Big E Respects New Day’s Decision To Walk Away From WWE, Comments On Ownership Changes
Big E continues to open up about New Day leaving WWE.
Earlier this week, Big E commented on the departures for the first time and said that he isn’t expecting Kofi and Xavier to hang up their boots yet.
In a new interview with Chris Van Vliet, E continued to talked about the situation, this time touching more on the business side of things. The former WWE Champion stressed that the company’s ownership is not the same as it used to be. He also applauded the duo’s decision to step away when they were offered something that they would not accept.
“I don’t want to speak for them. I know when the time is right, I’m sure they’ll have a lot of things to say. There are things out there about pay cuts and whatnot. I just know, look, this ownership is not the same ownership that existed when we first signed to the company. It is their company, it is not ours. So they make their decisions with how pay goes, and ultimately, we all have to abide by that, and you understand that it is not your ball. It was not our ball when we first signed to the company. It is not our ball now. It is someone else’s ball to determine when you get in the game and how many carries you got. So they made a decision, and I just kind of want to leave that in their hands to be able to decide. I can’t fully speak to a lot of that, but I think we, as performers, we all want to feel valued, you want to feel like people want you here, there’s a plan for you, and we’re going to compensate you accordingly. When you feel like that plan is not in accordance with your plan, or the money doesn’t line up with the way you see yourself valued, you have to make a decision on whether you’re going to say, “Yes, this is what I will accept, or “No, this is not what I’m going to accept. So they made a decision to step away, and I respect [that]. Those guys will always be my family, regardless of what company we’re in, regardless of how old we are. What we built is bigger than companies, it’s bigger than our industry. If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be in the financial position I’m in. I wouldn’t have the breadth and myriad of incredible experiences, even just getting comfortable in my own skin. I credit those guys for so much of that. I look back on our time in The New Day, and we could talk about how my career was cut short, we could talk about the things that didn’t happen in my career, but I knew I was in the good old days. When I was in the good old days, I knew this was it, and I was able to enjoy it. You’re always pushing for more. You’re oftentimes annoyed with booking or disgruntled with certain decisions, but I knew we had lightning in a bottle, and not just on screen, but off-screen. The way we traveled together, the amount, the laughs we had, I can’t tell you how many times I had to wipe tears of laughter out of my eyes. So many times when we were just, we had too much fun. I don’t think we ever had a blow-up, we never had an argument, we never had a time where we butted heads, really ever. If we had any minor disagreements, they were about creative process, and we were able to get on the same page immediately, the way we work together, our synergy, it’s special. So those guys are family, and will always be family. And I will always root for their prosperity. I will always, always root for their fulfillment. I just want them to be happy. So, if they’re happy at home, if they’re happy wrestling in VFW halls, if they’re happy doing conventions, gaming, whatever it is that they want to do with their lives that fulfills them, as long as they ain’t hurting anyone, fully support it.”
Fightful will update fans when more is known about the wrestling futures of Kofi Kingston and Xavier Woods.
Big E recently talked about his upcoming book, saying that he decided to write it after the response to his Player’s Tribune article. Check out his full comments by clicking here.
Special thanks to Chris Van Vliet for the quote(s) in this interview.
