Meltdown chats with WWE Stars Rusev and Lana
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00:01Riff TV presents Meltdown's Meltdown.
00:08Hey, joined here by Rusev and Lana. Good to see you guys here in Detroit, man.
00:11Thanks for having us. Happy Rusev Day.
00:13Happy Lana Day.
00:14Yeah, Rusev Day. That's right. I almost forgot about that.
00:16Where's your shirt and stuff? You should have some sort of...
00:18Well, I opted out for a custom-made suit. I'm sorry.
00:21A custom-made suit. Yeah, really good.
00:23So you guys are in Detroit. Smackdown tonight, of course.
00:26Now, we were just talking about this on the way.
00:28Have you guys been in the new arena yet?
00:30Yeah, last year, Hell in a Cell, I faced Randy Orton there.
00:34Oh, yeah, that's right. Yeah.
00:35That's when the Rusev Day kind of all started, right?
00:37Because the mayor from Ploediv came?
00:39Yeah, shortly after, yeah.
00:41Oh, is that right?
00:41It's a great arena. I love that arena. Brand new.
00:45State of the art. And fans are always great there.
00:48So, looking forward to tonight.
00:50You had some big doings last night, of course.
00:52And Raw, as well, huh?
00:54I don't watch that show.
00:56Smackdown Live is way better.
00:57Okay, Smackdown Live. All right, there you go.
00:59We want the ratings to go up on Smackdown Live.
01:01We don't want to contribute.
01:02We were in Saginaw last night.
01:03Oh, yeah. Is that right? Yeah.
01:05So it's been a pretty big 2018 for you guys.
01:08Talk about that.
01:10Great year.
01:10I mean, every year I feel like it's been great.
01:12But this year is a revolutionary year for my wife.
01:16That's right.
01:17Yeah, I mean, it's just, it's, I'm super excited.
01:20Actually, you're going to see on Total Divas that premieres September 19th, 9 p.m. East Coast time, 8 p.m. Central time.
01:27You'll see my journey, just continuing my in-ring journey.
01:30I've been very, very lucky to manage my husband, Rusev, from the very beginning and go on the ride with him.
01:37But I've always wanted to be an in-ring competitor.
01:40And so you see that journey, my ups and downs, my setbacks.
01:42And in life, the most important thing is what we do with our setbacks, not just with success, but when we fall flat on our face.
01:49So you're going to see that all in Total Divas.
01:51And I was, this year, able to be in Money in the Bank, which was just a complete dream.
01:57And I won my first match ever on the Mixed Match Challenge with Rusev.
02:03So it was a lot of good firsts.
02:06Like, we got to do an intergender tag match at SummerSlam.
02:08And just being in the ring, competing more, has been just really, really a dream come true.
02:14And showing that hard work does pay off.
02:16Now, I'm sure you guys have heard this question before, but how does your marriage affect your work?
02:21What are the challenges you guys face?
02:23I don't think there's any challenges.
02:25We're together all the time, but we share the same passion.
02:28She's way over-passionate about this wrestling.
02:31It's all about wrestling 24-7.
02:33I love wrestling.
02:33I'm trying to change that a little bit.
02:35I love wrestling.
02:36She just loves it too much.
02:38But I don't think there's any challenges.
02:41You're trying to change her from loving wrestling so much.
02:44Well, no.
02:45It's just that I need a day off or two, you know.
02:47I'm trying to be β I mean, I love wrestling.
02:50It was my childhood dream.
02:52But still, when I go home, I don't want to talk about wrestling 24-7.
02:57But that's what she does.
02:57I want to watch wrestling, talk about it, talk about stories, characters.
03:02I love it so much.
03:03I'm very passionate about it.
03:03So maybe that's our biggest challenge.
03:05And our second β I mean, our schedule is just all over the place.
03:10And we had a wedding anniversary two days ago.
03:12We totally forgot about it.
03:14Happy anniversary, by the way.
03:16So that's the challenges.
03:18But those are just minor things that, I mean, everybody has.
03:22I would personally say the challenges is sometimes, like, Rusev really likes to train me really intensely.
03:28And so he sets the standard for my in-ring, like, competing very, very high.
03:36And so, like, you know, if you watch the Mixed Match Challenge at all, like, he would literally have me breaking boards and motch game boards with my hands and with my foots and everything.
03:45My foots.
03:46My foots.
03:47So, I mean, sometimes I can get really intense because you're like, you know, it's β
03:52Because you have beautiful foots.
03:53Because I never feel like I'm, like, good enough.
03:55But, you know, it pays off.
03:57And so thank you, Rusev.
03:59Now, you were talking about, you know, watching wrestling and stuff as a kid.
04:02So who are some of the kids β some of the guys that inspired you when you were growing up?
04:05Hulk Hogan, 1,000%.
04:06The first time I saw him, I wanted to become a professional wrestler.
04:10Now, have you β did you just meet him for the first time?
04:12No, I've met him β even we worked with him before the live event, like, four years ago or something.
04:19But I saw him again a couple weeks ago.
04:21And we get to talk some of his old WrestleMania matches and everything.
04:24He's just β he's amazing.
04:26All the stories and the knowledge that he has, he's just unbelievable.
04:30What about you?
04:31Oh, gosh.
04:31I feel like there's so many different people that I love.
04:33But, I mean, I loved β Miss Elizabeth I loved.
04:36Like, she was just so β she was a star.
04:38You know, she just β
04:39Did you ever have a chance to meet her?
04:41I didn't.
04:42And, like, she β I mean, I just β I'm so obsessed with her.
04:45She was just so β she was just β when you say a star, like, she was a star.
04:49I mean, she didn't even wrestle.
04:50Right.
04:50And β but I've always been a huge fan of Stephanie McMahon.
04:54Like, just the way she tells stories.
04:56And she's just such a compelling character.
04:58And I love her.
05:00Paul Heyman.
05:01I just was always obsessed with Paul Heyman.
05:03I mean, he just blows my mind.
05:05But, of course, people like Trish and Lita and Molly Holly and Ivory.
05:10I mean, there's Mickie James.
05:13Like, they were just incredible in-ring competitors.
05:16Gil Kim.
05:17So, I have a lot of different fans.
05:18You name every single person on the roster.
05:20There's a lot more.
05:22She's obsessed with wrestling.
05:23I guess.
05:25I remember one time, years ago, when the ticket sales would come out, the solid β you know, the physical tickets.
05:31Chris Jericho and Miss Elizabeth were doing a signing for us.
05:33And Chris was late because of a plane or something.
05:36And Miss Elizabeth walked up and down that long line of people and took pictures and was so nice.
05:42Yeah.
05:42Just a nice person.
05:43And she's just β I mean, I loved her so much.
05:46And so β
05:47Also, we love our fans.
05:48And we know how hard they work and able to afford tickets, you know, for the shows.
05:53And we appreciate that.
05:54We like giving back.
05:56And you just mentioned Lita, too.
05:57She might make another return, eh?
05:59Yeah, she's supposed to face actually Mickie James at Evolution, which is so exciting that we're having our first ever women's pay-per-view on October 28th.
06:08I mean, it's just incredible the fact that, I mean, we've been β so many different things we were told we would never do.
06:15And to be able to have main evented the Royal Rumble and have our first β you know, to be a part of the first ever women's Royal Rumble, I'm so grateful for.
06:23And to be β you know, I'm going to be a part of evolution in some shape and form.
06:27I'm going to be crushing people.
06:29And it's just β
06:30With your foots and hands?
06:31Yeah, my foots.
06:32I'm going to be moshking people with my foots.
06:34But it's just β it just shows you that, like, if you have a dream and you are resilient and you chase it, everything β the sky's the limit.
06:43Anything can happen.
06:44Now, before we walked in here, we were talking about wow moments where you can't believe that this is happening to you.
06:49Give me a couple of wow moments where you're like, man, this is crazy.
06:52Maybe our first WrestleMania.
06:54Yeah.
06:55Definitely after β you know, the whole β we had a great year.
06:59Then we had John Cena and a couple of days before the show, we went and sold a tank and we got the vision of, you know, the army and the guns.
07:07And it was like, whoa, this is actually for us.
07:10This is unbelievable.
07:11What about you?
07:13I mean, I definitely agree with him, like, walking down at β with having a Russian army behind me, walking down at WrestleMania 31 in front of, gosh, 100,000 people.
07:23It just β it was a crazy feeling.
07:25But I have so many.
07:27I think definitely being in the Money in the Bank ladder match, like, just β I mean, I was told so many times that I would never be an in-ring competitor.
07:37I wasn't good enough.
07:38I wasn't this.
07:39I wasn't that.
07:39And to be able to be in such a high-stakes match where ladder β I mean, that's β the ladder matches are one of our hardest matches.
07:46And to be in there and to be in the ring with some of the best in-ring competitors of all time, like Sasha Banks and Charlotte and Becky, it just was very, very surreal.
07:56Yeah.
07:57Very.
07:57I love those ladder matches, but I've always said I would never hire a wrestler to do my roof because it takes them too long to go up the ladders.
08:03It's like β right.
08:04I mean, when you get beat up for 10 minutes, it's really hard to get up there.
08:08Body slam on a ladder.
08:10You have baby oil.
08:11It's slippery.
08:11You've got to be careful.
08:13It's much harder than it looks.
08:15I bet.
08:16So, hey, final thing here for you guys.
08:17I ask this people β I ask this of people a lot, I should say.
08:20Like, your keys to success.
08:22What's gotten you this far in the business you love?
08:25You have a goal and you follow it no matter what.
08:29It's really simple, actually.
08:31You've got to be clear vision.
08:33That's what I want to do.
08:35It doesn't matter what it takes me.
08:36I'll get there.
08:37It's always impressed me, though.
08:38Like, we were just talking about Five Finger Death Punch.
08:39The guitar player was born in Hungary, and now he's an American rock star.
08:43And it's like, you know, it's always impressive when these people come from all over the world and just become the best, you know, in America.
08:51Yeah, well, a lot of American people take what they have here for granted, and they don't appreciate it or they don't take advantage of it.
08:59While we, they grew up overseas, you know, it's a harder life and it's tougher, so we're used to, you know, working as hard as we can.
09:08And if you don't want to take your opportunities, we will come and take yours.
09:11Right, exactly.
09:12What do you think the keys to your success are?
09:14Resiliency.
09:15Yeah.
09:16Yeah, I mean, it's what you do.
09:19I mean, I'm a strong believer of if I would have listened to every person that told me I can't do something or no, or I'm not good enough, talented enough, smart enough, like I would have never left my small village of Russia.
09:30I would still be over there.
09:32And it's like, you can tell me no, but I'm going to kick down that door or I'll dig a tunnel underneath it or I'll go around, but I will get there and no human being will stop me from achieving my dreams.
09:43Well, it's been really great to meet you guys.
09:44Thank you so much for the time.
09:45And, of course, tonight's SmackDown at the LCA, I almost said Joe Louis Arena.
09:49You guys, you fought at Joe Louis, right?
09:51Yeah.
09:52Yeah, it was pretty cool.
09:52Great arena.
09:53Hey, by the way, my friend Rhino, what do you know about Rhino?
09:55Oh, I love Rhino.
09:57Rhino's a great guy.
09:57Oh, he's the nicest guy ever.
09:59I met him, let's see my...
10:01He's on a boat.
10:02That's right.
10:02He's always telling me to come out and see his boat.
10:04I actually watched the Stanley Cup celebration here from his boat, the one here in 2002.
10:10Rhino is a great guy.
10:11Every time I see him, I have so much respect for him.
10:14Not for what he's done in the business, but he's just like, as a human being, as a person, he's very, very nice.
10:19Quick Rhino story.
10:20I'm riding my motorcycle, my Harley Davidson, over to his house one day.
10:22This is years ago.
10:23And I go over there and he's planting flowers.
10:26And so I had to help him plant flowers.
10:28So I'm on my motorcycle, my Harley Davidson, and Rhino, this big wrestler, we're all planting flowers in his yard.
10:33I'm looking around for like a candid camera or something.
10:37That's who Rhino is.
10:39Well, guys, have fun here in Detroit.
10:40Thank you for your time.