WWE superstar Cesaro recently spoke with Sports Illustrated about a wide range of topics, including how he felt missing the Royal Rumble pay-per-view, and how important his matchup was with Seth Rollins from last year’s WrestleMania 37 event. Highlights from the interview are below.
Says he was very disappointed to not be in the Royal Rumble:
“Yes, I was. A lot of people would have liked to see me in the Rumble, and a lot of people would have liked to see me win. That would have put me on the next path of my journey. I saw Big E say in an interview he’d like to see me win, and that was very nice. I appreciate the support of my colleagues, but unfortunately, that did not happen. I do care, a lot. Maybe almost too much sometimes.”
On his WrestleMania match against Seth Rollins:
“WrestleMania, that moment meant a lot. Up to now, it’s been the crowning achievement of my career. That was my first WrestleMania singles match, and it was with Seth Rollins. We’ve known each other for half our lives. The crowd was back, and the crowd means so much. The ThunderDome era was so weird, so to have the crowd back was important, and then to have that kind of match and hear that kind of reaction was amazing. I don’t know what other superlative to use. It meant a whole lot.”
Getting to challenge Roman Reigns for the Universal title:
“I’m very proud of that match against Roman. Not many people expected to go almost 30 minutes, and our pace was one that surprised people. I wish it took place in front of fans. That’s what made my career. The fans have always had my back, so I wish we could run it back in front of fans.”