Drew McIntyre is the subject of a feature piece on Sports Illustrated this week and the article goes very in-depth about Drew’s youth and growth as a WWE wrestler, being an underdog in many sorts despite his size and look.
The article heavily focuses on McIntyre’s late mother Angela who was diagnosed with Cerebellar Ataxia in her 20s, a disease that causes a progressive loss of coordination, before she unfortunately passed away seven years ago after battling cancer. McIntyre explains how big of an influence she still has on him and how her strength and determination has led him to be so career-driven and passionate about wrestling. Drew also mentions how much it meant to work with Kurt Angle over his career and what it was like going to Shawn Michaels’ classes down in NXT. Quotes from the piece by Justin Barrasso are below:
Drew McIntyre on his mother Angela and her dealing with Cerebellar Ataxia:
“When it first impacted her, my mother had just got off the bus from work,” said McIntyre. “She was alone and had to crawl over a mile-and-a-half to reach my nana’s house. The balance portion of her brain ceased to work.
“A doctor in London managed to stabilize her and allow her to walk with some assistance. Then she met my dad and they got married, but she was told to never have children. But she said she would rather die than not have children.”
McIntyre’s mother served as the rock of his family. She never complained about her hardships, instead embracing the beauty of the every day.
“We grew up in a small apartment, and she used the walls to move around,” said McIntyre. “My brother and I just assumed that was normal. It wasn’t until we were older that we realized she was a superhero.”
On her passing from cancer in 2012:
“Watching her overcome the odds was incredible. When she was diagnosed with cancer, she never complained. She stayed positive and fought and fought until the very end.”
On getting advice from his wife about getting rid of the negative energy:
“Things were bad even before I left WWE,” said McIntyre. “I was going out and partying too often, and I was not dedicating myself to my work. By that point, I’d started working harder, but it wasn’t enough.
Finally, when he broke two vertebrae in his neck in 2016, McIntyre’s wife told me to cut out all of his negative energy.
“She made me realize I still wasn’t where I needed to be,” said McIntyre. “I cut out all the negatives, and I started changing my body. All of a sudden, I was flooded with all these opportunities. Months after that, I was speaking with WWE.”
On the appreciation he has for Kurt Angle:
“I don’t know why, but Kurt chose to work with me for one of his final matches in TNA, but he made me look like a million bucks,” said McIntyre. “Then, a few years later in WWE, he made me look like an absolute killer. I humiliated Kurt and made him tap out to his own ankle lock. I can never thank Kurt enough for what he has done and continues to do for me.”
On training with HBK down in NXT:
“The first rule of Shawn’s class is that you don’t talk about Shawn’s class,” said McIntyre. “But what I can tell you is it is an environment where everyone pushes each other very hard and you do receive honest criticism.
“No one has the mind that Shawn does in the ring. I looked at that period of time as getting my PhD in wrestling.”
On what he’d do differently in his first go-around with WWE:
“I wouldn’t change a thing about my first run in WWE,” said a reflective McIntyre. “Those experiences turned me into the man I am today. It’s all part of my journey. I started young, I worked with a lot of veterans that are no longer here, and I learned how to be a leader backstage. Now I have one other vision, and that is being at the top of the card and helping build talent for the future.”
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