WWE's Big E Recalls Time He Almost Faced Bray Wyatt In High School Wrestling Match

As the wrestling world continues to mourn the loss of Windham Rotunda, also known as WWE's Bray Wyatt, several of his former colleagues have shared stories of Rotunda's unparalleled kindness and humor that emanated inside and outside of the ring. Prior to signing with WWE, both Rotunda and Big E (real name Ettore Ewen) were state champions in wrestling during their high school years. Rotunda attended Hernando High School in Brooksville, Florida, while Big E competed for Wharton High School in Tampa, which is about a 45-minute drive away. In the wake of Rotunda's unexpected death, Big E recalls a specific time they almost faced each other in a high school wrestling competition.

"Windham was a state champion wrestler in high school & grew up a couple counties over from me," Big E wrote (via Twitter). "We were supposed to wrestle at a dual meet during the 2002-2003 season. I was at 215 and he was a very powerful & skilled heavyweight. I didn't want to bump up and we both accepted forfeits because our schools didn't have anyone in our respective weight classes. Once we became coworkers, he'd regularly hit me with that trademark, warm laugh & tell me I dodged him. He wasn't wrong."

Though Rotunda and Big E never locked up in high school, they frequently worked and trained alongside each other during their developmental days in Florida Championship Wrestling, and later on WWE's main roster. Perhaps most notable is the six-man tag team match that unfolded at Battleground 2016, when The Wyatt Family (Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt & Erick Rowan) defeated The New Day (Big E, Kofi Kingston & Xavier Woods).