WWE's Bronson Reed Explains Why Winning NXT NA Championship Meant So Much To Him

Four years ago, Bronson Reed captured his first WWE title when he ended Johnny Gargano's 163-day North American Championship reign in a Steel Cage match on "WWE NXT," an achievement that the 37-year-old considers one of the proudest moments of his professional wrestling career.

Speaking on "The Rich Eisen Show," Reed claimed that his North American Championship win represented his decade-long efforts to earn a WWE contract.

"Yeah, it was a big deal for me. It almost felt like a culmination of all my work on the independents to get to that point. I was wrestling for 12 years before I got signed with WWE, and it was always a goal of mine to not only get signed with WWE, but become a champion ... I remember this is when Triple H was still in charge of 'NXT,' black and gold era. It was a lot of what you did was based on what you could do in the ring." 

Reed continued to explain that he couldn't help but cry during the closing moments of the show after winning the title, and responded to fans who question how wrestlers can be emotional about a major victory if they're aware of the outcome beforehand.

"You still got to remember that winning a championship means that the people behind the scenes have faith in you to be that champion, and when you're someone like me who's followed this their whole life and you've dreamt of these moments, it's surreal to have these moments come true."

Although he's proud of his WWE resume thus far, Reed admitted that he needs to acquire some gold on the main roster, and expects to be emotional when the moment occurs, but will attempt to remain composed now that he's a heel.

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "The Rich Eisen Show" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.