Q&A: WWE star Omos talks teamwork, training and the Live Holiday Tour
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Some central Ohioans’ post-Christmas plans undoubtedly include spending time with friends and family, watching college football bowl games or bargain-hunting at the mall.
For others, however, there’s no better way to spend the day after Christmas than watching professional wrestlers talk smack and strut their stuff.
Well, get ready to rumble: The WWE Live Holiday Tour will stop at Nationwide Arena on Monday.
Among the WWE stars slated to perform are Bianca Belair, Bobby Lashley and The Miz. Also scheduled to take the ring is Omos, a 28-year-old native of Nigeria who moved to the United States at age 16 and played basketball at the University of South Florida and Morgan State University (and whose name outside the ring is Tolulope “Jordan” Omogbehin).
In anticipation of the upcoming event, Omos — described by the WWE as “the personification of intimidation who is not to be messed with” — spoke by phone with The Dispatch.
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What did you find appealing about joining the WWE?
I remember my tryout. It was my first time in the wrestling ring, and I just remember the emotional aspect of it — having to put some different emotions and just trying to make an emotional connection and let that show through in what you’re doing in the ring. I felt an extreme passion for it and an extreme love for it.
Did you watch WWE growing up?
I’ve always been exposed to it, but it wasn’t something that was my focus at the time because I was focused on playing basketball. Everything in my life engulfed in basketball. But I knew about WWE. I knew about a couple of the superstars, and my grandmother was a huge WWE fan — actually, WWF back in the day. Every now and then, I’d watch it with her.
You had success with basketball at the collegiate level. When you reflect on that time, are there similarities between basketball and what you’re doing now?
They have differences, but there are also similarities. There’s a lot of teamwork that goes into what we do but also ... hard work and perseverance. Especially a person like myself, who is well above 7 feet — 7 feet, 3 inches, to be precise — you have to work a lot on your footwork.
At your height, is footwork the most challenging thing in the ring?
Not necessarily, because I’ve been playing basketball my whole life. When you’re a center, all you pretty much work on is hook shots, drop-steps — you’re working on your footwork 50%, 80% of the time. ... You’re working with a very limited amount of space on the block.
Are you the tallest WWE wrestler?
Yes, I am.
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If someone is coming to the WWE Live Holiday Tour in Columbus, what can they expect from you?
They are coming to see a giant of a human being, ... someone who is 7, feet, 3 inches, 460 pounds, but moves like he’s 6 feet, 5 inches, 260 pounds.
What do you project in your persona?
I am the Goliath of the WWE.
Do you have signature moves in the ring?
I just have to beat people up. ... I let the other guys have the moves. I just go there to beat people to a pulp.
What’s your training regimen like?
I think everybody watches what we do on TV and thinks they can do this, but first of all, for me the rude awakening was to go into the ring and actually try to learn how to wrestle. It’s not as easy as everybody thinks. There’s a lot of things that go into it — there’s absolutely the physical aspect of it, but it’s also the psychology of wrestling: What are we doing? Why are we doing what we’re doing? ... On top of that, we are on 365 days a year, traveling from state to state, country to country, doing tours and still having time to work out (and) making sure you’re healthy. That takes extreme diligence.
Sometimes WWE storylines get very complex. If someone is a newbie coming to the show, will they be able to pick up who is who?
It’s very easy to pick up. Even if you’ve never watched it before and you’re a newbie, just come and watch and have fun. That’s the most important thing.
At a glance
The WWE Live Holiday Tour will be at 7:30 p.m. Monday at Nationwide Arena, 200 Nationwide Blvd. Tickets start at $23. For more information, visit www.nationwidearena.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Omos, other wrestlers to appear in WWE Live Holiday Tour on Dec. 26
