Summary

Rick Boogs said his original direction on WWE's main roster was very different from the role fans eventually saw alongside Shinsuke Nakamura.

While reflecting on his run, Boogs said he believes the first idea was to place him with Alpha Academy instead. He added that the pairing with Nakamura happened randomly, even though the act became one of the more memorable parts of his time on television.

What Boogs said about the original plan

Speaking with Chris Van Vliet, Boogs described the shift in how he was introduced on the main roster:

**Chris Van Vliet:** "How did you get paired with Shinsuke Nakamura?"

**Rick Boogs:** "Totally random. Originally, I was supposed to be with Alpha Academy, I believe. I'm an amateur wrestler, it would have been great too. Freaking Otis! You kidding me? This is great."

Boogs also said he was frustrated when elements of the act with Nakamura were later removed.

**Chris Van Vliet:** "There's a great moment where Berto steals your guitar and trying to play guitar, and out of nowhere, Shinsuke leg sweeps him."

**Rick Boogs:** "But then they stripped it for no reason!"

**Chris Van Vliet:** "They didn't say why?"

**Rick Boogs:** "I think they wanted to make Shin more dark and serious and look where that got him. No disrespect, Shin is awesome."

Where the WWE run went from there

Boogs' comments offer a small look at how quickly main roster presentation can change once an act reaches television. In his case, the Alpha Academy idea never materialized, and the Nakamura partnership became the version that stuck.

That also lines up with other recent stories about talent discussing creative shifts, including Matt Hardy's comments about WWE creative losing direction with the Wyatt Sicks. For Boogs, the takeaway is that a different alignment could have changed how his amateur wrestling background was used on screen.

What Boogs said about life after WWE

Boogs was also asked what he has been doing since his 2023 WWE release. He said he has kept working in strength coaching and YouTube while also growing his partnership with Psycho Pharm.

Quote from Rick Boogs

"So before even WWE I kind of was a strength coach, but my side hustle was YouTube, and I always kind of maintained that, just not with as much vigor. So like, I'm out now. I'll try different things, and I'll try to go all in on this. But then also partnered with Psycho Pharm, which I'm still with them, then they're great, and we're growing more than ever. We're going international."

Sources

Rick Boogs while speaking with Chris Van Vliet