Mojo Rawley Talks His Reaction Backstage After Kevin Owens Headbutted Vince McMahon
As a wrestler of Arabic heritage, Mojo Rawley is enjoying doing press during the WWE's trip to Dubai. Recently, he sat down with Al Arabiya and Dubai Eye's William Mullally to discuss his WWE career and much more.
A mid-card star of SmackDown Live, Rawley commented on the ending to last week's show that saw Vince McMahon get beat down by Kevin Owens. It was particularly newsworthy because the WWE Chairman and CEO was busted open by a headbutt from Owens. Rawley, who was making his way backstage after his match prior to the segment, stopped in his tracks and watched the entire altercation.
"I walked past right as he got headbutted in the face and I was like, 'Wait, what? What?!' And I backed up to the TV and I'm sitting there with my jaw all the way down to my feet," Rawley said. "It was like, 'Are you kidding me right now? Did that really just happen?' And then he proceeded to deliver the beating of a lifetime... Man, you gotta hope Vince is alright. Of course we all know how tough he is, but man, that was brutal."
Rawley has had his ups and downs since joining the main roster. As part of The Hype Bros with Zack Ryder, they were on the verge of a tag team title shot before Ryder injured his knee. Rawley then won the Andre The Giant Memorial Battle Royal at WrestleMania 33, but he never received a true push after that.
Rawley was once one of the more popular superstars in NXT, so he was asked if he missed his time working in developmental. Rawley mentioned missing the Performance Center and he also went into detail about his love for the NXT Universe. At one point, the crowd had turned on him, so it forced him to look in the mirror and figure out what he needed to do to get better.
"The Full Sail crowd was one that I had a very special relationship with, when I first debuted they were right there with me and very supportive," he said. "There was a while where they soured on me and I was very appreciative of that because it motivated me. 'Why are people not supporting me like they used to? What do I need to do better?' To come full circle, my last stretch there they were right back with me."
He continued: "I appreciate their honesty, their enthusiasm. They're kind of like the catalyst and the springboard for all the shows that we go to all across the world. They come up with these ridiculous and awesome chants, they come in with their posters and they set that level of hype that all these other cities that we go to feel compelled to match or beat. They have that attitude where it's 'Full Sail vs. the world,' and in the end, we all win because the fans get into it."