Butch reflects on his name change and emphasizes the positive side of it.
The man once known as Pete Dunne in NXT moved up to WWE SmackDown in March, and he was renamed Butch, a scrappy competitor who quickly aligned himself with Sheamus and Ridge Holland. Since then, he has been featured with the duo, and the group has been known as the Brawling Brutes. The change in his character came during Vince McMahon’s regime, but WWE has been under new leadership since the former chairman retired on July 22. Triple H now leads WWE creative, and under his direction, the Brawling Brutes have received more opportunities to shine.
Speaking with Davie Shoemaker for The Ringer Wrestling Show, Butch was asked about his name change and what he thought about it at the time. He stated that he’s sure the change was done with the best intentions, and he has come to love parts of the character. He emphasized that aims to do his best with whatever he’s given, and he enjoys how the new character has allowed him to show some range.
“To be honest, I think sometimes the waters get muddied with it,” Butch said. “I’m sure the name change and the character change and all that kind of stuff was done with the best intentions. I really do believe that they felt like that was better for me and honestly, this side of it, there’s part of this character that I’ve grown to love. I love this group that we have. It’s also given me a, at first I was able to show range, and now it’s given me a different edge to my personality. There’s a different side to me now because of that.
“But obviously dressing different, it was a big overhaul all in one, and that was the biggest thing, knowing how people were gonna react to it. But all you can do is show up and do your best with it. I was confident that, just give me time and when I get in the ring, no matter what, I can get people to react. Doesn’t matter. There could be any circumstances going on, but if I can get that time in the ring to show what I can do, I know I can connect with the crowd and put on great matches. That’s what I’ve always wanted to do since I was a kid. Whether it’s 50 fans or 50,000, it’s the same. I loved it back then as much as I do now. The whole Butch thing and this sort of a relaunch of myself and the new character was just another opportunity to add another part of my career that people can look back on.
The former NXT star also stated that he wants to emulate stars like William Regal and Kurt Angle, who could put on great matches while also tapping into their comedic sides throughout their career.
“People I look up to like William Regal or Kurt Angle even, one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, I bet a lot of your favorite moments with that guy are comedic sometimes,” Butch said. “He’d make you laugh, cry, all the rest and have great matches too. I hope my career looks the same as that at the end. So I hope there’s great matches and that all holds up, but I also hopefully I can show range and make you feel other ways too.”
Butch went on to emphasize how his top priority is providing for his family, so he tries to approach his work with that in mind. He noted that as long as he can take care of them and enjoy himself, he’s happy.
“I think for me as well, it’s important to take the ego out of it,” Butch said. “I have a daughter. That’s my biggest concern in life is my wife, my daughter, and that side of things, so a lot of times I just try and take any ego or any of that stuff out of wrestling and just look at it for what it is.
“We’re making an amazing living doing this, we’re getting to go out there in front of a ridiculous amount of people, we get to be a part of WrestleMania, we get to do so many amazing things and it’s because of the job that we do. So any opportunity I get, I’m gonna smash it to the best of ability. But as long as I can provide for them and give them an amazing life and enjoy what I’m doing alongside it, I’m happy.
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