Category: WWE News

WWE Raw WrestleMania go-home show viewership on Netflix revealed

Posted on by Josh Nason

The WrestleMania go-home edition of WWE Raw did 2.9 million global views — identical to the past two months.

Reported by Netflix on Tuesday, the April 13 episode brought in 5.6 million total hours viewed which was in line with the previous three weeks. It also had a listed 1:53 runtime which was higher than the previous week.

The episode was fifth in the world and a top 10 show in ten countries including the U.S. where it was also fifth for the week. As expected, it featured a loaded up show with appearances by Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Brock Lesnar, Oba Femi and others.

To give an idea of the consistency, Raw’s lowest number over the last ten weeks was 2.7 million global views.

Last reported 10 weeks of WWE Raw on Netflix viewership:

Episode dateGlobal ViewsGlobal Hours
April 13, 20262.9 million5.6 million
April 6, 20262.9 million5.5 million
March 30, 20263.0 million5.5 million
March 23, 20262.9 million5.5 million
March 16, 20263.0 million5.9 million
March 9, 20262.8 million5.0 million
March 2, 20263.0 million5.4 million
February 23, 20262.8 million5.6 million
February 16, 20262.7 million4.9 million
February 9, 20262.9 million5.1 million
Average for last 10 weeks2.89 million5.40 million

X-Pac says he was assaulted, stalked by fans during WWE WrestleMania weekend

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Sean “X-Pac” Waltman also experienced some issues with fans at WWE WrestleMania 42 weekend.

In the aftermath of WrestleMania, one of the biggest stories has been the lack of effective security at the MGM Grand hotel, where WWE talent were staying in Las Vegas. CM Punk got into an altercation with a fan who followed AJ Lee & Bayley and was trying to film them. Booker T said the fan situation was the worst he’s ever seen, with one person even filming him in the bathroom.

Waltman posted a tweet today saying a fan stalked him in the bathroom as well, and Waltman also got “physically assaulted” and had a camera shoved in his face during the weekend.

“That guy & all the rest like him can get f***ed,” Waltman tweeted about the fan from the Punk incident. “It was insane how these people were. I got physically assaulted & camera shoved in my face, stalked in the bathroom, & more.”

In a follow-up tweet, Waltman added that he doesn’t have a problem with fans recording or taking pictures in public but takes issue when they invade wrestlers’ personal space. He added that the situation at the Horseshoe, a different hotel in Vegas where WrestleCon was held, was much better with fans being “totally respectful.”

The biggest security issue seems to be that not enough was done at the MGM Grand to protect wrestlers while they were in spaces where fans would be present like the hotel lobby.

Waltman, a Hall of Famer himself as a member of D-X and the nWo, helped induct NBA legend Dennis Rodman into the WWE Hall of Fame last weekend. Waltman also helps out behind the scenes in WWE by coaching indie talent in the ID program.

Je’Von Evans want to be a ‘top dog’ in WWE, knows he’ll eventually change in-ring style

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Je’Von Evans opened up on long-term WWE goals, emphasizing his aim to evolve beyond his current high-flying in-ring style. 

Speaking on the Club 520 Podcast, Evans described his goal to be a ‘top dog’ in WWE. He is aware of the impact his current high-flying in-ring style weighs among fans and is already thinking of evolving his approach in the future. 

“Honestly, it’s just something that I’m doing right now for real. I want to be a top dog here. I know me doing all these cool moves is going to get my foot in the door, but it’s not going to keep me in the room. I’m doing all this now just to have fun with the crowd and build a connection with the kids and stuff like that. By the time I get older, I’m trying to be one of them dogs, you know? Somebody that don’t gotta do the flips.”

During the interview, Evans was asked about the toughest adjustments he has had to make since signing with WWE. He explained that while building up his presence as an established NXT star he was shifted to the main roster which brought challenges like larger crowds and a fanbase less familiar with his work. 

“I think when I was in NXT I was working my way up to become a top guy there, and right before that happened, main roster snatched me up, and I had to restart. Now I’m wrestling in front of bigger crowds and people that don’t know who I am at all outside of NXT fans. I feel like just adjusting to, and learning what different wrestling crowds like, because not every wrestling crowd loves the flips I do, some crowds just love you talking to them during the match and they’re like ‘oh this is the best match ever’. So I feel like learning that and developing that, that’s what my biggest challenge is right now.” 

Evans was 19 years old when WWE signed him in 2023. His agile in-ring performances soon made him a fan-favorite. Barely a year into his signing, Evans faced Randy Orton on NXT in October 2024 marking a high-profile matchup for someone at his stage.

He officially became a member of the Raw roster in January this year. Last weekend, Evans made his WrestleMania debut participating in the 6-man ladder match for the Intercontinental Championship.

TKO exec on WWE brand strategy: ‘You’re going to win some folks over & chase some folks away’

Posted on by Josh Nason

In a clip shared Monday from a college appearance last week, TKO head Mark Shapiro made some headlines with comments about WWE’s use of celebrities, a now infamous quote about “creative control” and an admission that their strategy might chase soem fans away.

During an appearance at the University of Alabama (heard below), Shapiro was asked about whether TKO has creative control over decisions like bringing in celebrities like Pat McAfee, Jelly Roll and iShowSpeed into the WWE world amid online complaints that WWE is more focused on moments and money making than anything else.

Shapiro said, “It has complete control. We’re responsible: good or bad, fact or fiction.”

While the immediate reaction has been that TKO is instructing Paul Levesque in what to do to with creative, it’s unclear if that is what Shapiro was trying to say or if “it” was more in the vein of traditional corporate synergy on decision-making vs. no input.

Shapiro did chalk criticism up to the fact that TKO is a public company now and that before Vince McMahon went public with WWE, “they didn’t put out financial results” and “no one knew it was successful,” noting that the brand with strong with a legion of fans but that was all people knew.

“Now, everything’s kind of out there,” he said, putting over WWE’s growth in every area and crediting their media strategy of Netflix, ESPN, USA and The CW.

He then said about stars, “I don’t think that part is true, but if it was, good” before talking about how The Rock is the biggest star on the planet. It’s unclear from the five minute clip what he was referring to.

He did say that, “Having Hollywood tie-ins and celebrities….that’s not new. It’s juston a larger stage,” mentioning the names above plus Mark Wahlberg and Tyrese Haliburton.

He acknowledged that “you can make some enemies really quickly” when content is spread across multiple platforms.

“We’re spending a lot more money to market the brand and the content. When you do that, you’re going to win some folks over and chase some folks away,” he said, illustrating how it’s not just WWE and citing how he read a story about New York Yankees fans would have to spend $1000 this season over ten digital platforms if they wanted to watch every game.

Jade Cargill wanted to wrestle more during WWE Women’s title reign

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Jade Cargill reflected on her WWE WrestleMania 42 showdown with Rhea Ripley, addressing shortcomings in her title reign and outlining ambitions for the future.

In an exclusive with The Takedown on SI, Cargill acknowledged the experience Ripley had with seasoned opponents like Becky Lynch and Charlotte Flair at earlier WrestleMania events. She emphasized the importance of confidence heading into WrestleMania 42 catapulted her ability to deliver in the bout.

“She can’t go out there and have that stellar match if I don’t put on [a show] as well. Rhea has always had amazing dance partners. She’s worked with Charlotte, she’s worked with Becky… It takes two to tango. I wasn’t nervous last year. I had a match with the great Naomi. I thought we had a superb match in itself. It wasn’t a title match, so obviously it’s not gonna have as much buzz around it, but I don’t think that this was any different. I just had a title. And a title doesn’t make me, I make the title.”

Cargill added that while being the WWE Women’s Champion felt great it did lack in terms of what she had hoped for and wishes she had wrestled more. She identified it as a practice run for her next reign. 

“I wanted to wrestle more. I wanted more competitive matches. I wanted more grit. I really wanted to sink my teeth into whatever was being thrown at me. That’s all I wanted with my reign, but we didn’t get that as much as I wanted, and that’s fine. But now that I had a practice run, I’m gonna call it a practice run, I’m gonna say next time is gonna be totally different.” 

Cargill described that she has often been surrounded by superstars and revisited her AEW debut match where she teamed up with Shaquille O’Neal against Cody Rhodes and Red Velvet. 

“I’ve been around superstars my entire life. That first match [in AEW], I was working with Cody Rhodes, and I was working with Shaquille O’Neal. Something that always sticks with me is that I asked [Shaq] if he was nervous. He was like, ‘Nervous? I can go out there, I could trip, fall, whatever. I’m still gonna be me. I’m still a star.'”

Cargill won the WWE Women’s Championship at SNME in November 2025 from Tiffany Stratton. Reports indicated that the title change was influenced by Stratton’s knee injury that required her to take some time off. Her first title defense took place on the February 13 edition of SmackDown.

Ripley set her sights on the championship after Elimination Chamber victory. This sparked a social media exchange that escalated into their rivalry for WrestleMania 42 where Ripley ended Cargill’s nearly 170 day title reign. 

Nikki Bella: It was ‘extremely hard’ to miss out on potentially last WWE WrestleMania moment

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Missing out on WrestleMania 42 was “extremely hard” for Nikki Bella, especially given that it might have been her last chance to have a real WrestleMania moment.

Nikki and her twin sister Brie were supposed to challenge for the Women’s Tag Team titles this past Saturday. But Nikki suffered an ankle injury prior to WrestleMania that prevented her from wrestling at the show. The event instead saw Brie team with the returning Paige to become the new WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions. Nikki did end up factoring into the match, interfering and using a crutch to help Brie & Paige get the win.

On a new episode of The Nikki & Brie Show, Nikki reflected on not being able to compete at Mania. She and Brie are expecting to retire when their WWE contracts come up in early 2028. With next year’s event being held in Saudi Arabia, that means Nikki probably won’t get to compete on another WrestleMania in the United States.

“I don’t think a WrestleMania moment for me is going to come around. I get that I’ll probably have my last WrestleMania next year in Saudi maybe, but other than that, that will be it for me,” Nikki said. “So this would have been my last WrestleMania moment to share with family members and share with people here and, you know, really feel something.

“And I’ve worked really hard the past year and a half and I haven’t complained. I’ve done what I’ve been told. You know, I’ve helped put people over — even though I don’t care about that. But I’ve really, as far as my character and the impact that I can have, I’ve been very okay taking a step back and helping out and not bitching about it.

“So this was my moment that I worked really hard for this past year and a half. And for that to all go away is extremely hard.”

Nikki is currently expecting to miss 6-8 weeks after tearing, spraining, and fracturing her ankle. But if it takes longer than that, she’s okay with it. Her primary focus right now is on longevity and making sure she doesn’t negatively impact her quality of life going forward.

Pulling out of WrestleMania 42 is something Brie Bella considered after Nikki’s injury. But opportunities like this are rare, and teaming with Paige in her return was especially appealing because the Bellas consider Paige to be family.

Brock Lesnar update & whether those within WWE think he’s actually retired

Posted on by Josh Nason

Whether Brock Lesnar has officially retired is still a question within WWE, according to our Dave Meltzer.

On the post-Raw edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez discussed the latest on Lesnar who took off his gear and shared an emotional embrace with Paul Heyman after his quick WrestleMania 42 Sunday loss to Oba Femi.

Meltzer said that based on some people he’s spoken with in WWE, “they believe he’s not retiring yet” although it’s likely to happen at this year at some point.

“No one knows. It might be one of those things where it’s being kept quiet like the Seth Rollins (injury angle),” he said. “I’m not saying for sure (whether he’s retired) as no one knows for sure.”

He later added that at one point, the plan was for Lesnar to keep feuding with Femi and not have it just be a one and done match. However, that decision was dropped and the idea was to do the Goldberg approach and go with Femi all the way.

Alvarez noted how it was odd Lesnar threw up an X to the crowd after the WrestleMania match,. how emotional Heyman was during his Raw promo, and his opinion that the tribute video on Raw felt more thrown together than other video packages as if Lesnar’s actions were unexpected and caught everyone off guard.

The favor that Heyman owes Gunther for taking on Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 42 was widely speculated to be a final match against Lesnar, likely for August’s SummerSlam in Lesnar’s home state of Minnesota. Gunther declined to discuss the favor on Raw as a feud with LA Knight appears imminent.

Jacob Fatu shares what Roman Reigns told him backstage before WWE WrestleMania 42

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Roman Reigns met Jacob Fatu backstage at WWE WrestleMania 42 and encouraged him to stay grounded before his Unsanctioned Match against Drew McIntyre. 

Speaking with Daniel Cormier, Fatu revealed he got emotional ahead of his WrestleMania match with Drew McIntyre. Backstage, Reigns approached him and offered reassurance, encouraging Fatu to calm his nerves, enjoy the moment and take it all in. Fatu also expressed gratitude for his 2-0 streak at WrestleMania within his two-year WWE tenure. 

“Nah, but yesterday was, it was emotional. It didn’t hit me until I actually was getting ready to walk out. I’m so nervous. I seen a couple cats on the way. I seen my big Uce, I seen the Tribal Chief Roman Reigns yesterday. Right before I walked out. He still calls me Jake, Jakester, Jakey, you know what I mean? So he had to (tell me), you know, ‘hey, man, calm down. Enjoy the moment,’ you know? Something that my wife always tells me, but Roman was like, ‘just take it all in,’ and before I went out, man, being ready, having my gear on and locked in, just thinking about all the tough times, all the struggle, everything to bring me to this moment right here. I mean, come on, I’m very blessed to be in WWE for two years and be 2-0 at WrestleMania right out the gate.”

Fatu had high praise for his WrestleMania 42 opponent, acknowledging the impact he had on their match and buildup. 

“Drew McIntyre ain’t no regular guy. He’s a beast. So, it might sound weird, but shout out to Drew”

“No, he’s not (a normal dude). I mean we got to think about what he’s been doing. I feel like this would have never happened, it would have never had got to where it went if it wasn’t for Drew McIntyre.” 

Fatu defeated McIntyre on Night One of the Premium Live Event last weekend. On the Raw after Mania, Fatu challenged Reigns for the World Heavyweight Championship at Backlash. He claimed that it was not a want but a need to have everything Reigns does. 

Reigns outlined the responsibilities that go hand-in-hand with being World Champion. He did not give Fatu a definitive response but instead gave him a week to think it over. As the show came to a close, Reigns was heard telling Jimmy Uso to talk some sense into Fatu.

Booker T: We ‘needed some better security’ at WWE WrestleMania hotel

Posted on by Joseph Currier

More reports continue to emerge detailing how bad the security situation was in Las Vegas during WWE WrestleMania 42 weekend.

On his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker T said Mania weekend this year was the toughest situation he’s ever had to deal with in terms of fan behavior. People were being disrespectful and mobbing WWE wrestlers and legends at the MGM Grand hotel. He urged fans to give the wrestlers more privacy and space in the future. And Booker T said there needed to be better security at the hotel.

“Walking through MGM Grand, we needed some better security at MGM Grand this year,” Booker T said. “Just because, it was really, really hard — I can only imagine what the superstars, the guys that’s actually going out there and doing it in the ring, how it felt for them. Because I got mobbed, and I’m not even doing this anymore. So hopefully we can get that fixed.”

There was an incident after night two of Mania where a fan had their phone knocked away by CM Punk as the fan was trying to film an interaction between AJ Lee and Bayley. Security was said to have been an issue all weekend with not enough being done to give talent privacy when they had to go through common areas where fans would be.

Booker T said fans were following wrestlers everywhere — and one even filmed Booker T while he was in the bathroom.

“They were camped out — everywhere — they were camped out. You couldn’t walk anywhere,” Booker T said. “And they were following you. In the bathroom, I remember the guy literally was filming me in the bathroom. And when I walked out he goes, ‘Hey, Booker.’ And I just kept walking because I was so mad because he was filming me in the bathroom.”

A two-time WWE Hall of Famer, Booker T is now part of the commentary team for NXT. He emphasized that he loves his fans but said people really need to understand what wrestlers are going through during such a hectic weekend, especially when they have their families with them.

John Cena calls Danhausen segment one of his favorite WWE WrestleMania moments ever

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

John Cena’s hosting duties at WWE WrestleMania 42 on Night Two took an unexpected yet surprising turn with Danhausen’s inclusion. 

Cena tweeted a photo Danhausen shared years ago, with the caption that the WWE segment was one of his favorites from WrestleMania 42. 

“One of my favorite #WrestleMania moments ever. So happy we got an updated photograph together.” posted Cena. 

On Night Two, Cena’s hosting duty was interrupted by The Miz and Kit Wilson. Miz was frantic about his omission from having a WrestleMania moment. Cena shook hands with him and extended an invitation to comply with his request. Danhausen emerged with a group of little people dressed like him. 

He finally got his wish to meet Cena. The Miz, however, was left furious at the disrespect. The segment concluded with the little people attacking Wilson at Danhausen’s command. And he progressed to imitate Cena’s signature ‘You can’t see me’ phrase and hit the five knuckle shuffle on Miz with Cena’s approval.

The Miz’s issues with Danhausen stemmed from their first encounter on the March 6 edition of SmackDown. Danhausen’s eagerness for Miz to be his mentor was not well received and as a result he was cursed. 

Fan wants ‘an apology’ after CM Punk post-WWE WrestleMania incident

Posted on by Joseph Currier

The fan who had his phone smacked away by CM Punk after WWE WrestleMania 42 is asking for an apology.

On Monday, TMZ Sports published video of an incident that took place in a Las Vegas hotel lobby after Mania. A fan was filming Punk’s wife AJ Lee and Bayley as they hugged and said goodbye to each other. In response, Punk knocked the man’s phone to the ground. Punk was visibly angry, but the incident did not escalate any further. Security and Punk’s mentor Ace Steel stepped in to help diffuse the situation.

The fan, asking to remain anonymous, has now spoken to TMZ and said he is not planning to sue Punk, instead asking for an apology and a handshake.

“I want an apology — shake my hand — I’m not gonna sue him or put him in jail,” the fan said. “I just want an apology.”

Punk has frequently spoken out against fans who show up at hotels and airports looking for wrestlers, and security was said to have been an issue all of WrestleMania weekend with not enough being done to give wrestlers privacy while they had to go through common areas where fans were going to be.

TMZ has also shared some more video of the incident between Punk and the fan. It shows that, before Punk slapped his phone away, Bayley and Lee had multiple fans filming them. The two then went into an elevator bank looking for privacy, but this man followed them.

“We love you, Bayley,” the fan said before Bayley responded by putting her hand up to block the man’s phone and telling him to get out of there. Punk then smacked the phone away.

The incident happened shortly after Punk main evented night two of WrestleMania 42 in a loss to Roman Reigns. Punk appeared on Raw last night and teased an upcoming match against Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes.

Jade Cargill on WWE WrestleMania 42 match: ‘I think we did a stellar job’

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Jade Cargill faced Rhea Ripley for the first time at WrestleMania 42, where Ripley captured the WWE Women’s Championship, ending her 169-day reign.

Speaking with 8 News Now — Las Vegas, Cargill reviewed her WrestleMania 42 performance. She commended the match and her entrance at the WWE Premium Live Event. Cargill cited she dwelled in the hate that fans have for her and is adamant on getting a rematch for the WWE Women’s Championship. 

“You know what? It’s okay, because I’m going to get my revenge and get that rematch.”

“I’ve never been featured on Night Two, I’ve always been on Night One so this is my first time on Night Two, I think we did a stellar job. I think my entrance was amazing. I think the energy at Allegiant Stadium was electric,” said Cargill. 

“It was cool, I liked it. The crowd was coming for me, they hated me, I love that for me. Keep hating me. But it was cool, I really liked it, the atmosphere was amazing. Okay, I didn’t deliver, but I’m going to get that rematch.”

WrestleMania 42 marked Cargill’s third appearance at the PLE, while Ripley competed for the seventh time in a row. Michin and B-Fab interfered in the title match on Cargill’s behalf but their plans unraveled when IYO SKY ran out to aid Ripley. 

During the bout, Cargill used a move synonymous with Kenny Omega, the One Winged Angel. However, in WWE the commentators referred to it as the Sandstorm. Later, Omega acknowledged and responded to the move being used after it sparked major buzz on social media.

Sol Ruca names IYO SKY as dream opponent after WWE Raw debut

Posted on by Rosanne Raphael

Sol Ruca is officially a part of the WWE Raw roster after nearly four years on NXT. 

On Raw Recap, Ruca discussed nervousness before her debut on the brand. She also spoke about going up against Liv Morgan, who is supported by fans despite being a heel, in her first Raw match. She initially assumed her Raw debut would be a brief on-screen moment or a backstage segment instead of a full-fledged match.

“Absolutely incredible. I mean, this is not what I was expecting at all. I came here to do some world matches, some media stuff, and then a few days in, they were like, actually, you’re gonna be on Raw and I was like, ‘oh, okay, cool. Good thing, I brought extra clothes in here and stuff.’ And honestly, I thought it was gonna be like a crowd shot, or backstage or what have you. And getting here, they’re like, promo match interviews, all that. And I’m like, ‘Alright, this is it, this is my time to make my moment and prove myself, and especially being in the ring with Liv Morgan, who just came off of a huge win at WrestleMania, and her mic work, her ring work, is incredible. And to be able to be put in that position, it honestly gave me confidence.”

Ruca added that she was genuinely surprised by the crowd’s reaction, noting that fans knew who she was despite many main roster audiences not being familiarized with NXT talents. 

“A lot of the time, people at Raw, people who watch at home, don’t watch NXT as well. So coming out there, coming from NXT, is a big gamble on I don’t know if these people are gonna know who I am. I don’t know if they’re gonna care for what I have to say. Again, going into Liv Morgan, like, yes, she is a heel, but people do love her as well. So I’m like, I could be booed I don’t know. So, yeah, going out there, you just kind of have to be confident and go for it. And it definitely threw me off a little bit as soon as I said my first line, they popped, and I was like, ‘okay, they know who I am’. But it’s a learning curve, going from NXT to here to listen to the crowd and be able to have a little bit slow of a pace and feed off the crowd and just have your moments.”

When asked about dream opponents, Ruca instantly mentioned IYO SKY. She proceeded to mention Randy Orton, if it ever came down to it given their signature moves style. 

“So, my dream match is IYO SKY. But for this scenario, if it can be anyone, it’d probably be Randy Orton. The RKO, the Sol Snatcher, we’re gonna see whose is better. Maybe throw Je’Von in there too. We can all just go crazy.”

Last year in July, Ruca made her SmackDown debut in a fatal 4-way match against Alexa Bliss, Roxanne Perez and Kairi Sane. In October, Ruca and Zaria competed against then-Women’s Tag Team Champions, Bliss and Charlotte Flair for the titles. 

The Raw after WrestleMania added three new members to their roster – Ruca, Ethan Page, and Joe Hendry. While Page and Ruca made their in-ring debuts, Hendry will appear on the show next week. 

Giovanni Vinci reacts to WWE release, gives update on wrestling future

Posted on by Joseph Currier

He’s been away from the industry for more than a year, but Giovanni Vinci is looking forward to getting back into the ring.

Vinci (real name Fabian Aichner) was released from his WWE contract in February 2025 and hasn’t wrestled since December 2024. He took a step back after his release but reemerged last month with his first social media post since being let go by WWE.

Now appearing on a new episode of Insight with Chris Van Vliet, Vinci opened up about his departure from WWE and his wrestling future. He took some time to recharge his batteries but is excited to start wrestling again.

“I just knew that after the call — because it was such a surreal feeling, man,” Vinci said about his release. “It was like, on the one hand, it sucked that that chapter was over because that’s what I wanted to do since I was 13 years old. But on the other hand, because it was such a roller coaster leading up to that, it felt freeing in a way.

“Like, I told a friend of mine, he asked me if I was okay. I said, ‘Yeah, man, I’m good.’ It’s almost like when you’re in school and school ends and you go on summer vacation. Just all the weight was off because at least I knew. At least I knew. There was no more thinking about it. And really, after that, all I did was, I just knew I was taking some time. Didn’t know how much it was. And, yeah, I didn’t think about how long exactly I was going to be out for. Just like, okay, I’m going to need some space, take some time for myself, figure myself out, and, yeah, enjoy life a little bit.”

Vinci said he was both surprised and not surprised by his release. When SmackDown went to three hours, he hoped there would be more time on the show for him, but WWE didn’t end up doing much with his repackaged singles character after splitting from Imperium.

There is no definitive timeline for when he’ll return to wrestling, but Vinci said he’s had some “really good talks” about it. He is staying ready and believes he has not reached his full potential as a wrestler yet.

“I feel like there’s way more things to do for me,” he said. “I feel like I haven’t reached my full potential yet. I feel like some people know what I can do, but I know I can do a lot more. And I just really, like, yeah, I wanted to take enough time to not come back and go in halfway. So I definitely work out, like I want to wrestle again. I feel like there’s many things still to do. Nothing set in stone yet, but when that opportunity comes, I know I’ll be ready for it.”

When he does return, the 35-year-old Vinci wants to focus on having fun and being authentic. He used to put too much pressure on himself and second guessed himself too often because he was so focused on accomplishing his dream of getting to WWE and succeeding there.

“Whereas nowadays, I just want to have fun, man,” Vinci said. “I want to go out there — because that’s what it’s supposed to be. It’s just fun.

“I want to have great matches. I want to be authentic. I want to tear it up with whoever I’m in the ring with. Just have a good time and enjoy the process. Live in the moment. And I know that’s when great things are going to happen.”