Dragon Lee apparently needed a change of scenery before WWE officials started looking at him differently.
Corey Graves revealed that Lee’s work in AAA helped force a rethink behind the scenes after he wasn’t getting the opportunities he wanted on Raw and SmackDown. Graves made the comments while discussing how WWE’s relationship with AAA has created another path for talent who may not be getting much traction on the main roster.
During his appearance on the Mark Hoke Show, Graves first pointed to Dominik Mysterio, Lola Vice and other WWE stars who have been able to use AAA as a different environment to develop or reinvent themselves. Graves explained that AAA has become a place where WWE talent can step outside their normal roles and potentially show company officials something they weren’t seeing before.
“For a guy like Dom, he’s got the same opportunity that so many have had, and I could name Dom off the top of my head, Dragon Lee, Lola Vice, several WWE superstars who have gone to Triple A and sort of had the chance to kind of reinvent themselves or really get comfortable in a more familiar setting, that being the world of Lucha Libre, and take their game to the next level.”
Graves then brought up Lola Vice as another example, saying her AAA experience helped her learn a different style before her expected move to WWE’s main roster.
“Lola Vice is due to arrive on SmackDown, I believe, or Raw, I believe, in the imminent future, maybe the next — maybe Monday in Mexico City, as a matter of fact. We’ve been seeing the teasers all over and she really, as successful as she was in NXT, it was when she went to Triple A that she really cut her teeth and got her feet wet in a different style and got to learn a different style of WWE, of sports entertainment.”
That’s when Graves shifted directly to Dragon Lee — and his comments made it clear AAA changed how WWE officials were viewing him. According to Graves, Lee wasn’t getting the opportunities he wanted on Raw and SmackDown before heading to AAA. Once he got there, his performances got WWE’s attention.
“And again, Dragon Lee’s another guy who went to Triple A, they weren’t really doing much with him. He wasn’t getting the opportunities he wanted on Raw and SmackDown. Went to Triple A, pun heavily intended, set the world on fire, and the WWE officials went, ‘Hey, maybe we can put that guy in the Intercontinental Championship picture,’ or, ‘Let’s give Dragon Lee a bit more of a showcase.’ And it’s worked.”
That’s a pretty telling admission. Graves’ version of events is that WWE officials saw what Lee was doing in AAA and started reconsidering where he fit on the main roster, including the possibility of putting him into the Intercontinental Championship picture and giving him more television exposure. Graves said that’s one of the biggest advantages of WWE now having several different places where wrestlers can work. The old path of moving straight from NXT to one main-roster brand and staying there is no longer the only option.
“And that’s kind of the beauty of having these different avenues for our superstars and all talent really to explore is you’ve got — it’s no longer linear. You have to go to NXT, then you go to one, then you go to the next. Now you can kind of shuffle around.”
He pointed to Damian Priest appearing in AAA as another example and explained that the change of scenery can be valuable for wrestlers dealing with WWE’s nonstop schedule.
“We just saw Damian Priest, the former World Heavyweight Champion, showed up in Triple A a few weeks ago. And he couldn’t say enough good about how passionate the fans were, how excited he was for the opportunity because as amazing as life within WWE can be, it’s a grind.”
Graves ultimately said AAA has given WWE talent another platform to step outside their comfort zone, and there are plenty of wrestlers on Raw and SmackDown who want the same opportunity.
“So I think across the board it’s really provided a really cool platform for everybody involved to try something new, to sort of step out of their comfort zone. And I know for a fact there are a lot of guys and girls on the main roster of Raw and SmackDown who are chomping at the bit for the opportunity to compete in Triple A.”
Dragon Lee’s situation may be one of the clearest examples yet of why WWE’s AAA connection matters. He went from not getting the opportunities he wanted on Raw and SmackDown to turning heads in AAA, and Graves says WWE officials responded by reconsidering how they were using him. Sometimes all it takes is getting somebody out of the same old spot long enough for the people calling the shots to finally notice what they have.
Do you think WWE should give Dragon Lee a bigger push after what he showed in AAA, and could more main-roster stars benefit from the same kind of reset? Let us know what you think in the comments.
This transcript was produced exclusively for Ringside News from the original recording. Republishing the transcription in full is prohibited. When using excerpts, provide prominent credit and a link to this article.
