NJPW STRONG Openweight champion Fred Rosser recently spoke with Insider’s Edge about a wide range of topics, including his thoughts on controversial superstar CM Punk, who was Rosser’s WWE mentor during his time in NXT. Check out what Rosser, who wrestled as Darren Young in WWE, had to say about the Second City Saint. Highlights from the interview are below.
Recalls CM Punk not enjoying his time in NXT as a mentor:
“I think at the time, maybe he was maybe under a lot of stress himself and being on the road more, [and] having to be on NXT. It was probably getting to him so he wasn’t into it. He probably said one, a handful of words to me during that entire season. So it was intimidating because I didn’t want to ruffle any feathers, and I was new.”
Says CM Punk had his back when he came out as gay in WWE, and told him so:
“He came up to me in catering, and he was all iced up and he told me to stand up in catering. I stood up and he gave me a hug, and he told me after I had came out on television, that if I had any issues with anyone in the locker room to let him know, that he had my back. So I was like, ‘Wow.’ It was that minute that I realized that my story was a big deal, and that at the time he did have my back.”
(H/T and transcribed by Wrestling Inc.)