Big E has opened up about coming to terms with the end of his in-ring career, revealing that stepping away from wrestling was not as difficult as many might expect.
Speaking to The A2TheK Wrestling Show while promoting his upcoming book, the former WWE Champion reflected on his accomplishments and why he has found peace with retirement. “It wasn’t difficult for me. As much as I loved my time in the ring, it wasn’t heartbreaking for me to say my time here is over, because I was able to look back,” Big E said.
The former WWE Champion explained that perspective played a major role in helping him accept the situation. “A guy like me, I’m not six feet tall, I don’t come from a wrestling lineage at all. To me, as a failed football player who came in with bad knees, to be the second-ever NXT Champion, WWE named us the greatest tag team of all time,” he said.
Big E also pointed to several career highlights, including sharing a memorable promo segment with The Rock, launching New Day-themed cereal, leading WWE in merchandise sales in 2016, winning Money in the Bank, and ultimately capturing the WWE Championship. “To become WWE Champion, Mr. Money in the Bank, all these things, but more than anything, to have the respect of my peers, the respect from fans, I can look back, and I had so much fun in my career.”
Big E also discussed what he believes is the most challenging aspect of professional wrestling, noting that it has little to do with the physical demands of the industry. “This is not an easy business, there’s a lot of politics to deal with, a lot of time away from family and friends,” he said.
According to Big E, navigating relationships and expectations behind the scenes is often more difficult than training or performing in the ring. “I tell wrestlers all the time, the hard part is not the wrestling training, the shows, not the bumps. The hard part is learning to navigate the office, it’s learning to deal with creative, it’s learning when to push and say I’ll eat this one today.”
He added that understanding those dynamics is essential for long-term success. “If you don’t know how to navigate those waters, you might not be around for long.”
Big E concluded by crediting Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods for helping make his WWE career what it became. “There is no Big E WWE Championship run without those guys, there is no Money in the Bank, and there is no potential Hall of Fame,” he said.
He also admitted that his career trajectory may have been very different without The New Day. “My career is one with maybe a little bit of promise early, and then peters out fairly quickly, and maybe we forget about this guy if not for Kofi and Woods, so I am so, so grateful for them.”
Big E has not wrestled since suffering a broken neck during a March 2022 episode of WWE SmackDown. While the injury ultimately ended his in-ring career, he remains an active ambassador for WWE and continues to be one of the company’s most beloved personalities.
