijakovic’s WWE Mentors, Facing Keith Lee

Now a part of the NXT roster, Dijakovic named who has helped him to grow on his WWE journey. He shared how he mostly works with Shawn Michaels and Triple H. “Those are the guys who we see every Wednesday. The Undertaker has also been here, as well as Mark Henry. Those are the guys that I’ve worked closely with.”

Turning his attention to his recent series of matches against NXT North American Champion Keith Lee, Dijakovic acknowledged the in-ring chemistry between them. 

“The pressure is to never have a good match or to top a match or anything. It just naturally happens. There’s a lot of chemistry there. It works out, because he’s a big guy, and I am as well, so that correlates between the two of us. For me, the pressure is always the championship platform. I mean, I’ve been talking about the NXT North American Championship for over a year now. So, anytime that comes into play, that’s my focus and where I put the pressure on myself.”

Dominik Dijakovic recently lost a match to Cameron Grimes on NXT, thanks to the interference of Damien Priest. 

H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.