Former WWE Superstar and current BKFC heavyweight Gzim Selmani sat down with ToonieBet to discuss a potential WWE return, why Triple H is a “creative mastermind”, his ambitions in bare-knuckle boxing, facing Oba Femi, Brock Lesnar, the backstage incident that led to Authors of Pain leaving WWE and much more.
Featured below are some of the highlights.
‘I’d knock Brock Lesnar out in a bare-knuckle fight’: “I’d knock Brock Lesnar out. My stand-up is on a completely different level than his. Brock was an outstanding wrestler in MMA and he’s a huge athlete, but I’ve been kickboxing since I was four years old and boxing since I was ten. My striking is on another level.”
‘Triple H is a creative mastermind’: “Triple H is a creative mastermind. He’s the best there is when it comes to creative and he genuinely wants what’s best for business. He always had a vision for us, whether it was Authors of Pain or the Final Testament. Unfortunately, some things happened that meant it never came to fruition, but I still think he’s doing a fantastic job. When Triple H was in charge everybody felt more relaxed. He always listened to ideas from the talent and treated everybody equally. Vince was more focused on the biggest stars, whereas Triple H wanted everybody to succeed.”
‘WWE never fully used my real fighting background’: “I was one of the few guys who came into WWE with genuine professional fights behind me. I was a legitimate badass. Looking back, I don’t think they really took advantage of that side of me. The wrestlers don’t write the scripts, so all you can do is make suggestions.”
‘I’d love to face Oba Femi’: “Oba Femi is doing a great job. He’s making the most of every opportunity and he’s becoming one of WWE’s biggest stars. But I don’t get intimidated by people because I’ve fought professionally my whole life. If he wanted to fight me in WWE, absolutely. If he wanted to do it in a real fight, I’m open to that too. I’m not scared of anybody.”
‘If I ever return to WWE, it’ll only be with Authors of Pain’: “Never say never. WWE gave me an incredible opportunity and I owe them a lot, but right now my focus is on fighting. If I ever go back, it won’t be on my own. It’ll be with Sunny Dinsa and Paul Ellering. We started this journey together and if we ever return, we’ll finish it together.”
‘Karrion Kross deserved much more’: “I still think Karrion Kross could have been much bigger. He had the complete package. He had the look, the presence and the ability. Creative could have done much more with the Final Testament. We had a Hall of Famer in Paul Ellering, two former tag team champions and Karrion Kross. There was so much potential there.”
‘William Regal changed my career’: “William Regal believed in me from day one. He pushed for me to go to the Performance Center and he became like a mentor. He helped me with promos, matches and everything else. Without him, I honestly don’t think I’d have had the WWE career I did.”
‘Seth Rollins wanted us to succeed’: “Seth was fantastic to work with. He lives and breathes professional wrestling. He taught us so much and always wanted us to look as strong as possible. We felt like we had something really special together.”
‘Conor McGregor believes BKFC is the future’: “Conor really believes in BKFC. He’s incredibly ambitious about where it can go. You can already see it growing across the world. They’re expanding into more countries, they’ve got a major TV deal coming in the United States and I think it’s only going to get bigger.”
‘My goal is simple — knock everyone out and become champion’: “I’ve signed a three-fight deal because I believe in BKFC. The goal is simple. I want to knock out all three opponents, earn a world title shot and become champion. I genuinely love fighting. There isn’t a better feeling than landing clean punches and knocking somebody out. That’s where my focus is now.”
‘I’m grateful for WWE — but combat sports is where I belong’: “Combat sports is my home. It’s what I did before WWE and it’s what I truly love. Right now I’m focused on becoming one of the biggest names in bare-knuckle boxing. After that, who knows what the future holds?”
Gzim Selmani said in his post-fight interview, "I'm the MF'er who came from WWE." pic.twitter.com/J4MpIRjsJH
— TrillerTV (@Triller_TV) March 14, 2026
