Bobby Lashley beat Brock Lesnar to win the WWE Title at the Royal Rumble this past Saturday night thanks to outside inference from Paul Heyman and Roman Reigns.
The newly crowned champion spoke about the win during an interview with Sports Illustrated. Here are the highlights:
His Royal Rumble match:
“This was so much deeper than a match,” Lashley says, unable to contain his smile. “My kids were in the front row, and I wanted to teach them a lesson about enduring. That’s something we talk about a lot. It’s the person who endures that wins.
“The match was a lot like life. I couldn’t escape Brock’s offense. He’s going to take you to Suplex City, he’s going to hit hard. That’s no different than life. I wanted to test myself and take his punches. I wanted to face him head on, take his best, and beat him in the end.”
“That’s a match I wanted for a long time,” Lashley says. “Brock has the same kind of strength as [UFC heavyweight champion] Francis Ngannou. He came as advertised.”
Writing out his accolades for his WWE Hall of Fame induction:
“When I was around 12 and went into amateur wrestling, me and my dad didn’t know a whole lot about it,” Lashley says. “I’d played every sport, but this was new to me. My dad told me to go into it with everything I had. I still carry those words with me today with everything I do. The day I’m not on full throttle, that’s the day I retire.”