Carmelo Hayes Opens Up About His Journey To WWE

Carmelo Hayes has quickly established himself as one of the fastest-rising stars in "WWE NXT." In just two short years, Hayes is a Breakout Tournament winner and a two-time "NXT" North American Champion -an impressive list of accolades that were accumulated rather quickly. For most wrestlers who enter the WWE Performance Center, it takes two or three years on average before athletes would see TV time. But with "NXT" getting rebranded and shifting back to a developmental brand, Hayes got on TV within months.

"Yeah they threw me in the deep end," Hayes said on the "Real Radio Monsters" show. "I had time on the indies so I came prepared I was scouted as like somebody who was you know 'Hey you're one of the best out right now let's bring you in' along with this class of stud athletes."

The former "NXT" North American Champion was part of a star-studded Performance Center class that included Bron Breakker, Cora Jade, and his partner Trick Williams. Before joining WWE, Hayes was wrestling on the independent scene in Massachusetts under the name Christian Cassanova.

At 5'10, he's not necessarily the biggest wrestler around, but that never bothered Hayes. He didn't doubt his abilities because he's seen many wrestlers similar to his size, like AJ Styles, do great things in their pro-wrestling careers. Growing up, he was a big Edge fan and even revealed something he had said to Hayes. "He slid me a message one time, it was like, 'Keep crushing it, dude.'"

After defeating Apollo Crews at "NXT" Vengeance Day, he looks to add more gold to his accolades as he has his eyes set on Breakker and his "NXT" World Championship.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Real Radio Monsters" and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.