Alex Frekey Talks 'WWE Tough Enough' Experience, Future Plans and More

Alex Frekey was eliminated from WWE Tough Enough during the second week, but his ousting seemed to be more about comments he made and less about his ability to wrestle.

During an argument with fellow contestant Patrick Clark, Frekey said that knowing about the history of wrestling wasn't as important as being able to perform to be successful in the business. This rubbed Clark the wrong way, and some of the judges didn't exactly respond well to the comments.

Because of editing, we didn't get to see the whole conversation, but we all know that things are said in the heat of the moment that don't indicate how we really feel about something.

I recently had a chance to speak with Frekey about his experience on the show, whether he was a victim of the editing process, what the future holds for him and a number of other subjects.

Bleacher Report: What made you decide to try out for Tough Enough?

Alex Frekey: Years ago, when I got out of college, I was approached to join a wrestling school. I can't remember the name of the school, but at the time, it wasn't the right time for me to do that. I needed to pay back student loans and all that. I saw Tough Enough applications were being taken, so I thought let's give this a shot, since I was asked to do this before, so why not try it now?

B/R: What was your Tough Enough experience like? Did you enjoy your time on the show?

AF: The entire experience, from starting the whole process to minicamps and the few episodes I did, it was really awesome. I loved every minute of it. There was over 11,000 applicants, and I was one of the people who made it to the top 13, so it was really, really awesome.

B/R: Your argument with Patrick seemed to get a lot of attention, but you stated that there were some things cut out of the program that made it seem like a different conversation. Can you elaborate on that?

AF: Absolutely. So the conversation was taken out of context and chopped up a bit, and it kind of made me seem like a villain because of the fact that I said knowledge means nothing and sort of disrespected anybody who knows anything about the WWE. In theory, it was completely wrong.

So the conversation I had with Patrick went like this. Patrick was bragging a lot about knowing more than anybody in the house about the history of WWE and stuff, and I said, "Hey, I do know a lot about the WWE? Maybe not as much as you do, but when it comes to physical talent and doing moves," I said, "knowledge means nothing. Statistics aren't going to help you take a bump or do a high-risk maneuver. They're not going to help you be a sports entertainer."

And what was cut out was when I said "If Michael Jordan didn't know who won a championship in what year and who scored how many points didn't stop him from being the best player in the world, so I don't need to understand history to go out and practice the craft that I'm going to undertake." So in terms of physical performance, knowledge doesn't mean anything. And he actually agreed with me to an extent.

He said "Is it important for you to know the history of WWE?" And I said absolutely. I have my favorite match, which came from the WWE Network, which was the 1999 Triple Threat match between Stone Cold, Undertaker and Triple H from No Mercy. And the funny thing about that is it was a European match that wasn't televised in the United States.

B/R: Do you think you were portrayed fairly on the show, or were you a victim of the editing process?

AF: In terms of that comment and what got me booted from the show I would say I was a victim of the editing process because the only reason Daniel Bryan called me out was from that comment. He didn't say I'm going to call you out because you drowned in the swamp challenge.

Then after that, in Tough Talk with The Miz, he said you don't have to be a fan to do this. And I'm not saying I'm not a fan because I'm a huge fan. But the reason he called me out and I got off the show was because of the comment.

B/R: Would you change anything about what you said or did while on the show?

AF: In hindsight, I never would have started that conversation with Patrick knowing they would cut out most of the conversation and just leave in the part where I said knowledge means nothing.

B/R: Do you feel like the show is focusing too much on the drama between people?

AF: Yeah. I think the reality portion is focused way too much on the characters they want to portray for a reality show and not on the character we really are.

B/R: One of the things that was glossed over in the first episode was when Tanner and Patrick were fighting, and it seemed like you were the one who got Patrick to leave the room to stop the argument.

AF: Yeah. Patrick will argue with you until he's blue in the face on winning or losing challenges, and I was all about who is the WWE Superstar of the group. I was focused on the entertainment and challenge portion, and I was like "Enough. Let's go to the elimination and see what happens tonight."

Before that, which they completely edited out, I had a conversation with ZZ, and I asked him, "Who would you put in the bottom three since you lost every challenge?" And he said it would probably be him, and I asked why, if he would put himself in the bottom three, is he even standing there? He gave me a roundabout answer not even answering my question, and they didn't want to air that.

B/R: Is there anything about the show's format you think needs to change?

AF: Yes. I understand the previous seasons of Tough Enough were more about wrestling because they cast people that were indie wrestlers. We had no wrestling experience, but if I knew I was going to be doing crazy cardio intensive challenges or swimming, I would have trained a little bit differently.

B/R: You said in a segment that your cardio was not as good as you would like it to be, and that is why you had trouble with the swamp challenge. Do you plan on changing your workout routine to add more cardio?

AF: Yeah, absolutely. I come from a bodybuilding background. When I was playing college basketball 10 years ago, my cardio was fantastic, but for the last eight or nine years, I have been a bodybuilder, so I didn't really have to do much cardio. Just eating and training. So if I was to do this again knowing what I would be doing, it would be completely different.

B/R: Which trainer do you think was the most helpful?

AF: The most helpful was definitely Billy Gunn. Lita did help the females a lot, but Billy Gunn really took the time to show us everything and make sure that we were going to be able to do whatever we had to in the ring correctly.

We were in the Performance Center weight room everyday, and he was in there, too, and it was good to see a fellow person that really loved the training and the weight training aspect, so he was the one I got along with the most for sure.

B/R: Who did you get along with the best in the house?

AF: It's funny to say, but I got along with Josh, Mada and Tanner. We roomed together, and we did everything together from training to going to eat.

B/R: So you did get along with Tanner?

AF: Yeah, very well. He's a great kid. What you saw was competitiveness arguing with Tanner. I'm not going to say that what you saw was made up arguing back and forth with Tanner. That was real, but at the end of the day, we were pretty good friends.

B/R: Not to pour gas on the fire, but who did you get along with the least?

AF: Honestly, I would say it was ZZ because of his age barrier. I am 10 years older than that kid. He didn't have the same mindset or goals in mind. There were days that we went to the gym, and he didn't go because he's lazy, and in my opinion, he doesn't really want this.

He's doing it for some reason that I don't know. At the end of the day, Josh, Tanner, Mada, Patrick and myself were always running and doing things to better ourselves for the competition, and he was sitting on the couch watching cartoons.

B/R: Patrick came in from Maryland Championship Wrestling as kind of a ringer. Did Patrick tell you guys about his previous wrestling experience, or did he try to keep it a secret?

AF: He kept it secret, and personally, I think it's an unfair advantage. When I saw him take a bump, I was like, "Holy crap." We're all learning this day one from scratch, and the kid goes in and takes it like a professional wrestler. In my opinion, they should have held him to the highest standard possible because he had previous wrestling experience.

B/R: They are kind of portraying Dianna as not wanting to be there necessarily. Do you think that's the case with her? (Note: Dianna ended up leaving the competition at the beginning of the third episode.)

AF: Absolutely. Everything that you know from the show is 110 percent accurate. When you're going to sit there and start drama about wanting to go home and plan your wedding and crying and having your fiance come, professional wrestlers are there solely for wrestling. That's the only thing that's important in your life, and she's there complaining. I honestly despised it because I sacrificed a lot. I actually lost my job going there.

B/R: Wow. Did you have to quit, or did they fire you?

AF: I got fired.

Photo courtesy of Alex Frekey

B/R: What were you doing?

AF: I was working with a sports nutrition company. They knew I was going to the show, and they were cool with it for a little while, but then there was a problem in my region that wasn't being taken care of properly, and they pinned it on me because I'm not there, even though I was actually pseudo-working on my downtime.

I had my iPad and was dealing with clients while I was there, so I could maintain my position, and it came down to they didn't think I was producing what they thought I should be, so they said "We're going to let you go."

B/R: Have you found a new job?

AF: Once I got back, other companies got wind of that and saw the show, so I have offers on the table because I made a name for myself in the industry that I'm in.

B/R: What does the future hold for Alex Frekey? Will you continue to pursue a career in wrestling?

AF: I would love to pursue a career in pro wrestling. It all depends on what it entails. I'm used to living at a certain level financially because of the career I'm in. Like every other human being on the planet, I have a budget I have to meet every month for living expenses. I know I could bring a lot to the table to the WWE. Speaking to different wrestling podcasts and shows, they loved me, which was really cool. They loved my look and everything they think my character could bring.

B/R: Have you looked into other options as far as wrestling schools go?

AF: Here's the way I look at it. It's like driving a car. I have already driven a Ferrari being in the Performance Center. I wouldn't be able to buy another car. Does that make sense?

B/R: Yeah. You don't want to go from a Ferrari to a Ford Taurus.

AF: Not at all. It's either WWE or nothing.

B/R: Let's talk about the bodybuilding a little bit. What got you into that?

AF: I played basketball in college, and my senior year, I really fell in love with the training. I saw my body change more with the eating and lifting harder and getting into serious regimens. All of a sudden, one day, one of my friends said I should enter a bodybuilding competition.

So I took three months and trained for it and took third in my class. I really enjoyed it because being a competitive person in basketball, this gave me a chance to be a competitive person personally with myself, and the harder I worked, the more I saw from it. So I just kept that lifestyle going and just adopted it as my everyday life.

B/R: Describe your weekly routine.

AF: I eat about eight times a day and train for two hours every day in an intense workout. Everything is centered around eating, so I have to eat about every two hours, and that happens Monday though Sunday. So there really aren't any days off. It's all about meal preparation, and I have a trainer that's out of Ohio and he gives me my monthly training routines. He helps me a lot.

B/R: When did you get into wrestling, and what drew you to the sport?

AF: I have been a fan since 1997 when Bill Goldberg had his winning streak. I saw that monster of a human being and said I want to do that. I started to grow and grow and get bigger and thought I could really do this, and I actually ended up becoming an actor. I have been a spokesmodel for Planet Fitness, and I was in John Wick and The Blacklist. I thought I could take my look and acting and translate that into being a WWE Superstar.

B/R: Have you ever thought about pursuing acting and moving out to California?

AF: Kind of. I was living in Philadelphia for a year and bouncing at clubs and going to casting calls in New York three days a week. It was something I was just doing to fill time during the day. I loved it. It was so much fun, but at the end of the day, I have two college degrees, and I have to pay back student loans, so I have to be in a career that gives me a consistent income.

B/R: What episode of The Blacklist were you in, and what part of John Wick were you in just in case people reading this want to check out your work?

AF: I was in The Blacklist season finale titled "Berlin." I was his guard that brought him onto the plane, and we were handcuffed together as the plane was crashing, and he had to cut my hand off to get himself free.

In John Wick I was in the safe-house scene. I was the Russian bodyguard drinking coffee in the corner, and when John Wick is killing everyone, I was the guy who grabbed the mob boss' son and dragged him down the stairs, and I am looking around for John Wick, and he shoots me in the head.

B/R: What was it like being in a movie with Keanu Reeves?

AF: That was absolutely amazing. Keanu Reeves is a great guy—very quiet and kept to himself. Being around an actor of his caliber, with The Matrix being one of my favorite trilogies of all time, it was a dream. I wouldn't trade that for the world.

"

Freak Fact #6: I'm a huge comic book fan! Colossus is my favorite Comic Character. @WWEToughEnough #WWEToughEnough #WWE #FreakNation

— Alex Frekey (@ToughAlexF) June 29, 2015"

B/R: You had said on Twitter that you are a big comic book fan and you like Colossus. What is it about that character that makes you like him more than everybody else?

AF: Well, Colossus is Russian, just like myself, but he is a very nice person. He is portrayed in the comic books as kind. He's not just a big guy that goes around and beats people up. He's a very passionate person. He had a difficult upbringing and was bullied as a kid because he was different, and so was I.

I am very kind. I do a lot for charity, and I offer to help people with their fitness even if I am not getting paid. I am there for people as their own superhero. I've been following Marvel ever since I was a kid, and I have framed X-Men posters in my office and watched the classic cartoon in the '90s.

B/R: Which male and female do you think will go all the way in the competition and why? (Note: Daria ended up being voted off the show this week.)

AF: Daria and Tanner. They're both MMA fighters, so they have a natural niche with hard competition. If they don't win, it's going to be a disappointment. I know they're both very talented.

B/R: Who is your favorite wrestler of all time?

AF: Bill Goldberg.

B/R: Who is your current favorite wrestler?

AF: Dean Ambrose. He has the psychotic vibe to him. He's nuts, and you never know what he is going to do, and he reminds me of Mick Foley.

B/R: We already talked about your favorite match of all time, so what is your favorite match from the past 10 years?

AF: I'm a big fan of the Royal Rumble. I really enjoyed when Sheamus won it.

B/R: If you could describe each TE contestant in one word what would it be?

AF: Hank: genuine.
ZZ: lazy.
Tanner: competitive.
Patrick: too young.
Joshua: monster.
Mada: animal.
Amanda: sweetheart.
Daria: real deal.
Dianna: stuck-up.
Giorgia: pleasant.
Sara Lee: quiet.
Gabi: disgusting.

B/R: Does that come from the farting comments someone made?

AF: (Laughs) Yeah. She does it all the time. It's awful.

"

Man! WWE fans are amazing! So incredible to have such killer support! Thank you!! #WWE #WWEToughEnough #WWENetwork #TheRussian #FreakNation

— Alex Frekey (@ToughAlexF) June 23, 2015"

B/R: Is there anything else you want people to know about you?

AF: The time I had with the WWE Universe, I really came to appreciate the fans. They are the most passionate, loyal fans that I have ever seen. Those out there that follow me, it's amazing because I am not a Superstar. Thank everyone out there who continues to follow me though the journey with whatever I undertake.

Thanks for reading, and follow me on Twitter @BR_Doctor. You can also follow Alex @ToughAlexF