Drew McIntyre proud to have set the blueprint for released WWE stars

When Drew McIntyre was cut by WWE back in the summer of 2014, a fate no one expected when he first showed up as the Chosen One. But years of dedication saw the Scottish Warrior become a massive star, dominating ICW and TNA Wrestling before making his return to WWE. And his pattern is being used to this day by former Superstars.

After a strange start in the promotion in 2007, Drew McIntyre was reintroduced on SmackDown in 2009 as Vince McMahon's chosen star, capturing the Intercontinental Championship less than four months after that moment. While he had moderate success as a tag wrestler as well, McIntyre floundered and spent the final few years of the original run in the Three Man Band. When he was cut on June 12, 2014, McIntyre trained, bulked up, and became an undeniable star on the indies.

He'd return to WWE in 2017 as a completely different beast. The experience in places like ICW, Evolve, and TNA Wrestling molded him into the Scottish Warrior we know today. On the No Contest Wrestling Podcast, McIntyre spoke on his career, the original plans for him, and more. When his firing came up, McIntyre discussed becoming a verb, as the WWE would eventually tell others to "do a Drew."

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"WWE genuinely tell people, ‘Look what Drew did. He took them on a journey, reinvented himself, and found his way back. And if you’re good enough, if you work hard enough, if you believe in yourself enough, you can do it too.’ I’m so proud of that," said McIntyre. [44:15-44:28]

Drew McIntyre pegged Cody Rhodes and Matt Cardona as two guys who pulled a Drew. Though if he'd gone with his original gimmick, he may have never had the chance for a comeback.

Drew McIntyre almost became a "runway man" in his first WWE stint

No Contest Wrestling Podcast hosts O'Shea Jackson Jr. and TJ Jefferson called to one of the stranger gimmicks that the 40-year-old star had ever been pitched. Regardless of your opinion on 3MB, it was a much better career path than a runway model.

"The Runway Man, haha. I remember it being pitched to me by John Laurinaitis, who was head of talent relations at the time, telling me at Florida Championship Wrestling, I was listening to him describe the character and thought, 'Oh no. Oh no. Oh no.' And he went, 'And the name? The Runway Man! You're gonna have your own model runway and you're gonna walk down like a model!" [37:05-37:50]

Drew McIntyre, thankfully, avoided that fate when it was pitched to Vince McMahon. According to him, Vince saw his dejected face, and though Drew said he'd do whatever was asked of him, the former Chairman opted to go a different direction. The 3-time World Champion believed that would've been the end of his wrestling career.

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Edited by Greg Bush