AEW may have proved to be pivotal in the career of Lexis King, but the NXT Superstar experienced the worst case of self-doubt of his career while he was ‘All-Elite.’
King signed with WWE NXT last year shortly after his tenure with AEW came to an end. King made his in-ring debut for WWE at an NXT live event and has quickly become one of the most prominently featured stars on the roster.
Lexis King on His Self-Doubt
King has quickly become a top guy in NXT, in stark contrast to his tenure with AEW. On the latest edition of the Insight podcast, King spoke about making his WWE NXT TV debut and how he’d felt in AEW.
“It [his WWE NXT TV debut] was great. I was just sitting in it and I’m backstage thinking ‘Is this real?’ I spent, and this isn’t a knock on anybody, but I spent so many months of my career at the previous company, just second-guessing myself. Am I really any good? Am I worth it? A lot of self-doubt. And just to see how my career has done a total 180 since then [is incredible].
“I went from just sitting in the back and filming a few dark matches in Orlando here and there. Six-minute tag matches, barely getting in the ring and feeling the canvas to now, I’m sitting on a throne, making my entrance. In the biggest wrestling company in the world, they have this confidence in me. And it fuels me, now I have confidence in myself.
“Hell, they gave me the name King! It doesn’t get any better than that. So just to feel that 180 and go out there and perform with a certain level of grit and attitude. You know, I’m going to prove everyone one wrong, everyone who didn’t believe in me, It’s a dream come true.”
While King feels he is thriving now that he’s part of WWE NXT, the second-generation wrestler wanted to make it clear he doesn’t resent AEW or his time with the company.
“There’s no ill-will [towards AEW] but it’s just sort of that mindset. I put myself in that mindset. Nobody else put me in that. I just put myself in that mindset of ‘What’s going on here?’ That self-doubt. And I kept griding. Like I said I moved back home. I kept grinding, going to the local [wrestling] school. Trying to find out what makes me tick as a performer. And just the experience living there, the experience I gained traveling with AEW made me the performer I am today.”
King has been embroiled in the storyline surrounding Trick Williams’ mystery attacker from months ago. The former AEW star has implicated Trick’s longtime ally Carmelo Hayes as the culprit.
Lexis King recently had a unique request for his fans…
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