By Jason Powell, ProWrestling.net Editor (@prowrestlingnet)
Insight With Chris Van Vliet with guest Sheamus
Host: Chris Van Vliet
Podcast available via Podcasts.Apple.com
On beating John Cena to win the WWE Championship early in his career: “So before that, I went to Raw, and I had to wrestle Jamie Noble. But the first match we had, we thought it went well. Then all of a sudden we get told I sh*t the bed. So the match was so bad. So that’s when we had the second match, where I Powerbomb him on the floor, yeah, but the first thing was I was told, ‘You better bring it in the next one, or you’re going to be dead in the water.’ That’s what I was told from certain people in positions. So it was they hated it so much that I think Patterson really hated it, so it just got back. Then I was freaked out, and I had to go to ECW wrestling Shelton [Benjamin] the next night, then I had that match, it was physical as well. So it was all of a sudden a serious pressure. Then we had the second Jamie Noble match with the Powerbomb and all.
“It was a rough bump for him to take, we knew we were gonna do it. But then after that, then I got to the races. Then the next week or two, I’m in Survivor Series. And then all of a sudden we’re going off towards this breakthrough battle royal thing, and I’m wrestling John, I had no idea. So the day at the day of TLC, I drove into San Antonio, and I fully expected to be told I was losing. I was in the car with, I think Arn Anderson and Scott Armstrong, and Scott was saying what an upset would be if you won. And Arn was like, ‘No, no, it’s too early.’ Then all of a sudden, got pulled into the room, Vince [McMahon] is there, and I’m nervous as hell, right? Because all of a sudden, I’m going into a WWE Championship match. Vince, he turned around to me and John, and Arn. He said, ‘John, what if we…’ John goes, ‘Put the kid over?’ Vince is like, ‘Yeah, no problem.’ And that was it. And he walked out, and I’m just sitting there, what the f*ck is happening? And then when we went out there, that was John, though. Right away, straight up was like, let’s do it.”
On slamming Mark Cuban through a table: “I didn’t even know who Mark Cuban was. I’m serious, I didn’t. I only came over from Ireland a couple of years [before that]. So I don’t know. Obviously, now I’m more invested in American sports; I watch basketball and watch American football, and baseball. But I didn’t know. I didn’t know anything about who Mark Cuban was. So all I heard was, ‘This fella has had a vasectomy. Be careful you don’t put him through a table.’ I’m like, Who is this guy? [They said] ‘Just don’t hurt him. He’s a billionaire.’ And I was like, okay, all right, grand. That was the story there. I didn’t know who he was. And then there’s a whole thing about that, by the way, when he shoved me to the ground, some of the producers were mad, they were like, ‘You shouldn’t be shoving Sheamus to the ground.’ But that’s what came from the top. So when he did that and all, I got up and I put him through the table. But I didn’t know who he was. I’m serious. I had no idea. Then I’m watching Shark Tank later, I go, ‘That’s the fella I put through a table!’ I’m not making that up.”
On the 1-800 Fella vignettes: “I remember that being the end of my babyface run. I could see it happening. I was brogue kicking trees. I don’t know who came up with that idea. I know Vince was really excited about it. ‘This is great. This is gonna make you a super babyface.’ I’m like, No, it’s not. I Brogue Kicked the tree and got a cat out of a tree, there was a hiccup thing. What else was there? I don’t know. I think I blocked it out of my memory. That is a lot of PTSD. I remember being at Raw, I was just watching them going, Oh my God. I’m looking at the crowds. One thing that John Cena always does it’s very smart, actually. You learn a lot from him. But before the show starts, he sits in Gorilla [position]. There’s a table with a monitor, so you can see the show before Gorilla gets too crowded. He sits in the chair, and he looks as people pile in. So he’ll sit there, and he’ll watch who’s coming and sitting in the front row. He’ll watch the T-shirts they wear, and he’ll watch the first match and see how to react. So he’s already figured out what’s working and what’s not working on the show. That’s just who he is, man. He’s dialed in all the time. So I did the same thing with the 1-800 Fella thing, and I was just like [groans]. [Unenthusiastic] ‘Yay, it’s me, Sheamus. Fella, let’s go.’ Forget you saw that vignette two segments ago.”
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