The first time I met Paul Levesque was over 20 years ago. I was writing for GamePro Magazine and he agreed to play some video games against a young kid nicknamed Johnny Ballgame for a cover story. Here we are all these years later, and the performer I knew as Triple H is now the executive in charge of my favorite brand in the industry. Thanks to Paul for hooking up a former video game writer and letting me follow him around the Performance Center in order to get to the bottom of not only how NXT came to be, but how it came to dominate. Thanks to Steve Pantaleo, Jonathan Baeckstrom, and WWE for their tireless efforts setting up talent interviews. And most of all, thanks to everyone in NXT (past and present) who helped make this book come alive with their amazing efforts every day in development.
Special thanks (as always) to the best family a writer can have. Nicole, Caroline, and Brenden sit through hours of wrestling and rewrites, helping me push through to the next deadline no matter what heelish things life may throw our way. They are the true champs.