Braun Strowman On Vince McMahon Not Wanting To Put The World Title On Him In The Past
Just two years after signing with WWE, Braun Strowman found himself climbing up the ladder of success when he went from being one of Adam Rose's Rosebud to the Black Sheep in the Wyatt Family. In his interview on the season premiere of Chasing Glory, Strowman found himself in utter shock just thinking about how quickly he went from being a developmental talent to becoming part of one of WWE's most notorious factions in history.
"Yeah, I debuted on August 24, 2015, the RAW after SummerSlam at the Barclay Center. I think I had maybe seven matches [before coming over to the main roster]," Strowman recalled. "I worked with Chad Gable on a live event in NXT, I worked Steve Cutler on a live event and NXT, and I worked Tye Dillinger at the time. And then, the Rosebud stuff. Vince saw me as a Rosebud and was like, who is this guy and why is he doing this?
"So yeah, I had six or seven matches. I debuted on Monday Night RAW; they put me out there with Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose. They had me just come in there and just 'merk' those guys. It was so crazy because they did a pretty good job of hiding me from the WWE Universe. 'Cause when I came out, the whole place started chanting, 'Who are you, who are you?' Well, y'all know now!"
When Bray Wyatt introduced the WWE Universe to his new Black Sheep, it was evident that Strowman would play a vital role in The Wyatt Family as the powerhouse who stacked up to his comrades, Luke Harper (now Brodie Lee in AEW) and Erick Rowan. Although his time with the cult-like group was short-lived, he enjoyed the relationships he created with each and every member..
"You know, honestly, they couldn't have put me in with anybody better," he stated. "As much as Harper is this grizzly old man that just wants to be salty and everything like that, he was so awesome, like, helping me out with stuff. We had some amazing times traveling around. Bray and I are brothers; it's the same thing with Rowan and Harper. Those guys helped me out. I didn't know the difference between a toe hold and a hammerlock. Harper was the tough love guy. He'd always say [when something wasn't good]. 'What was that? That sucked.' But then, when I would do something good, he'd say, 'That was alright.'"
Once he was on his own following the WWE Draft, Strowman spent 2016-2017 dominating his challengers one by one, which soon created an undefeated streak. Though he felt he was ready for his big championship opportunity, CEO Vince McMahon was not. Strowman reflects on the hardship he felt following McMahon's statement on how he felt his time to become champion was premature.
"Yeah, it was. You know, it was just a hard pill to swallow," he mentioned. "I'm excessive. I don't do anything in moderation. It's all or nothing. It's all about the process, and when you get there, it is so worth it."
You can watch Braun Strowman's full interview here. If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit Lilian Garcia -Chasing Glory with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.