JBL Looks Back On APA’s First Match With The Dudley Boyz

On the latest episode of Something To Wrestle With, JBL talked about the APA’s first match against The Dudley Boyz in WWE. He described how the Dudleys were put to the test and immediately earned the respect of the locker room with their toughness. You can check out some highlights below:

On the Dudley’s earning respect: “When the Dudleys came in, the first match they had — Bubba had a baseball bat. And Ron asked me, he goes, ‘You do know how to use a baseball bat, right?’ You can’t work a baseball bat. Bubba goes, ‘Uh, yes, sir.’ I think he gave it to D-Von or hit me with it or something. Anyway, when I say they beat the s**t out of us — we were out there. They knew what they had to do, they knew this was their test. And we said, ‘Guys, just lay it in, make it look good. We’re not going to bitch, we’re going to be fine with it. We’ll get you back next week, It’s not a big deal.’

“Boy, they beat the s**t out of us. Bubba hit me so hard with that bat. I mean, they beat us so bad. And then the next week — I think it was the next week, not the next night — we had to rush them in an interview. And all the boys were lined up to watch the receipt. And we got them pretty good. No worse than they got us. We got them just like they got us. They got up, shook our hands, said, ‘Thanks, guys.’ Hugged us, we went out and had beers, and we’ve been best friends ever since.”

On the mutual respect between the teams: “Well what are we gonna do? Are me and Ron gonna bitch? Absolutely, we told them to lay it in. And they did, they beat the s**t out of us. We did the same thing to them. And as soon as we’re done, they got up and shook our hands. Everybody saw that. And you realize, ‘These are just good guys.’ They’re going to work very stiff or as hard, as stiff as you want them to. And so are we. They’re not going to bitch, they’re not going to complain. They’re here to draw money. They’re here to make a living like the rest of us are.

“So no, it wasn’t a matter of ‘This ain’t ECW.’ In fact, we’re telling them, ‘Guys, do what you do in ECW.’ That was what we told them, ‘Do exactly what you do. We’re not going to break us. You’re not going to hurt us. You will be fine, and we’ll give it back to you, and you’ll be fine too.’”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Something To Wrestle With an h/t to 411mania.com for the transcription.