Nova Part 2 Shoot Interview
Mike Bucci who is better known in the wrestling world as Super Nova or Simon Dean. Here is a guy who started out on the indy scene, trained by Iron Mike Sharpe, was a comedy guy in ECW until near the end and became a lot better at his craft due to his mindset, had a goal and made it into the WWE. Not only did he get hired as a talent in WWE, he went to the top really quick behind the scenes. We all know of his gimmick Simon Dean which Mike put together himself, but Mike was able to climb the corporate ladder in a relatively quick time. Now like I said I have known him forever, but I never really knew how business savoy he was until this weekend. In talking to him during this 5 hour interview he came off so well spoken and it’s easy to see why he was in the inner circle in Titan Towers in CT as head of talent relations and in charge of over seeing the developmental system. I know my main goal here is to sell you a DVD so I stay in business but listen to me when I tell you this. This is not a shill at all, his interview is probably in my top 10 of all time because he never once held anything back. He told it like it was without realizing that he is telling the whole world what goes on behind the scenes in the WWE office. Well I am sure he did realize it but Mike talks the truth and in doing so probably gives the most in depth interview we have ever conducted when it comes to the operations of the company. This lead to the most entertaining interview in years because I never knew half of this stuff, and you know what I bet nobody knows this because its that inside. We started out the interview talking about his time after ECW and what he thought about the closing of the company and his relationship or lack of one with Paul Heyman. Mike talks about working the indy scene and going to CA and running his own company with his brother in NJ. Mike also for the first time gets to fire back at so many people that had stories on him for what ever reason, some guys did not like Mike and others did. When Mike got power, like in most jobs people has issues with him and we ask him all about it during this interview. Mike talked in great detail why he has had issues with Danny Doring and RoadKill and what happened in his mind when they worked together in CA for UPW. He also responded to what Rene Dupree said about him during his interview with our company. They were not the only guys who had negative things to say about Mike, he talked about what Bob Holly has said about him in his book and so much more. Mike also had to work with a lot of other people in the business that he did not get along with. It was not always smooth sailing in the WWE offices as you can imagine everyone wants to be in charge. What happens when Mike told John Laurinaitis to keep Paul Heyman out of his office once he got the office job. Mike tells what went down between the two and why he did not want Paul in his office anymore. Mike talks about his great relationship with Johnny as well. What was it like to work with Tommy Dreamer in the office. Mike got to find out stuff before anyone else did and got to work with HHH and Steph on a daily basis. What were the problems in OVW and Deep South. Mike talks about going to Deep South and shutting it down and the office had to worry about Bill Demott at the time because he had a gun in there. You will here how they got in the night before and planned out the take over and what happened when they showed up and Jody Hamilton refused to submit to their wishes. This story is amazing as Johnny Ace had to fly in from Italy to be apart of this and it was like a mafia meeting. Trust me its a golden story. What troubles did he have working with Al Snow when he was in OVW and what did HHH think of Al Snow. Mike had to hire and fire a lot of guys. He talks about how he broke down when he had to let Angelina Love go. Mike was also one of the boys as well, and witnessed brutal ribbings and wrestlers court with guys like JBL, Christ Benoit and a few others. He goes into detail on what he witnessed overseas with JBL and Justin Roberts and how scary it got. He talks about the deaths in wrestling and his thoughts on Chris Benoit, along with one of his all time favorite guys Eddy Guerrero. What did he think about Ken Kennedy and why did they get into a big arguement? I honestly did not have to get a word in as I would just mention my question and Mike was off to the races. Mike also did not like Bruce Prichard or Michael Hayes and he gives plenty of reasons why. This interview will leave the viewer feeling like your on the inside. This is unlike any other interview we have ever done before trust me. It is 5 hours long and by far the most exciting interview in years for inside stories on the WWE. When you see our set list of questions you will get a better understanding of what we talked about but I predict that many people inside the business will be wanting to hear what he says. What was like for you after ECWWere you bitter on how it turned out for ECW since you were there from almost the start.What were your plans when the company went underWhat was your first move after ECW closed down?Did you know that was the end?What independents did you work after and who did you work with?WWE Dark MatchesMemories of Steve DeAngleis and his tours.WWA Allstars in Las Vegas and AustraliaWorking BCW and Scott DaMoreFMW with Victor Quinones and Super CrazyHow did you get involved with UPW?Memories of working there.Teaming with Frankie Kazarian.Working Doring and Roadkill in UPWIs it true you met Jim Ross in UPW and he told you to just stay healthy and they were going to sign youTalk about your teaming with Frankie KazarianDoing Motion Capture for video games in LAPCW and Donnie B.Working Eddie Guerrero for Donnie BMemories of NWA with Dapper and GinoWorking Zero OneHow did you get started with WWE and thoughts of going to OVWWho did you get a call with and how did your meeting goWere there any promisesThoughts on Danny DavisWho were the head trainers there at the time Tom PrichardTake us thru a typical week of training in OVWWere you one of those guys who felt they fit in with the systemWho were some of the other guys that were in the camp at the timeThoughts on HWA and it shutting down and doing matches thereThoughts on Les ThatcherMeeting and teaming with Aaron StevensJersey shore Crew with Danny Inferno and Trudy DenucciIs it true on your OVW debut you got to work with John Cena who was known as the PrototypeWhat was John like as a young green horn in OVWDid you see the potential in himMemories of working with Christian in OVWMemories of working SevenMemories of working with Lance Cade and were you shocked on his passingMemories of working with Chris KanyonHow close were you and what are your thoughts on his passingMemories of working Eddy Guerrero in OVWMemories of working with Doug Basham in OVWMemories of Rene Dupree and why do you guys have heatMemories of working with The DamajaHow did you become the assistant booker in OVW and did that ruffle any feathers with the boys.Were you told to cut your hair by Steph because you looked to much like HHHMemories of coming to your first WWE TV tapings and how over whelmed where youHow soon did you start doing dark matches for Smackdown and VelocityMemories of working Velocity debut with Jamie KnobleWhat feedback did you get when you returned to the Gorilla positionmemories of Rhino in OVW and why do you think he got heat in WWE and never made it biggerMemories of working Chris Nowinski in OVWMemories of Nunzio and Chuck Palumbo facing you and Johnny JeterMemories of your matches with Matt Hardy on VeloictyMemories of your tag match with Mark Henry facing Orlando Jordon and Mark MagnusHow was Orlando outside the ringWere you ever discouraged you were not called up to Raw really quickHow did the Simon Dean gimmick come about and is it true you came up with the gimmickTalk about your early meetings with Vince and what was his personality likeIs it true it was inspired by Dean Malenko because its his real nameMemories of the vignettes you shot selling his Simon SystemTalk about the idea of being with the Dicks as the Church of SimonologyMemories of Rosey angleMemories of doing the angle with Stacy Keibler and the SuperHerosMemories of working with Shane HelmsMemories of working with Shelton BenjaminMemories of working with Kane and what was he like outside the ringMemories of working with Chris Jericho he made you submitMemories of forming a team with MavenMemories of you working with Maven against Regal and TajiriMemories of the 6 man with Maven and Molly Holly taking on regal, Tajiri and Chrsty HemmeMemories of three way with Regal and Tajiri vs La ResistanceWhat was Rene Dupree like outside the ringMemories of working Robbie BrooksideMemories of working with Hurricane and RoseDid you like the gimmickMemories of the One Night Stand PPV being with the BWO doing the angle with Balls, Kid Cash and AxlThoughts on Axl RottenMemories working the Mexicools at the Bash with the BWOMemories of working Booker TThoughts on angle with Stone Cold Steve AustinWorking with extras before TV tapingsMemories of working Bobby Lashley and him shoving burgers down your throatMemories of managing The Gymini The Shane TwinsWhose idea was it to be paired with the Gymni? Did you see it as a demotion seeing as you were a manager?Were they ever slated to win the tag belts?Memories of them coming to early ECW shows in FLMemories of working with Paul London and Brian KendrickMemories of working with Rey MysterioMemories of working with BatistaDid you work with LOD when you teamed with Orlando Jordon Did you mark out for that matchMemories of working with Bob Holly and what do you think of his out of the ring reputationWhat do you think would happen if he really excepted your challengeMemories of working with Boogie manMemories of working Brian Kendrick in singlesMemories of working with Paul BurchillMemories of working Chris Benoit and thoughts on tragedyMemories of working for Gunner Scott Brent AlbrightMemories of a young CM punk in OVWDid you get along with Big Vito since he was in ECWWhy did you leave the ring for good in 2006How did you get in charge of talent relations to replace Tommy DreamerWhen you got the spot some say you got a bigger ego and you let it go to your head and you abused your position…what are your thoughts on thatWhat was that duty likeTryout as an announcerThoughts on Jonathan CoachmanThoughts on Ed Koskey, Brian G and Michael HayesThoughts on Bruce PrichardHow did developmental job come upWho made the offer and how long did it take to acceptTransition from ring to “office”Who resented it?Moving to Ct and working in titan towerThoughts on Johnny AceWorking with howard finkelWhat did you do day to dayGuest trainers at OVW (Gibson, Windham, Death)Overseeing OVWOverseeing DSWProblems with DSWBill DemottShutting down DSW – the real storyWho did you hire for WWEProblems with Al Snow and OVWDr. Death incident at OVWWho from OVW stood out?Who from DSW stood out?Launching FCWTy Bailey coming on boardThoughts on Steve KeirnGetting Dr Tom rehiredJoe Gomez helping in FCWLeaving WWESignature PharmacyWorking in the real worldWorking TNA ECW PPVResistance ProPWSWhy did Claudio Cataganoli now Antonio Cesaro get hired then released before reporting to developmental in 2006?You mentioned eariler Aaron Stevens who is current WWE superstar Damien Sandow. You watched him basically his entire career. In your opinion, what do they see in him now that they didn’t in 2002-2007?Will he be world champion?Thought on some of the guys you tried to get hired but couldent who made it elsewhere. Robbie E in TNA. Fred Sampson now Darren Young who was hired after you left, Etc.What do you remember about Rene Dupree showing up to OVW coming off a flight pilled up? Was this something you needed to handle?How did the bWo come to reform? Were you for or against it?What do you remember about the JBL’s attack on the Blue Meanie on PPV?Do you think Meanie had a case against WWE in terms of a lawsuit seeing as how he wasent a full time performer for them?Where were you when Eddie Guerrero died? What do you remember about that day? How did you find out?Who in your opinion was a cant miss prospect in OVW or DSW that never made it?Thoughts on Dusty Rhodes?Are you surprised to see Cody make it to where he has?What are your thoughts on Triple H being groomed to take over?Do you think its good for the business to have people in the office now who never worked in wrestling and don’t understand what the guys do where as you were a former in ring superstar now holding an office job who understood the business?Thoughts on Mercury, Nitro and Melina who were MNM? You were doing Simon Dean at the height of there popularity. Did Joey change from the Joey Matthews you knew in ECW to now WWE superstar Joey Mercury? Nitro? Melina?Thoughts on Jim Ross? How did he help you?Are you surprised CM Punk made it to where he did?Thoughts on the Kevin Matthews and Bill DeMott heat. Who do you agree with and why if you agree at all?Who were your favorite agents to work with?How was Vince to deal with? Did you ever have a problem talking to him?Thoughts on Dolph Ziggler. Does he deserve more then what hes getting?Has WWE ever contacted you to do any 1 time appearences like they do with some guys. If so, why havent you done them?What do you remember about Bob Holly beating up Matt Capatelli on Tough Enough?Did you agree with it?Did you ever have any problems with Bob?What do you remember about Ken Kennedy? Did you think he was a main event talent?Thoughts on Shawn Daivari?Thoughts on Lance Storm?Its been well documented that Ty Bailey who replaced you as the head of developmental talent was not well liked among the talent. Why do you think that is? Do you think his lack of experience in the business played a factor?Thoughts on Danny Davis?The glory days of OVW are well in the past. Thoughts on its current product?Who made it out of OVW to the main roster and should have been given more but never got it (im thinking you talk about burchill here)Thoughts on Charlie Haas?Are you in support of the WWE anti bullying campaign? Is there a place for ribbing in todays professional wrestling sports-entertainment industry?Talk a little bit about the training style of Bill DeMott. What do you like and dislike about it? Did he go overboard sometimes?Thoughts on Pat Patterson?Thoughts on Nick Dinsmore?Walk us through Triple H and Shawn Michaels going to visit OVW. What did they say to you after there visit? If anything.Memories of training Triple H at Traxx.WWE has been hiring trainers like crazy for the Performance Center. Who in your opinion is someone that should be training the talent that isnt? (rob conway)are your feelings on Trent Acid?Would you go back to WWE fulltime. Maybe not as a wrestler. But an agent, announcer if asked?What would you have done with Simon Dean? Do you think the character could have been a main event player or did you know they would only let it go so far?Thoughts on the Smackdown segment with Batista where you sold him the Simon System?Thoughts on HHH direction of the companyThoughts on Stephanie and does she understand the businessThoughts on when JBL attacked Meanie during the ECW PPVWhy do you think Meanie did not sue and what would you have doneWhy did WWE let you go with Steriod scandalTalk about what you do now in the businessDo you like doing the BWO reunion gimmickThoughts on the companies trying to relive ECW againWhat were your thoughts when you heard about all the guys doing drugs on the first Extreme Rising show and having issuesThoughts on WWE Wellness policyMemories on the meeting Vince had after Eddy passed away about drugs and his employees how they might be dead in 5 yearsThoughts on TNAMemories of doing the TNA PPV when you got to work with Stevie