WWE Money in the Bank 2024: WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) is about to have their final pit stop before their biggest event of the summer, ie Summerslam 2024, in the form of WWE Money in the Bank 2024, at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. The event will feature Money in the Bank ladder matches for both men’s and women’s divisions. However, the main event of the night will witness the two former Money in the Bank winners, who cashed in their briefcase at Wrestlemania to win their first world titles, ie, Damien Priest and Seth Rollins, going one-on-one for the World Heavyweight Championship, which is currently in possession of Judgment Day’s Damien Priest.
Before his highly anticipated match with Seth Rollins, where he is not only putting his World title on the line but also his place on Judgment Day, the reigning WWE World Heavyweight champion talked to The Indian Express and opened up about his upcoming match, his dreams and his past.
Damien Priest during his NXT days. (Source: WWE)
Check out the full interview below:
Q- What does it mean to be called the WWE World Heavyweight Champion?
Damien Priest- Being the champion solidifies me as part of history. My name will live forever. And that, to me, was very important. Obviously, you know, when you dream of being a WWE superstar, you want to be a champion, and achieving that dream is very surreal. I achieved the ultimate goal, as you know, so many try, and not everybody gets to succeed in this. So, to be one of the few who got the breakthrough, it’s a special and humbling honor to be in this position.
Q- Does having your place in the Judgment Day on the line against Seth bring extra pressure?
Damien Priest- I’m confident. That’s why I made that gentleman’s agreement, where, you know if I lose fine, I leave the Judgment Day, but I don’t think I’m gonna lose, or I wouldn’t have made that bet. The pressure is on, as it’s Seth Rollins, one of the greatest ever to do this, and he’s still going strong. And I feel like this is the perfect opportunity that if I’m gonna prove myself, I have to beat Seth Rollins. He is the guy that we look up to, we think Seth Rollins is the man. He’s the best of the best, and I need to prove myself against him.
Q- Did you want to cash in your Money in the Bank briefcase on Seth Rollins on WrestleMania as both of you have this rare achievement under your name?
Damien Priest- That’s exactly what I wanted to do. I wanted to cash it in on Seth, and I haven’t even been shy about admitting that. He did it first at WrestleMania. It would be a cool story to say that I did it to him at WrestleMania. Seth Rollins was the workhorse champion. So for me, I wanted to beat Seth Rollins, I feel like that would solidify me even more as a champion. You beat Seth for the title, and that’s huge. Not many can say that. So that was the main thing, but now at Money in the Bank, I got to, you know, at least rectify that and beat Seth Rollins.
Q- How would you describe Seth Rollins’ reign as the inaugural WWE World Heavyweight champion?
Damien Priest- Seth, I think he killed it. He came out, and he did exactly what he said he was gonna do. He was defending it against anybody and everybody. He didn’t shy away from any challenge. I feel like it was a time when we needed a champion. Monday Night Raw didn’t really have anybody, so they created an opportunity for the Raw roster. If we don’t have a champion, what are we doing? Why are we even going to battle, so when this championship got reintroduced, it was something like we all looked at each other, like, we want this, everybody wanted it. So that championship, you know what Seth did for it, he elevated something that was already important to us, but now he made it important for everyone. So I’m gonna continue that legacy of making sure that that title is important, making sure people want and need to be the champion.
Q- How different is Damien Priest from Punishment Martinez (Priest’s wrestling name before joining WWE)?
Damien Priest- I feel like Punisher Martinez was a whole different person. My confidence my wrestling ability my showmanship everything is just I’m on a different level. I don’t even think I’m the same guy I was a year ago. Especially after winning the championship, I felt like I just became a different superstar. I’m on a whole other level and my confidence is through the roof. It’s like I get it, I get what is needed to be done to remain the world champion, something Punishment. Martinez had no idea how to talk the talk or walk the walk. I am way better off now, and I am way more seasoned than I was then. So the last five years I have become a whole other monster.
Q- Which WWE superstar from the past and present would you like to have on Judgment Day?
Damien Priest- My all-time favorite is Undertaker. Obviously, in Judgment Day, that could work, but it’d be hard to say I don’t want somebody from the NWO like Scott Hall in the group. I have a lot of favorites, but it’d be a toss-up between those two Undertaker Scott Hall. From the current roster, I would like Jay Uso. He has got everybody’s respect and that’s legitimately like one of my boys now. So, if I could get Jay into the Judgment Day, that would be cool.
Q- What does Damien Priest think about R-Truth?
Damien Priest- R-Truth is a funny, funny guy. It’s hard to stay serious around that guy. No matter how bad you are, no matter how hard you’re trying to be serious. He finds a way to hit you and that’s one of the areas you just have to smile and laugh. Very talented. One of everybody’s favorite people in the back.