When David Otunga stormed the ring with the Nexus in one of the most chaotic and memorable WWE moments of the PG era, fans thought it was just an edgy storyline. But according to Otunga, the entire angle was real, and so were the stakesbecause Vince McMahon flat-out told them theyd be fired if it didnt look violent enough.
During his appearance on TMZs Inside The Ring, Otunga gave an unfiltered look at what really went down behind the scenes before the Nexus invasion of Monday Night RAW in June 2010. As Otunga recalled, all eight NXT rookies were summoned to the show the week after the NXT finale with no idea what was going on. Nobody talked to them all day. Then, moments before the live broadcast, they were called into Vince McMahons office. Otunga said Vince McMahon and Michael Hayes laid out the shocking directive:
Otunga admitted that as a relatively new talent with barely a handful of matches under his belt, he was terrifiedand things got real quickly. He was given the responsibility to throw the very first punch of the ambush, and it had to be on referee Chad Patton. It wasnt just a worked punch either.
The angle looked so real that even the live crowd believed it had spiraled out of control.
Even WWE talent backstage didnt know it was a work. Some were apparently ready to jump the Nexus in the locker room after the segment because they thought it was a real shoot.
Otunga also addressed the controversial firing of Daniel Bryan, who was released by WWE shortly after the segment aired for choking announcer Justin Roberts with his tiean image that reportedly violated PG-era guidelines.
Looking back, Otunga said that the Nexus invasion was successful because it felt authenticbecause it was. The group didnt know if they were still employed and were literally fighting for their careers on live television. That sense of desperation, combined with Vinces cutthroat instruction, turned the segment into something unforgettable.
It wasnt just a storyline. It was a career-defining moment where failure meant getting fired on the spot.
Do you think Vince McMahon went too far with his demands during the Nexus invasion? Should Daniel Bryan have been fired for simply following orders? Drop your thoughts in the commentswe want to hear from you.
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