AEW star Big Bill has undergone several major transformations throughout his wrestling career, but most fans will remember that his big break came in WWE, where he wrestled as Big Cass alongside tag team partner Enzo Amore. Appearing on a recent edition of “Talk Is Jericho,” Bill reflected on partnering with Amore in developmental and how they broke through in WWE together.
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“We moved to Orlando and we finally got a break on TV, on NXT,” Bill said. “We were nobodies, and Enzo got squashed by Mason Ryan, but Dusty [Rhodes] said, ‘Give him a promo. That’s all I’m asking,’ in the production meeting. And they gave him a promo. [John] Cena happened to be there.”
Cena was impressed by what he saw from Amore, causing him to ask around about the duo backstage, with people in the company’s developmental system telling Cena they liked what they saw out of the tag team. This caused Cena to ask Amore and Big Cass to perform an untelevised in-ring segment with him that night.
“We went out there and the ‘SAWFT’ thing hit big,” Bill continued, referring to one of the team’s catchphrases. “People loved it and from that moment forward, that NXT crowd in Orlando loved us. All it took was Cena doing that one promo.”
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Enzo & Big Cass Continue Their WWE Ascent
From that point, Amore and Cass continued rising through the ranks of WWE NXT, spending several years grinding on that circuit. Eventually, the duo became so popular that they landed on Vince McMahon’s radar and were tested out on main roster live events. Still, it took until the following year before they received the official call-up.
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“WrestleMania [32] was coming around in Dallas, and we’re pressing — we’re like, ‘Man, we’ve been on so many loops. Are we gonna get called up?'” Bill stated. “Finally, Hunter pulled me and Enzo into a room after the NXT pay-per-view and said, ‘You’re getting called up Monday.'”
Looking back on that 2016 episode of “WWE Raw,” Bill recalled confronting the Dudley Boys after they suffered a loss, with the crowd providing huge reactions to their routine. That caused the people in the back to take immediate notice of the tag team, setting them up for a couple of years of success before their WWE run came to a close.Â
Both men were eventually released from WWE at different points. While Bill has gone on to find success in promotions like AEW and TNA Wrestling, Amore has remained active on the independent scene under the ring name Real1.
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If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Talk Is Jericho” with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
