Big E Praises Bobby Lashley For His WWE Title Reign
New WWE Champion Big E recently spoke with Khal of Complex and was asked about why he announced ahead of time that he would be cashing in his Money In the Bank briefcase. Monday's RAW saw Big E cash in on Bobby Lashley to win the gold, right after Lashley retained over RAW Tag Team Champion Randy Orton.
Big E had major praise for the former champion and talked about how he studied him when he got signed by WWE in 2009. He also talked about his ties to Boston, how his mother went to Boston College and Tufts University, and how he had the chance to reunite with Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods.
"I think there's so many different ways to handle something like this, whether it be the element of surprise or saying, 'Hey, on this date, this will be my title match.' I said, 'Why not Boston?' I think the opportunity was there," Big E said. "First of all, I have to give hats off to Bobby. I think Bobby's had an incredible run. He carries himself like a champion, and in many ways, he's inspirational, because—and I've told him this before—when I got signed in 2009, I was studying some older film. I was looking at more contemporary guys that I wanted to be like. I was watching Bobby Lashley film. There was a lot of Bobby Lashley films. He was a guy that, 'Okay, that's a guy in a similar vein that, if I work hard enough, one day I want to wrestle like that guy. I want to be like that guy.' So hats off to him for having this incredible run. This dude is in his mid-40s but looks like he's in his mid-20s. All the credit in the world to him.
"But, man, I have so many... I think of Iowa. I say 'no,' but in many ways, I have so many connections to Boston. Both my sisters lived there for a while. My one sister just moved and she's working on her PhD, but my extended family on my mom's side, so many of them who moved to the States from Montserrat settled in Boston. My mom went to BC, Tufts. Kofi is from Boston, lived there for so much of his life. There's so much about the city of Boston and about that moment that felt right. And, too, just the opportunity to be reunited with Woods and Kof. Why wait any longer? It's just one of those moments where you kind of look at the landscape and say, 'Why not today?'"
Big E was asked if there will be a big celebration with The New Day on next Monday's RAW, and what fans might be walking into in the era of Big E as champion.
"Man, I wish I had some insight for you. My head is still spinning," Big E said. "I'm just trying to get my feet on the ground and figure out what the next move is for the next five minutes from now. I think, for me, and we'll see how things feel, but the biggest thing for me is I always just want it to still be me. I didn't want to have to change myself to fit into the mold of what I thought a champion should be. I want to be entertaining. I want to have fun, but I also... it's just pretty much the same mindset for my run since over the last year, since I started doing single stuff. That's still my mantra. It's still being me, but I'm here with an added layer of determination.
"I'm here for a purpose. There's a reason I'm here, and it's not just to win the championship. This is just the beginning of the work towards that. But right now we'll see what Monday holds. Of course, it's going to involve Woods and Kof, but I'm excited for it. Whatever it'll be, I'm excited for it."