WWE introduced Adnan Virk to the RAW commentary team last week and that started a new job for the former ESPN sportscaster. He arrived in WWE with a lot of support after the WWE “brain trust” decided that they wanted a legit broadcaster in the role.

As Virk explained to the Boomer in the Morning podcast, WWE President Nick Khan used to be his agent at CAA. That helped him get a foot in the door which resulted in an audition in February.

“The brain trust there (at WWE) made the decision late last year. They said ‘we want to kind of get a legit sportscaster guy.’ Like an actual sportscaster to come in and offer a different feel. Nick Khan was my former agent at CAA and he’s the current President of WWE. Michael Cole is of course the voice of Smackdown on Fridays, and he’s in charge of all the talent in the division. He reaches out to my guy, asks ‘would I be interested?’ And I was like ‘yeah, let’s give it a shot.”

“So I auditioned in early February. And the audition was just amazing. I’m calling matches, previous matches, off the monitor that had happened the previous weeks on RAW and Smackdown. And I approached just as I would if I were calling a (Calgary) Flames/(Edmonton) Oilers game. I just went on the website and went ‘okay, here’s Shayna Blazer. She’s been with WWE for this many years, her featured move is Kirifuda Driver.’ And I just called the action. Play by play follows a three at structure; introduce the characters, establish the characters and put a bow on it. That’s what I did.”

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“Afterwards I interviewed a couple of the WWE stars. And at one point Cole goes ‘your look is great.’ And I’m laughing and asking ‘what do you mean by that?’ And he said ‘your height. Mr. McMahon loves that because it makes the wrestlers look even bigger!’ That’s the first time ever being a little guy is a win. I went home, they called a few weeks later, said ‘hey you got the job.’ The real trick is, I want to think MLB Network. They had to sign off on me traveling every week, COVID protocols, vaccinations; it was a process. I’m really grateful they let me do it. It’s been a cool journey. Obviously the he biggest part was the surprise; I couldn’t tell anybody. Nick said I could tell five people; your parents, your wife, your brother and one of your kids. I was like ‘okay.’ Then Saturday afternoon some reports of it started getting out.”

“I literally flew to Tampa under the cloak of darkness. I’m wearing a fedora, I’m sitting in the back of the plane, trying to keep a low profile. And then on Monday they revealed it.”

Some fans were critical of Adnan Virk because he has never called a pro wrestling match before. He also didn’t seem to have a huge grasp on all of the moves performed in the ring. This is a learning process which will continue to take place in front of millions as Adnan Virk becomes more comfortable with his new weekly gig.

Transcription by Ringside News

Felix Upton

Felix Upton is a seasoned writer with over 30 years of experience. He began his career writing advertisements for local newspapers in New York before transitioning to publishing news for Ringside News. His expertise includes writing, editing, research, photo editing, and video editing. In his free time, he enjoys bungee jumping and learning extinct languages.

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