Things we never expected to see: Rick Scott and Triple H, sharing a stage. Unfortunately, no chairs were used to brain anybody. Still, strike that off the list.
The tag-team appearance was part of a ribbon-cutting ceremony in Orlando this month. The World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is planning on opening a Global Performance Center there to train the next generation of spandex-stretching walking cartoons.
Triple H, who has pretty much hung up his singlet for a corporate job as the WWE's executive vice president, was on hand to mouth the standard precooked corporate praise of the governor.
"Without him, this wouldn't have been possible at all," H said of Scott. "He's responsible for the economic revival of Florida by making it business-friendly."
The 26,000-square-foot facility will house seven wrestling rings, a gym, a sports medicine program, and production and editing suites. The $2.3 million facility is expected to bring in something like 100 jobs.
Scott himself made some customary derpfaces from the stage before murdering a couple of jokes and banging the gong for his reelection bid. After, at a brief news conference with Triple H and his wife, Stephanie McMahon, the governor was even more awkward -- if not completely honest: "I love anybody that brings jobs to our state," Scott said, and you could see the unemployment numbers dancing before his eyes.
"I know everybody that comes to work here, they want to stay here. Every job is important. This is the entertainment capital of the world, as we all know," he said. "Ninety-one million tourists came last year. More tourists are going to come this year. And I know all are going to watch WWE. And there'll be more jobs for Floridians."
The real news, however, came later, when the three were dribbling back answers to media questions. One reporter asked Triple H about the chances of Florida housing the WWE's Hall of Fame -- a longtime project on the blackboard, lighting the interest of many fans.
"If I had to go out on a limb and say we we're moving forward on one, it would probably be here," Triple H said, referring to Florida. Then, the Rock busted through the wall to challenge Triple H to a rematch of their famous 2000 WrestleMania title brawl. Oh, wait, no, that didn't happen.
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