Ricky Saints was almost Ricky St.
The NXT North American Champion took part in a media scrum at WrestleMania 41 media day. There, he fielded a gamut of questions, including about the origins of his name in NXT. Saints was asked if he was always set on having ‘Ricky’ as a first name, or did he try anything else before getting the final name approved?
“There wasn’t much thought besides I was looking at — I had an old yearbook and I was looking through it, and it had a huge [New Orleans] Saints logo on it,” Ricky Saints said.
Saints also said he briefly considered using ‘St.’, which is the abbreviation for Saint. However, he ultimately decided that he should spell the full word out.
“And for some reason, I was just playing around with it. It was just going to be ‘St.’ but I said, ‘Maybe I should just spell it out,’” he added.
Ricky Saints successfully retained his NXT North American Championship against Ethan Page at NXT Stand & Deliver.
Ricky Starks on his chemistry with Ethan Page
Saints also spoke with WrestleZone Managing Editor Bill Pritchard and offered a preview of his title defense against Ethan Page. They’ve crossed paths before, as Saints and Page had several matches in AEW and worked together for a few independent matches.
There are some similarities in their respective paths to WWE, but their personalities are wildly different. That contrast, Saints said, is what brings out the best in them.
“Polar opposites attract, of course, and I’m no stranger to Ethan. We have met before on the indies and other places, things of that nature, so I think having that chemistry only creates the best types of matches and outcomes,” Ricky Saints said.
Read More: Ricky Saints On Leaked Royal Rumble Footage: I Don’t Accept Weird Behavior, I Should Have Sued
