During a recent interview with No-Contest Wrestling, The Miz reflected on the night he captured the WWE Championship for the first time in 2010, sharing details about Vince McMahon’s tough mentorship, the lessons he learned from WWE veterans, and how he chose to celebrate his career-defining moment.
The A-Lister revealed that becoming WWE Champion was the culmination of years of hard work, criticism, and growth — much of it driven by direct feedback from Vince himself. “So then I get backstage and people are clapping backstage, shaking my hands. I went up to Vince [McMahon], I told him, ‘I won’t let you down. You made the right decision,’” Miz recalled.
He revealed that McMahon had pushed him relentlessly to evolve after an early loss to John Cena at The Great American Bash. “Nobody really knows this, but Vince was on me from whenever I lost to John Cena… ‘You need to start being serious. You can’t be such a goof. Goofy doesn’t sell. I want you to put asses in seats,’” Miz shared.
Determined to rise to the challenge, Miz absorbed advice from some of WWE’s biggest stars. “After every match, he would literally just be like, ‘You need to do this better.’ I’ve seen him do it with many talents. But then he was taking an interest in me. I was a sponge,” he said. “I had Randy Orton to work with at live events. I had John Cena to work with. I had Shawn Michaels take me back and literally say, ‘Mike, this is what you need to be doing.’ Hunter [Triple H] would take me aside and show me how to punch because he didn’t like my punches.”
All of that mentorship paid off as Miz climbed the ranks — capturing the United States Championship, winning tag team gold, and ultimately securing the Money in the Bank briefcase. “So then all that came to there,” he said, reflecting on the night he finally won the WWE Championship.
But while most might have celebrated with a party after such a monumental moment, Miz opted for something much simpler. “Where do you go? Do you go celebrate? I mean, right? We’re in Orlando, let’s go to a club… Man, I went to Denny’s and had a barbecue chicken skillet with my soon-to-be wife, Maryse,” he revealed. “That’s how we celebrated my WWE Championship. We went to Denny’s on a date, went back, were exhausted, went to sleep, flew the next day to L.A., and started my journey on literally doing everything and anything I possibly could to be the best WWE Champion I could be.”
Miz went on to have a memorable reign and has since become one of WWE’s most decorated and consistent performers — proving that McMahon’s tough love and the guidance of legends helped transform him into a main-event-caliber star.
