New WWE Champion Jinder Mahal said he was congratulated by Vince McMahon after his title win over Randy Orton at the Backlash pay-per-view.
In an interview with Fox Sports, Mahal said McMahon shook his hand and congratulated him on the title win. Mahal called McMahon a genius and relies on him for advice.
“He was very happy, shook my hand. He was standing up when I came back through Gorilla," Mahal said. "I get a lot of advice from Vince. I believe he’s a genius, so a lot of promos and everything… the last couple weeks after a match or a promo, Vince is the first person that I come to talk to. He was very happy, he could see that I was improving, and Vince is one of those guys… if you care, he cares about you. I have a great relationship with Vince now, which is one of those things I never had before, because I would kind of avoid him. But now I come back and Vince is the first person that I see every week.”
Mahal shot up to the top of the card after winning a six-pack challenge on an April episode of SmackDown to become the No. 1 contender to the WWE Championship. He won the title at Backlash, his ever title in WWE.
It was also announced by SmackDown commissioner Shane McMahon on the May 23 episode of SmackDown Live that Orton had invoked his rematch clause and the pair would face each other at the Money in the Bank pay-per-view. The Money in the Bank pay-per-view takes place in St. Louis, Missouri on June 18.
